iPhone For Dummies. Bob LeVitus

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Chapter 2

      iPhone Basic Training

      IN THIS CHAPTER

      If you were caught up in the initial iPhone frenzy of 2007, you may have plotted for months about how to land one. After all, the iPhone quickly emerged as the ultimate fashion phone. And the chic device hosted a bevy of cool features.

      Owning the hippest and most-hyped handset on the planet came at a premium cost compared with rival devices. To snag the very first version, you may have saved your pennies or said, “The budget be damned.”

      That’s ancient history now. Well past a decade later, the iPhone went mainstream and, through many versions, you got more bang for your buck. But you also had to part with more of those bucks. The tenth anniversary iPhone, known as the iPhone X, was the first to crack $1,000. Even now, a maxed-out iPhone 12 Pro Max with 512 GB costs $1,399. Not cheap, of course, but plenty of bang too. If that’s too rich for your budget, a new second-generation iPhone SE, as of this writing, starts at $399.

      We can list a bunch of prices here, but pricing for the wireless industry, and accordingly the iPhone, is in a state of flux. You used to be able to buy an iPhone for a subsidized and relatively low upfront price that was tied to a two-year contract with your carrier. Such contracts are passé. Instead, wireless companies and retailers are pushing installment pricing options, in which you can choose to put little or no money down but are then obligated to pay for the device over typically a two-year term. In some cases you lease the phone; in others, you buy the phone outright.

Of course you still must pay for cellular and data coverage and data from a wireless carrier. And taxes and fees are extra.

      You may also get a nice trade-in deal on your existing phone, from Apple or other retailers.

Activating the iPhone

      You will typically activate the iPhone where you bought the thing, just as you do with other cellphones. However, if you buy your iPhone from Apple’s online store, the folks there will ship it to you, and you then activate it at home, likely wirelessly through iCloud or even via an older iPhone you may have lying around. If you’re already a customer upgrading from an earlier iPhone or a different phone, you can convert your plan during the ordering process.

      As mentioned, we aren’t going to go through all the wireless options here. Suffice to say that plans vary by wireless carrier and are subject to change. Unlimited data plans are more common than they used to be, thanks to industry competition.

      iPhone 12 series model owners may also owe their carrier a bit more for a 5G wireless plan. 5G (fifth generation) promises blazing fast wireless speeds, though speed and coverage were still hit or miss as this book was being published.

      Certain prerequisites for enjoying the iPhone have been in place since the original release and remain — at least for most US customers:

Turning the iPhone On and Off

      Apple has taken the time to nearly fully charge your iPhone, so you’ll get some measure of instant gratification. After taking the phone out of the box, press and hold down the sleep/wake button, the location of which varies by model. On the iPhone SE, the sleep/wake button resides on the top-right edge of iPhones. On later models, the button is on the right edge. (Refer to Chapter 1 for the location of all buttons.) If the phone has been activated — and at least in the Apple Stores, a salesperson will happily handle this for you — the famous Apple logo appears on your screen.

      Soon, the word hello and its foreign language equivalents (hola, bonjour, ciao, and so on) take turns greeting you on the screen. Over the several screens that appear, you get to choose your language (English by default) and country or region. You then choose a Wi-Fi network, if available, or proceed using cellular.

      You'll see a screen asking you to place your old iPhone (or iPad), if you have one, next to your new one for a quick setup. Or you can proceed manually. To transfer apps and data to the phone, you can connect it to your PC or Mac, or go computer-free by restoring via iCloud. You can also move data from an Android device. Of course, if you’re a smartphone newbie, you won’t need to transfer apps and data.

      You're then asked to kindly sign in with an Apple ID (if you already have one) or create one. Apple ID is the credential used to set up your iCloud and iTunes Store accounts, which include such places as the Book Store, Apple Arcade, and Apple Music. Through iCloud, you can also access your music, photos, contacts, calendars, and more on all your devices automatically.

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