Purchasing New iPhone

[zippyfrog]

I feel like this was discussed in another thread, but I can't find it. I have T-Mobile and my last iPhone upgrade was in 2020. I want to get a new iPhone, but what is the best way to go about doing it? Should I order the iPhone from T-Mobile directly, or should I buy from the Apple Store? I feel like there are pros/cons to each option.

 

[navychop]

I know of no reason to buy from a cell company.

Buying from Apple gets an unlocked phone.

PS- New models come out in Octoberish.

 

[Foxbat]

I got a carrier-locked iPhone once, and it was a pain after they got bought by Sprint and I decided to go to T-Mobile and they dragged their feet to unlock the phone. I have been trading in my iPhones since and buying from the Apple Store since then.

 

[TheForce]

I'm thinking of buying a new 17 Pro Max 1TB of storage. I have a 15PM now with 512GB and with the recent video camera apps wanting to offload clips to my iphone, the storage gets full fast. My battery is still 86%.
What I dread the most is having to set up so many apps manually after my transfer. In the past I had to carve out a day to configure the new iphone and spend time on the phone with Verizon to get my phone number transferred. During that time they kept asking why I didn't just buy from Verizon. I wonder if the geniuses at Apple figured out how to make that process easier. The new iphone should just clone the older iphone and then once done delete everything to make it ready to send in the the trade deal.

 

[rvvaquero]

What I dread the most is having to set up so many apps manually after my transfer. In the past I had to carve out a day to configure the new iphone and spend time on the phone with Verizon to get my phone number transferred. During that time they kept asking why I didn't just buy from Verizon. I wonder if the geniuses at Apple figured out how to make that process easier. The new iphone should just clone the older iphone

Don, I'm no expert for sure, but when I switched from iPhone SE to iPhone 13 it was easy. I just set the phones beside each other on the table and used Quick Start. It takes a few hours for everything to transfer, but you don't have to monitor it while it's happening.

As far as transferring phone number, that should take about five minutes to move the esim from one to the other.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

If you are looking to get a new iPhone I would wait until September if you can as the new iPhones will be out then.

I am not sure if I will be looking for an iPhone 18 Pro Max or a iPhone Ultra which will be the new foldable iPhone.

 

[klang]

I get a new phone annually via Apple's upgrade plan. Transferring the contents of old to new is fairly trivial nowadays. I normally do a restore from backup of the old phone to the new.

Whether or not an app works right away is completely up to the app. Many will work after the transfer but some will require signing in again or downloading data.

 

[TheForce]

If you are looking to get a new iPhone I would wait until September if you can as the new iPhones will be out then.

I am not sure if I will be looking for an iPhone 18 Pro Max or a iPhone Ultra which will be the new foldable iPhone.

1. I have no interest in a foldable iphone.
2. I am concerned that by September the prices of the 18 will be higher than the 17 and the trade-in will be lower.

My 15 is working fine although the battery life isn't what it used to be. But the main reason is to be able to store more video. Hopefully the faster phone will also transfer those video files to external storage faster. I ran a test on my wife's 17 Pro and it was noticeable faster to a USB C NVME storage. 856Mbs vs 187Mbs on my 15PM.

 

[TheForce]

Don, I'm no expert for sure, but when I switched from iPhone SE to iPhone 13 it was easy. I just set the phones beside each other on the table and used Quick Start. It takes a few hours for everything to transfer, but you don't have to monitor it while it's happening.
View attachment 191862

As far as transferring phone number, that should take about five minutes to move the esim from one to the other.

View attachment 191863

Thanks for the tips. I've done the basic restore process both the the icloud backup and locally. A few apps did require me to log in again probably because it detected a different device was accessing the account.

The issue that took the most time was transferring the number needing to contact Verizon. Apple's eSIM quick transfer seems an easier way and I will try that instead of calling Verizon. Thanks!

 

[cp2k]

Another often forgotten trick.. you can actually hook the old phone and the new one together via the USB-C ports to speed up the data transfer if you're transferring directly from device to device when setting up a new phone.

Use a wired connection to transfer data to a new iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

You can migrate data from your current iPhone to a new iPhone — or from your current iPad to a new iPad — by connecting the devices directly with a cable.

support.apple.com

 

[Ronnie-]

1. I have no interest in a foldable iphone.

Ive tried the samsung and google versions, but returned both within a week. The pixel was nice, but the lack of imessage was annoying (yes I knew it didnt have it before I got it obviously).

The ultra (if that is what it turns out to be called) I would be very interested in at least trying. Will have to wait and see how apple does this form. Most of them make the outer unfolded screen to narrow for my liking. The Pixel seemed more usable. If apple goes with a wider outer screen I will seriously consider it (based on the pricing)

 

[TheForce]

Another often forgotten trick.. you can actually hook the old phone and the new one together via the USB-C ports to speed up the data transfer if you're transferring directly from device to device when setting up a new phone.

Use a wired connection to transfer data to a new iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

You can migrate data from your current iPhone to a new iPhone — or from your current iPad to a new iPad — by connecting the devices directly with a cable.

support.apple.com

I did that too and it is faster but make sure the USB C cable is the latest version. Older USC C cables are significantly slower. Some don't even do data.

 

[navychop]

Might you regret not waiting for the 18?

Value will be treasured long after cost is forgotten.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Well maybe forget what I said about the iPhone 18. Its looking like it will be released NEXT YEAR.

No iPhone 18 This Year, Apple Supplier Comments Seemingly Confirm

Apple's standard iPhone 18 model will launch in early 2027, based on comments from a partner in the company's supply chain that appear to corroborate rumors of a delayed spring release for the base model. Apple typically works on an annual smartphone launch cycle where it releases the entirety...

www.macrumors.com

 

[TheForce]

Might you regret not waiting for the 18?

Value will be treasured long after cost is forgotten.

Rumors, not yet confirmed: Advantages of 18 Pro Max over 17 Pro Max

A20 Pro chip on a 2nm process (vs. A19 Pro on 3nm). Expect ~15% better performance, significantly improved power efficiency, better sustained gaming/thermal management .

Variable aperture on the main lens (e.g., f/1.4–2.0 adjustable) for better low-light performance and depth-of-field control

Larger capacity (~5,000–5,200 mAh vs. ~4,800–5,088 mAh on 17 Pro Max

Higher RAM 16GB vs. 12GB)

Some rumors that Apple will not increase the price significantly. So the wait for the 18 over the 17 would typically reduce my 15PM trade-in $490 to $375. Typically, each year the current Pro Max trade in drops ~$100 when the new phone is announced in September.

 

[Foxbat]

So the wait for the 18 over the 17 would typically reduce my 15PM trade-in $490 to $375. Typically, each year the current Pro Max trade in drops ~$100 when the new phone is announced in September.

I was surprised to see that the Trade-in on my iPhone 13 actually increased by the time I got around to replacing it with the iPhone 17. I got $195 when I traded it in at the Apple Store (not a requirement, we are fortunate to have one of the two Indiana Apple Stores near by. Thank you, Notre Dame!) as opposed to $160 when the iPhone 17 was released. Around Christmas, it had increased to $180. I can't remember when that had ever happened before, but who am I to argue with Apple?

 

[Foxbat]

I saw that Tim Cook is quoted as saying that the next iPhones will have higher prices due to the increase in RAM costs. So it might make sense to buy now at the price you know versus waiting for the next iPhone with a $100-300 higher starting price tag. There's also the Siri requirement for 12 GB of RAM internally to support on-phone A.I.

 

[harshness]

If you are looking to get a new iPhone I would wait until September if you can as the new iPhones will be out then.

If you believe the recent story in the Wall Street Journal, the prices are likely to take a pretty good hop on the new models due to RAM costs. As a possible result, Apple's per-unit profit may be reduced to only 43%.

The follow-on stories from other agencies are speculating that Apple will try to hold the line and shift RAM costs to other gear (like high-end notebooks), but it isn't a happy day when the cost of a bar phone exceeds $1,800.

 

[TheForce]

Another update to the phone itself is if it will support the new Starlink connectivity. I might wait for the word from Apple before deciding. My 15PM is doing OK for now. Cost is not a big issue for me but I do understand the new shortage on RAM and no solution to that for the foreseeable future.

 

[Neutron]

I have an iPhone 13 Pro Max, and my wife and daughter both have iPhone 13 Pros, and my son has an iPhone SE 3rd Gen. I had been on the fence about upgrading during this next cycle in the fall or wait until next year with the 20th anniversary next year since I am assuming iOS 29 next year would be the last one supported by our current phones. I normally would never consider doing an upgrade once March rolled around and especially not during the summer right before, but two things have me looking at getting all of our phones upgraded this weekend; Apple's price increases on everything else last month and the strong indication that the iPhone 18 lineup will see substantial price increases to match, and everything I've read about the 18 line is saying this is more like an "S" update like Apple used to do. I don't see a single feature being rumored on the iPhone 18 lineup that I absolutely have to have. My thought is upgrade to the iPhone 17 Pro Max for myself, and the Pro for the rest of my family to get in before the price increases, knowing the specs on the 17 Pro/Max should last a while just like our 13 Pro/Max has done. My son is going to get a really nice upgrade coming from the SE3. The deals that Verizon has right now also are very good, and as much as I would rather go do this at the Apple Store, it's my son's phone that has me going directly to Verizon to do the upgrades. The trade in/bill credits are identical on the 13 Pro/Max lines with Apple and Verizon, but the SE3 is quite a bit lower with Apple whereas Verizon is matching the $830 bill credit like the other three lines.