iPhone For Dummies. Bob LeVitus
compass inside your iPhone, but better.
Measure: Measures things. To use this cool virtual reality-measuring tool, you just point it at an object and see its dimensions!
Calculator: Performs addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Give the phone a quarter turn, however, and you’ll find a nifty scientific calculator that does all that and much more.
App library and Home screen widgets
Two features that make finding what you need on your iPhone faster and easier are App Library and Home screen widgets; you’ll learn all about both in Chapter 2.
The dock (all Home screens)
Finally, four icons at the bottom of the Home screen are in a special area known as the dock. When you switch Home screens (see Chapter 2), all the icons above the dock change. The four items on the dock, which follow, remain available on all Home screens:
Phone: Lets you use the iPhone as a phone. What a concept!
Safari: Opens Safari, your web browser. If you’re a Mac user, you know that already. If you’re a Windows user, Safari is kinda like Microsoft Edge only (much) better.
Messages: Exchanges text messages (SMS) and multimedia messages (MMS) with almost any other cellphone user. The app also lets you exchange Apple-exclusive iMessages with anyone using any Apple device with iOS 5 or higher (iDevice) or a Mac running Mountain Lion (OS X 10.8) or higher, as described in Chapter 6. We’ve used a lot of mobile phones in our day, and this app is as good as it gets.
Music: Unleashes all the audio power of an iPod right on your phone.
Last, but certainly not least: Although you couldn’t delete preinstalled apps in many previous iOS releases, you can delete some of them in iOS 15. See Chapter 15 for details.
Okay, then. Now that you and your iPhone have been properly introduced, it’s time to turn it on and actually use it. Onward!
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 13 Pro Max with 1TB costs $1,599. 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 push 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- or three-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. 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.
Certain prerequisites for enjoying the iPhone have been in place since the original release and remain — at least for most US customers:
One, unless you’re already in the fold, there’s the aforementioned business of becoming an AT&T, Verizon, or T-Mobile subscriber or a customer of any other company that subsequently sells the devices. Or you can bring your own SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) from a pre-paid carrier and insert it into your iPhone.
Two, you may have to free yourself from any wireless contract that you’ve already entered into. As we point out, such ironclad two-year contracts have all but disappeared in favor of installment pricing. Heck, your new wireless company may even pay any early termination fees due your old carrier. A number of retailers will give you a credit for your old iPhone that you can use toward a new model. The amount of the credit depends largely on the condition of the device. You must pay off the phone over a set period but at least you’re shifting to the latest models.Under its own trade-in program, Apple will give you estimated trade-in values that range from $30 for an iPhone 6s up to $790 for an 12 Pro Max. You can get a discount trading in some Android phones too. Keep in mind that you may get a better trade-in deal elsewhere.Apple has its own upgrade program, based on a 24-month installment. Consult Apple’s website for current pricing and storage capacities, always subject to change. Under Apple’s upgrade program, you get to choose your own carrier. AppleCare warranty protection is included.
Turning the iPhone On and Off
Apple