My middle child had one tiny issue in getting her new SIM. She approached Telstra and didn’t have joy, being told her pre-paid SIM was in fact registered to a company. This confused everyone until she discovered that she had copied her mobile number down wrongly. The process of a new SIM went much quicker once this was rectified. Like her father, she’s very good at complex tasks but suffers a bit when doing the blindingly obvious.
My SIM change happened within 30 minutes of emailing my boss and requesting the change. Very smooth. Given he’s a bit of a road warrior, no fixed abode etc, even more impressive.
But I said I would compare the outcomes of the different methods of iPhone upgrade. So I better do that.
My Daughter’s iPhone upgrade (done with the backup and restore method) worked very well. This method gets the thumbs up. No issues at all. All Apps, data, music, photos and 99% of the settings came across. The odd password needed to be re-entered. No big deal. I would recommend this method, especially if you are going to a similar phone and you don’t need to clean out your Apps and remove the 50 fart Apps you bought on a whim.
My “new iPhone” setup worked equally well. There was more work and much more thought went into it. And that’s the key to picking a method. If you need a clean out of your Apps or you’re going to a new iPhone with different features (i.e. skipping a generation or two and going from an older iPhone to a much newer one) then the setting up from scratch method will benefit you. At a minimum, it makes you asses each App and justify its continued existence and relevance. So yes, I dropped the fart Apps.
I did have to remove the iWork Apps - Pages, Numbers and Keynote from the new iPhone. These come installed by default. I love them on my iPad, just not on the iPhone as the screen is too small for my ancient eyes.
I’m also very glad I went with 64Gb of storage. The basic model with 16Gb would have been full. As you go up the models from 3,4,5,6 the storage needs seem to increase mildly too. A 16Gb 6 holds less than a 16Gb iPhone 3, in my opinion. I think the better camera and larger screens mean better data but more storage cost. An 8Mp photo is likely bigger than a 4Mp photo etc etc.
So in conclusion, either method is good and works effectively. If you have an older phone and lots of Apps and probably a bit of a mess, then the new iPhone method will force you to clean up. If you have a lean, clean, effective system with just the Apps you need, then the backup and restore method is quicker.