First Rule: Install the Updates

There’s an old saying: “Never buy version 1.0 of anything.” In the iPhone’s case, the saying could be: “Never buy version 12.0 of anything.”

The very first version (or major revision) always has bugs, glitches, and things the programmers didn’t have time to finish the way they would have liked. The iPhone is no exception.

The beauty of this phone, though, is that Apple can send it fixes, patches, and even new features through software updates. One day you’ll glance at your Home screen’s Settings icon, and—bam!—there’ll be a badge indicating that new iPhone software is available.

So the first rule of trouble-free iPhoning is to accept these updates when they’re offered. With each new software blob, Apple removes another few dozen tiny glitches.

And sure enough: Within the first few months of iOS 12’s existence, software update 12.1 came down the pike. And more will follow.

Six Ways to Reset the Phone

The iPhone runs actual programs, and as actual programs do, they actually crash. Sometimes, the program you’re working in simply vanishes and you find yourself back at the Home screens. Just reopen the program and get on with your life.

If the program you’re in just doesn’t seem to be working right—it’s frozen or acting weird, for example—then one of these resetting techniques usually clears things right up.

• Exit the app. On an iPhone, you’re never aware that you’re launching and exiting programs. They’re always just there, like TV channels, when you switch to them. There’s no Quit command. But if a program starts acting glitchy, you can make it quit.

  To do that, double-press the home button to bring up the app switcher. Find the “card” that represents your balky app, and then flick it upward to quit it. Try reopening it to see if the problem has gone away.

  X-Class

  Swipe up from the bottom of the screen; with your finger still down, pause until the app switcher appears. Release your finger, and then swipe any card upward to exit that app.

• Turn the phone off and on again. If it seems that something more serious has gone wrong, then hold in the side button for a few seconds.

  X-Class

  Hold the side button and either volume button simultaneously.

  When the screen says slide to power off, confirm by swiping. The iPhone shuts off completely.

  Turn it back on by pressing the side button for a second or two.

• Force-restart the phone. If you haven’t been able to force-quit the program, and you can’t shut the phone off either, you might have to force a restart. Thanks to Apple’s fickle relationship with the home-button concept, the method varies by phone model.

  iPhone 8 or X-class: Click the volume-up key, and then the volume-down key; now hold in the side button until the Apple logo appears.

  iPhone 7: Hold in the side button and the volume-down key simultaneously until the Apple logo appears.

  Earlier models: Hold down the home button and the side button until the Apple logo appears.

  In each case, keep holding, even if the screen goes black or you see the “power off” slider. Don’t release until you see the Apple logo appear, meaning that the phone is restarting.

• Reset the settings. This procedure doesn’t erase any of your data—only the phone’s settings. From the Home screen, tap Settings → General → Reset → Reset All Settings.

  

• Erase the whole phone. From the Home screen, tap Settings → General → Reset → Erase All Content and Settings. Now, this option zaps your stuff—all of it. Music, videos, email, settings, apps, all gone, and all overwritten with random 1’s and 0’s to make sure it’s completely unrecoverable. Clearly, you’re getting into last resorts here. Of course, you can then sync with your backup (iTunes or iCloud) to copy all that stuff back onto your iPhone.

• Restore the phone. If none of these steps solve the phone’s glitchiness, it might be time for the nuclear option: erasing it completely, resetting both hardware and software back to a factory-fresh condition.

  Tip

  If you’re able to sync the phone with iCloud or iTunes first, do it! That way, you’ll have a backup of all those intangible iPhone data bits: text messages, call logs, Recents list, and so on. It will all go back onto the phone the first time you sync after the restore.

  If you backed up to iTunes: Connect the phone to your computer, as described in Chapter 15. In iTunes, click the iPhone icon and then, on the Summary tab, click Restore.

  The first order of business: iTunes offers to make a backup of your iPhone (all of its phone settings, text messages, and so on) before proceeding. Accepting this invitation is an excellent idea. Click Back Up.

  If you backed up to iCloud: You can restore your phone this way only if your iPhone is completely wiped empty. If it’s not, then manually erase it using iTunes first.

  During the setup screens described in “The Setup Assistant”, tap Restore from iCloud Backup. You’re shown the three most recent backups; tap the one you want. The phone goes right to work downloading your settings and account information. Then it restarts and begins to download your apps; if you’re in a hurry for a particular app, tap its icon to make iCloud prioritize it.

  When that’s all over, you can get to work downloading your music (if you’re an Apple Music subscriber).

iPhone Doesn’t Turn On

Usually, the problem is that the battery’s dead. Just plugging it into the USB charger or your computer doesn’t bring it to life immediately, either; a completely dead iPhone doesn’t wake up until it’s been charging for about 10 minutes. It pops on automatically when it has enough juice to do so.

Recovery Mode

Phones, like the best of us, sometimes get confused.

In a few weird situations, the iPhone gets so baffled that you can’t even start it up. For example:

• The startup process gets stuck forever at the Apple logo.

• The “Connect to iTunes” screen appears, even when the phone is connected.

• You’ve connected to iTunes on your computer, but the phone doesn’t show up, or it says it’s in “recovery mode.”

The solution is the drastic, but effective, force-restore process (known to techies as the Device Firmware Update mode).

Open iTunes on your computer. Connect the iPhone with its white USB cable. Now force-restart the phone as described earlier:

• iPhone 8 or X-class: Click the volume-up key, and then the volume-down key; now hold in the side button.

• iPhone 7: Hold in the side button and the volume-down key simultaneously.

• Earlier models: Hold down the home button and the side button.

• In each case, keep the key(s) pressed until iTunes tells you that an iPhone in Recovery mode has been detected; click OK. (If you see anything but blackness on your iPhone’s screen—an Apple logo, for example—then the process didn’t work. If the problem has not, in fact, gone away, then you should start again.)

iTunes tells you that “There is a problem with the iPhone that requires it to be updated or restored.”

By far your favorite choice should be Update, because that means you won’t lose any of your phone’s data. iTunes will simply download and install a fresh copy of iOS 12. (If the download takes longer than 15 minutes, the iPhone exits recovery mode. Just wait until the download is finished, and then start this process again.)

If the Update process doesn’t work, you have no choice but the bad one: Restore. That’s where you wipe out the iPhone’s contents and restore everything on it from a backup. (Of course you have a backup, right?)

Battery Life Is Terrible

If your battery seems to drain faster after right you’ve installed iOS 12, it might be because the Photos app is busy scanning and categorizing all your photos so it can use its object and facial recognition.

Or maybe it’s just you using the phone more, checking out the cool new features.

If neither of those is the problem, then consult the battery-saving tips in “Battery Life Tips”.

Out of Space

It happens all the time. You couldn’t imagine filling up 64, 128, 256, or 512 gigabytes of storage, so you saved some money by buying an iPhone with less. And now you can’t even take a video or a photo, because your phone reports that it’s full. You’re frozen out until you have the time and expertise to delete some less important stuff.

Fortunately, iOS 12 is teeming with features designed to ease up the storage crunches so many people face. Some are automatic: The recent HEIF and HEVC formats, for example, mean new photos and videos occupy only half as much space as the old ones (see ???).

The iPhone Storage Screen

But really, the Grand Central of storage management is in Settings → General → iPhone Storage.

Here’s a master graph that clearly shows what’s eating up your space. This screen also lists every kind of file by category (apps, photos, mail, and so on) and how much space it’s using. That should make it easy to delete the fattest ones to make the most room with the least effort.

The biggest space hogs on your phone are video files, photo files, apps, and music files. Heck, deleting just one downloaded movie or TV show could solve your storage crunch instantly.

Better yet, this screen actually suggests ways to free up space, like deleting messages that are older than a year; looking over and maybe deleting big email attachments; or storing your messages on iCloud.

Warranty and Repair

The iPhone comes with a one-year warranty and 90 days of phone tech support. If you buy an AppleCare+ contract ($200 for the iPhone X-class, $130 for other models), then you’re covered for a second year.

If, during the coverage period, anything goes wrong that’s not your fault, Apple will fix it for free. In fact, AppleCare+ covers damage even if it is your fault—if you drop the phone or something—at a rate of $29 for screen damage and $100 for other damage, plus tax. Maximum: twice.

If you don’t have AppleCare+, the repair fee depends on the type of phone you have but will probably set you back around $300.

You can either take the phone to an Apple Store, usually the fastest route, or call 800-APL-CARE (800-275-2273) to arrange shipping back to Apple. In general, you’ll get the fixed phone back in three business days.

The Battery Replacement Program

Why did Apple seal the battery inside the iPhone, anyway? Everyone knows lithium-ion batteries don’t last forever. After 300 or 400 charges, the iPhone’s battery begins to hold less charge (perhaps 80 percent of the original). After a certain point, the phone will need a new battery. How come you can’t change it yourself?

Apple’s answer: A consumer-replaceable battery takes up a lot more space inside the phone. It requires a plastic compartment that shields the guts of the phone from you and your fingers; it requires a removable door; and it needs springs or clips to hold the battery in place.

In any case, you can’t change the battery yourself. If you have AppleCare+, though, a battery replacement is free. If the phone is out of warranty, you must send it to Apple (or take it to an Apple Store) for a battery-replacement job. It costs $30 if you do it in 2018, and $80 thereafter. (As an eco-bonus, Apple properly disposes of the old batteries, which you might not do on your own.)

What to Do About a Cracked Screen

Keeping your iPhone in a case may lower the chances of your breaking it or scratching it—but it can’t prevent bad luck. An incredible number of iPhone screens meet an untimely end, even with cases on.

Apple will happily replace your phone’s screen for $130 to $280, depending on the model. It’ll do it the same day if you take the phone into an Apple Store, or you can mail it in and get a replacement in three to five days. (If you’ve bought AppleCare+, then a replacement screen is a flat $29.)

There are plenty of other companies that can repair a cracked screen, sometimes for less money—but you may not get an actual Apple screen.

And then there’s the do-it-yourself technique. You can buy a screen-replacement kit for about $60 online, complete with the special tools you need to open the iPhone and do the job yourself. It requires care, patience, and some dexterity (Google can help you find the step-by-steps), but it’s a good option if you’re technically savvy.

Where to Go from Here

At this point, the iPhone is such a phenomenon that there’s no shortage of resources for getting more help, news, and tips. Here are a few examples:

• Apple’s official iPhone User Guide. Yes, there is an actual downloadable PDF user’s manual for iOS 12. help.apple.com/iphone/12

• Apple’s official iPhone help website. Online tips, tricks, and tutorials; troubleshooting topics; downloadable PDF help documents; and, above all, an enormous, seething treasure trove of discussion boards. apple.com/support/iphone

• Apple’s service site. All the dates, prices, and expectations for getting your iPhone repaired. Includes details on getting a temporary replacement unit. apple.com/support/iphone/service/faq

• iMore blog. News, tips, tricks, all in a blog format. imore.com

• MacRumors/iPhone. Blog-format news, accessory blurbs, help discussions; iPhone wallpaper. macrumors.com/iphone

• iLounge. Another great blog-format site. Available in an iPhone format so you can read it right on the device. iLounge.com