I have an Apple ID that is not an e-mail address(*). When you visit the “Create an Apple ID” page on the Apple ID site though, it says you need to “Enter your primary email address as your Apple ID.” I'm not sure how I got my existing Apple ID that is not an email address, from what I can tell from Apple's FAQ page it may have something to do with MobileMe (though I never had a paid MobileMe account; it could also be from using the Apple Developer Connection site).
Is it still possible to create a new Apple ID somehow and not use an e-mail address as the ID, or is this a legacy MobileMe option only?
(*) To clarify: the Apple ID is associated with an e-mail address of course, and that's where my receipts are sent to when I buy something in iTunes (let's say “john.doe@gmail.com”), but my Apple ID username that I use to sign in in iTunes or on the Apple ID page is not that e-mail address at all (let's say it's “cool_john”).
Best Answer
It a not possible to create a non-email address Apple ID any longer.
As a matter of fact, they are becoming more and more inconvenient, as various Apple services begin to assume that your Apple ID is an email. If you have not started to notice it yet, trust me, you will, soon.
I recently changed my non-email Apple ID to the linked email address. You can change the username of an Apple ID without starting a new account.