One idea I've been tossing around is to build a technomancer like an adept. The introduction of Unwired adds all these nifty new things which they can do, but in order to do them you need to submerge many many times.

So i'm curious if someone else has already taken steps to do this?

Handled exactly like adept power points maybe called Techno Points or TP.
Sprites might be .25 or .5 TP per
Things like overclock would be .75 or more TP

Would need to do a bunch of weight analysis on point cost but I figure larger sample of opinions would make it easier to balance.

This all came about by thinking about how to build a TM that is more intune with machines in their vicinity then actually interacting with the matrix as a whole.

Its interesting. It just needs a huge tradeoff.

IMO it might be balanced if the TM was barred from using the skills in the Tasking group as they relate to Sprites.
Then it could spend some sort of 'Echo Points' at 1 per Resonance.

6 levels of submerging with an ordeal and Guild/Network would be 76 karma. Giving up 76 karma worth of starting abilities so its balanced against the core books makes it fairly balanced with a strong neutering like that IMO. It means the TM would use Threading a lot and probably have Swap for 2 of the 6 just to compete with a book TM.

It also means the glass ceiling would be lower since a corebook TM could gain the submerging without sacrificing anything while the Adept TM would be stronger without sprites.

Well part of it would be they have 0 sprites by default (normal TM stream give access to 5) and they would have to spend TP to get them (since there is an echo to get sprites). I've started looking at how much some things would cost. There are a few TM echos that are very similar to Adept powers so the point carry over is a good starting point.

If a starting character can have 6 levels of submerging for free they should not be able to regain the basic sprite functionality such as Assist CF and sustaining threading. Sleuth Sprites, for example, have a TON of functionality and for a drone rigger is anything really needed other than Machine Sprites for the drones and Paladin Sprites for defense?

No... allowing sprites at all is way unbalancing. Two levels of submerging would give back 80% of the lost usefulness by allowing the TM-Adept to get the perfect two sprites for their chosen method.

Way, WAY too powerful as you suggest.