iPhone replacement nightmare

[esseeeayeenn]

My iPhone had a few chips and cracks on both the front and back so I arranged for a replacement under Apple Care.

I followed the instructions and backed up my old phone before I received the new one.
Then I had to set up the replacement phone as if it were a new phone before I could restore it form the backup.
This was very time consuming because it tried to install every single credit, debit and transport card in my wallet.
I couldn't restore it because Apple had shipped me a phone with an outdated version of iOS.

I had to upgrade iOS on the new phone.
I had to set it up all over again, which was, once again, very time consuming.
Then I discovered it had leap-frogged the version of iOS on my old phone.
So I had to upgrade iOS on the old phone.
Then I had to do the back up all over again.
Then do the restore.

But after all this, despite using the "backup all data" option and encrypting the backup so it would include sensitive information, the end product is still not a duplicate copy of my old phone. I had to set up FaceID and he PIN all over again. I will still have to set up my eSIMs and cards all over again.

And even now when setup has "finished", I have to wait for it to download all the apps again.
Who asked them to make this a separate step?
A full backup should be a full backup.

How hard can it be for Apple to get this right?

 

[Quickstatus]

How hard can it be for Apple to get this right?

For good reason

The Face ID and PIN cannot be transferred for security reasons otherwise unlocking of phones would be easy to clone
And similarly the eSim and Cards in the Wallet.

Yes the Auto transfer (or whatever they call it) assumes the iOS is the latest.
Always make sure the old and new phone is updated to the highest iOS version before transferring data over.

 

[SYD]

Yes the Auto transfer (or whatever they call it) assumes the iOS is the latest.
Always make sure the old and new phone is updated to the highest iOS version before transferring data over.

But must cause problems if the old device can’t be updated to the latest iOS!

I ponder as I type on my iPad Pro that’s been block from updates post iPad iOS 17… It still works ok but I’m conscious I ought to replace it sooner than later.

 

[esseeeayeenn]

For good reason

The Face ID and PIN cannot be transferred for security reasons otherwise unlocking of phones would be easy to clone
And similarly the eSim and Cards in the Wallet.

Yes the Auto transfer (or whatever they call it) assumes the iOS is the latest.
Always make sure the old and new phone is updated to the highest iOS version before transferring data over.

(1) I wasn't using auto-transfer, I did a complete backup and restore, which should have been able to wipe and replace iOS as well.
(2) Then why password protect the backup?
(3) If a password isn't considered secure enough, this could be addressed by 2FA or other additional security measures.
(4) These don't explain why every single app has to be downloaded separately from the app store after the restore is complete.

 

[Quickstatus]

I did a complete backup and restore

I would have done iOS update before backup and restore.

Then why password protect the backup

The backup data file (just like any data file) has to have password protection because that backup file sits outside the iPhone and not on the phone.
It has nothing to do with FaceID/pin

Again, The FaceID /pin is to lock access to the Phone. All the information related to the FaceID/pin reside locally on the phone in a separate security chip within the iPhone and not in the phone's memory . It cannot be transferred out of the phone nor can it be transferred outside of the security chip.
I would not want my FaceID/pin to be able to the transferred outside the phone.
Thats why all iPhones require a FaceID setup.

These don't explain why every single app has to be downloaded separately from the app store after the restore is complete.

I think what happens there restore just tells the new phone what apps are required along with the data transfer.

 

[Quickstatus]

But must cause problems if the old device can’t be updated to the latest iOS!

There are way to do a transfer from an unsupported iOS Version to a device with the latest iOS but will require more manual steps
These include iCloud backup or backup to iTunes, or even backup to something like Dropbox first.

 

[SYD]

There are way to do a transfer from an unsupported iOS Version to a device with the latest iOS but will require more manual steps
These include iCloud backup or backup to iTunes, or even backup to something like Dropbox first.

I still use iTunes for backups but even then there’s issues with iOS miss-match. Usually the new device is an older release (having been sitting in a box somewhere), so you need to update the new device first.

 

[esseeeayeenn]

The bottom line is it has taken the whole day just to replace an iPhone.
Just unacceptable.

 

[AuSammy]

I can’t remember the exact details but i backed up my old iPhone before having an aweful dalliance with a Samsung. After it turned into brick and battery failure, I bought a new iPhone.

Took it home, plugged it in and it asked me if I had an account. It said iOS needs updating, leave me plugged in for 2 hours while I update.

Came back two hours later and the new phone had everything that was on the old phone. Contacts, calendar, all apps, old SMSs, call history, etc. The only issue was on the old phone I had grouped apps into folders and on the new phone they weren’t grouped and I had to regroup them. i also had to relogin to apps that had security

Can’t recall the exact questions it asked but it was very straight forward and I lost nothing, nor had to download apps etc.