Set up new iPhone guide unboxing of the new handset.

How to Set Up Your New iPhone

Trying to set up your new iPhone or upgrading from a previous model can be tricky.

However, iPhone help is at hand. To get the best out of your new handset, you need to take it through a series of steps. The process might look technical, but we break it down for you.

Update the existing phone operating system

With the increase in hacking incidents that target mobile phone users, upgrading your operating system to the latest version of iOS is essential. Therefore, before migrating to a new iPhone model, ensure that the old one is running the latest version of iOS. What’s more, turn the automatic update option on to get the latest version when released.

Backup and migrate

When migrating from one iPhone model to another, there isn’t any need to start from scratch. To avoid data loss, simply clone your old phone.

To achieve this, back up the old device prior to setting up the new one. Two back up options are iCloud or by computer.

iCloud Backup

If you are running the latest iOS version, your iPhone automatically performs daily iCloud backups when connected to Wi-Fi.

To find out the previous backup date, firstly go to the settings menu. Next tap on your Apple ID. Thirdly, click on iCloud and then finally to the iCloud backup.

If a backup is recent, the slider will show a green colour. If no update has taken place recently, tap on the slider to back up.

The iCloud backup may take longer, particularly if the Wi-Fi speed is slow, and you haven’t backed up recently. Learn more about how to reduce the size of your iCloud backup if its taking too long to complete.

When you set up your new iPhone backup the old one to iCloud first.

To back up on a computer:

Connect your old phone via USB.
When the iPhone icon pops up on the screen, click on it. Next, tap on the top item of the new sidebar.
Under the automatic backup section of the summary screen, select the computer backup option.

Computer backup is faster and will ideally take a few minutes, unlike iCloud. Explore both options and go with the most workable choice.

How to set up an iPhone manually

Once you’ve updated and backed up your old handset, your new Apple iPhone is now ready for launch.

Turning on the new iPhone sees the Quick Start option appear. Choose between wireless or manual cloning. Avoid the wireless option if you have loads of data to migrate. The recommended option is manual setup. Click on this option at the foot of the “Quick Start” interface.

Set up Face ID

Your face is the security key when gaining entry to your iPhone. Face ID allows you to securely unlock your handset, sign in to applications and authenticate purchases.

To set it up, you need to have your new device recognise you. When prompted, follow the on-screen instructions and head gestures to easily set your Face ID. Once done, your face will be the iPhone’s security key.

Apple advises that before setting up Face ID, ensure nothing is covering the camera or your face. For best results, ensure you hold the device at arm’s length or about 20 inches from your face.

Restore from iTunes

Once you have set up Face ID, you can now move your data to your new iPhone.

To restore from iTunes, connect your device to your computer and open iTunes.

Select the “Restore from this backup” option. Then choose the backup that you made earlier from the drop down menu.

All of your information, applications, settings, multimedia, and passwords will be transferred from the backup to your new iPhone.

Create new accounts, set default email, contacts, and calendars

If you already have a default email, you can skip this step. If you want to add new accounts, go to “Settings” > “Passwords” and “Accounts,” and select “Add Account”.

Choose the preferred additional email service provider and type in the username and password. You can also sync all of your email accounts with your contacts, notes, and calendar.

Update the new iPhone name

To change your new iPhone name, go to the phone “Settings” section, then on the “General” tab.

Select “About,” then scroll down to the “Name” section. Key in the device name of your choice.

Alternatively, you can change it in iTunes. Click on the iPhone name at the top of the right sidebar to change it.

Set up new iPhone for use options on the home screen.

Set up new iPhone to make it your own.

Change email signature

Your new device will send emails with the default sign off “Sent from my iPhone”.

To change this, open your phone “Settings” and go to the “Mail and Signatures” section.

Change the signature to your name on all of the email accounts. Emails dispatched from the device will subsequently bear your new signature.

Turn on iCloud automatic backup

The iCloud backup is crucial for ensuring your data and app information does not get lost.

To set up the iCloud backup:

Go to Settings, then to Apple ID.
Open iCloud and select the automatic backup option.
On iTunes, open the Summary Screen, and under Automatic back up, click on iCloud.