how do i activate my new phone online? i just got it by mail today and cant figure out how to activate it online.

You have to be the primary accountholder and register the account online. Once you register, and are logged on, there will be a tab that says my phone. Click on that. Then you should see another link that activate my phone. Click that. It will ask you some information, such as the phone number and the ESN, and then it will walk you through the process. It only takes a few minutes. If you have anything that you want to keep, make sure that you save them to a memory card and backup your contacts before activating the new phone.