Any dust/dirt/fluid in the SIM slot? Did you recently manhandle the phone?

If not you will probably have look for a phone shop and have it checked.

Did you test the SIM in another phone or is the SIM locked due to needing a SIM PIN?

My local phone shop will do it within a few hours. The official Apple partner was next day (but depends on how much else they have to do).

Does it happen with "regular use" or with certain apps? I would assume it’s more of an app thing (especially games n such).

If it happens while calling/messaging it could be a damaged/faulty battery.

EU tries to push Apple to open up for additional stores - so we’ll see what comes out of this.

You can use websites like https://yt5s.com to download music videos maybe not as comfy but works at least.

The foil (not sure it’s the right term - not a native English speaker 😇) is for the display. I usually just have a silicone bumper so the foil protects the display. Display cover might be the better term.

I don’t really use cloud services. There used to be apps that can manage access to several cloud services and even offer encryption like Cryptomator.

I am a bit sceptical about Mega because the guy behind it is/was on FBI radar so I would assume that they keep a closer look on his projects than any others. Proton as located in Switzerland is a better choice imo. On the other hand for non private data it doesen’t really matter.

I still use the brick from my 5s on my current 8 no idea about more powerful bricks.

Looks like you got the basics covered. You will most likely encounter several inconveniences- well at least I did when I switched to iOS several years ago. It is what it is - being in a walled garden. There are often less options to chose - where Android has 3-5 things how to do something on iOS there might just be 1-2. Ober the time I got over it though.

My only annoyances that persist are lack of sideloading (like from f-droid) and stupid/limited iTunes. There are however pretty good 3rd party tools that can replace iTunes like 3uTools (free) and IMazing (paid). I strongly suggest taking a look at then (IMazing has a feature limited free trial, so you can test before possibly wasting money). Instead of doing a full backup 3rd party tools allow you to just backup photos or contacts and also view/browse the data.

Apple has pretty good tutorials/step by step guides in various settings and services on/around their iPhones on their website. Pretty easy to understand imo - check them out.

When you create your iCloud account make sure to note everything down on a piece of paper and store that in a secure place (in case you forget your password or whatever). Account recovery can be a pain…

If you have a PC/Mac I strongly suggest doing local backups. So even if you lose access to your phone/iCloud you still have access to photos, contacts and all that.

Do you have the proper sized SIM (nano)?

Consider getting a protective case and foil. Saved my phone twice from a costly repair.

If I am not mistaken the 12 comes without a charging brick. So get gone as well as a lightning to USB cable.

It’s the job of the software to show that information..😂

I have used it for quite a while and never had any problems with it or any SUBSTANCIAL complains. Sometimes people complain about 3rd party tools - esp if they cost money - but I am pretty sure everyone uses 3rd party software on his PC/Mac/Mobile. So that doesen’t really make a good argument.

You can remove the laptop as trusted device but otherwise if he wanted to backup data from your mobile that was already done. It can’t be done remotely OTA.

And you obviously checked up on that information, right?!

I read about people claiming our government consists of aliens or that the world is going to end soon or that you will burn in hell for doing xyz…

What malware exactly? What did you see, that was the malicious action of the software?

Buddy brought them over from a trip to China but there are dozens of similar variants sold on eBay and Amazon.

He also brought a fitness watch but that was absolute garbage - battery lasted less than a day and it broke within 2 weeks.

The headphones are in daily use now for over a year - so can’t complain bang for the buck. It’s definitely not comparable in quality to headsets costing 100+ bucks but for EDC in the city they are good enough and so far no one has complained about not being able to understand me over the microphone.

If the battery would last 4+ hours I would definitely recommend them but 2.5h is a bit on the low side imo (depends on you cause case obviously).

I got some Chinese AirPod knock-offs. For around 20 bucks they work pretty OK - only problem is the battery that only last for about 2.5 hours. But I will probably go back to ones with cable - don’t want to charge another device.

Well I am still used to old school IT - if you will - where these kind of problems were not that uncommon and/or on the other hand you heavily relied on "physical paper stuff”😂

Well here Uber is heavily regulated and afaik can be called - same with taxi. After all there are still lots of people without mobile or at least smart phones. Well of course you will Ulf need a phone - that’s why I always suggest to keep a spare - on the other hand you can go down to a cafe/bar and let them call a cab or go to a taxi stop (if that’s not a thing in your area that’s obviously more important to have a backup mobile or lane line).

Not really a car enthusiast - don’t Teslas at least have a key card or electronic key if they don’t come with a regular key? That iind if dependency would definitely be a no go for me. I prefer it more "simple”. Less gizmos, less chances of things failing. With new - even less sophisticated than Tesla - cars a simple small accident can end up with electronics failing and the car not moving an inch. You can run into a garbage can and the electronics can prevent you from starting the car again even if you just had minimal damage in your from bumper.

In your scenario obviously some unfortunate events send the rock in motion waltzing down the hill… There is no 100% safety net - unless you go overboard with backups of course.

With business trips by plane I prefer doing these in the afternoon/evening - after all you are not wasting holidays but are on paid time 😉 So you can sleep out, can take your time getting to the airport (during the day there are usually more options than early in the morning) and after checking in early you can hang around at the lounge for coffee, bourbon or whatever.

No that this comes over the wrong way - I am not against new tech - in general. But we need to be aware of its limitations and prevent to totally depend on them. A backup in the cloud is smart (if it’s encrypted or doesen’t contain private information) but an additional local backup will work even if the internet or the cloud service is down and/or if you forgot your password or your account got compromised. Keep it simple.

Well afaik you can set up more that one trusted number for access to your iCloud (afaik).

You can call an Uber or taxi - no need for an app or account.

You can still get regular paper tickets from the airline/travel agency. So get the paper plus an electronic one.

Always have 50 bucks in cash with you - you never know😉

Well back in the days bricking a mainboard through a firmware update was always a scenario. When I got my first Galaxy bricking by using custom ROMs was also not that uncommon. But apart from the update you can just have electronics fail - for whatever reason or you can drop your phone and it’s dead😉

If you depend on your devices for making money (as in work/business) you need backups - plain and simple. And that means easy access backups - like local ones. In the past Apple, Amazon and other cloud providers also had trouble with their (cloud)services. So you can’t really rely on having access to online storage 24/7.

Never do auto updates😂 Always wait a week or two and check wether people report problems…

Backups are your responsibility! No one forces you you to have all information and 2FA on your mobile! Never put all apples in one basket!

A lawyer is just a waste of money. Electronic devices can cease to function from one minute to another - happened a hundred times a day all over the world.

My 4 still works but it is slow.

5s is OK - problem is the low storage 16GB and pretty worn battery (new battery isn’t cost effective though).

Maybe you just sleep through the alarm without waking up?

You wrote further down that when you set an alarm during daytime, it does work. It might also be that you turn off the alarm in your sleep - put the phone further away that you actually have to get out of bed.

But honestly, just get an alarm clock from the dollar store 😉

No. That was possible before they introduced the legacy contact. Legacy contact just makes it easier with less paperwork afaik.

You won’t get into the phone without the device password. With the right paperwork Apple can get you access to data in iCloud though. Another option is to look for a local backup if there is a PC/Mac.

Heard by/from whom? Did you follow up on this, any evidence? I have used the software for quite some time and never had or heard about anything in that direction - if you hit something solid please let me know as I often suggest it.

But to put your mind at ease you can run it in a sandbox or virtual machine.

3uTools (free)

Better than iTunes but not as many functions/options as IMazing.

Start with a fresh mindset. Don’t expect iOS to work/do stuff as Android - it simply won’t. There will be things that will annoy you - can’t be helped - deal with it or switch back.

It’s like moving from Windows to Linux. Basic stuff will work but not with the same optics or haptics.

IMazing

Keep the 3rd phone pristine in the box. If it’s no claimed after a certain period of time (depending on local laws) it’s theirs.

You are not obliged to tell them there was an extra phone send - but if they get in contact with you about it, you have to hand it over.