If you update your iPhone regularly, it makes sense to give your old iPhone to a family member, sell it, or trade it to Apple for credit. Letting go of your iPhone is good for the environment.
Still, before proceeding, some important steps must be taken to ensure that personal information will not fall into the hands of the next iPhone owner without their knowledge.
1. Backup Your Phone
Your gadget presently contains crucial data. As a result, you ought to back up your iPhone to iCloud or a PC. To save backup size and time, unneeded social media programs like Facebook and Twitter should be deleted before backup.
2. Move Photos and Videos to Another Location
Move your memories from your iPhone to your computer if you disabled your photo library in iCloud backup to free up space. Google Photos and Amazon Pictures are additional storage options for your images and movies.
3. Turn Off Find My iPhone
Your iPhone’s Activation Lock is activated when you use Locate My iPhone. The next user won’t be able to use the iPhone if you don’t force-erase it and turn it off. Accordingly, switch it off by navigating to Settings > Your Name > Find Me> Locate My iPhone before selling, giving, or trading.
4. Turn Off iMessage and FaceTime
In turning off your iMessage, go to Settings, then click Messages. Find your FaceTime application on the main Settings panel to return. On that setting tab, also disable your FaceTime application.
5. Unlock Carrier-Locked iPhones to Increase the Resale Value
If the iPhone is locked to a certain carrier, we advise unlocking it so the new user can use any carrier they choose. The value of an unlocked iPhone, when sold, improves significantly. If unsure, use this guide to determine whether your iPhone is unlocked. Allow Mobile Monster to assist you in this situation, or contact your carrier and ask them to unlock your handset.
6. Sign Out of iCloud and Apple ID
Before selling your old iPhone, navigate to Settings, click Your Name, and tap Sign Out at the bottom. This is the crucial step, so leave the box unchecked if you’re asked if you want to maintain a copy of your contacts, keychains, or other data since this device doesn’t require it.
7. Erase Everything from Your Device
Before doing that, double-check that you’ve backed up correctly. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings. Read the on-screen message, tap Next, and follow the instructions.
8. Remove the SIM Card and Clean your iPhone
Before giving up your iPhone or mobile iPad, save yourself the headache by properly removing your physical SIM card and visiting your carrier. Also, if you give or sell the iPhone, the recipient may be the first to own an older model. Consequently, spend 5 minutes cleaning your iPhone to keep it operating efficiently.
9. Keep the iPhone Accessories in One Place
Before gifting an iPhone, have the original packaging, charging cable, adapter (if you have one), and SIM eject tool. These aren’t expensive, but their inclusion improves the buyer’s experience, not to mention their high resale value!
10. Remove this iPhone from the List of Your Trusted Devices
After successfully transferring or selling your iPhone, the final step is removing it from your device list. If you have a separate iPhone or iPad, find out how to remove it from your Apple account.
Wrap Up: What to consider before selling your old iPhone
With the help of this comprehensive instruction, you may swap, sell, or upgrade your old iPhone. You can relax knowing that your data will be transferred to the new owner’s iPhone and that they will enjoy configuring it just like you did when you first got it by following these procedures.
Further reading: What to consider before getting your child their first smart phone.
