Seven settings to change immediately on your new iPhone

Buying the new iPhone is always a pleasant event. It's not only a modern gadget with a more powerful chipset, better camera, and updated design, but also a great opportunity to work with the settings and adapt the smartphone to your needs. However, you should remember that there are several settings on your iPhone that should be adjusted immediately after purchase. It doesn't matter whether you are restoring a backup of an old device or setting up a new one "from scratch".

The Novyny.LIVE website tells you what settings you need to make on your new iPhone after purchase.

How to set up Face ID

Face ID is one of the most convenient ways to unlock your iPhone because you don't have to press any buttons or put your finger on anything. But even this technology can work even faster if you set up the so-called alternate appearance:

• Open Settings and go to the Face ID and Passcode section;
• Select Alternate Appearance;
• Scan your face again.

It is recommended to do this in a dark room (for example, in a bathroom or toilet without lighting). This way, Face ID will remember you better in different conditions and unlock your smartphone faster.

System Geolocation Services

If you restore your new iPhone from a backup, it's possible that the system geolocation services are activated again (even if they were previously disabled). To make sure they don't drain your phone unnecessarily, check:

• In Settings, open the Privacy & Security section;
• Go to Geolocation Services;
• Scroll down and select System Services.

Leave only "Find iPhone" enabled (and "Set Time Zone" if you travel frequently).

Control Panel on iPhone

Protecting your smartphone from unauthorised persons is an important point. It is almost impossible to enter a locked iPhone without a code or Face ID, but Control Panel has an option to enable Airplane mode. This can disable the Locator function, making it harder to find the lost device. Therefore, it is worth blocking access to the Control Panel from the lock screen:

• Open Settings and go to Face ID and Passcode;
• Scroll down to the section "Access with locked screen";
• Turn off the Control Panel toggle switch.

This way, no one can accidentally or intentionally switch on Airplane Mode without unlocking it.

How to turn off Live Photo

By default, iPhone takes Live Photo — short videos instead of static images. If you don't need this format, and regular photos are enough:

• Launch Camera;
• Click on the yellow circle in the upper right corner to make it crossed out (Live Photo will be turned off).

Backing up your iPhone

As soon as you set up your new iPhone, you may almost immediately receive a warning that iCloud is running out of space. Instead of buying more space right away, it's better to optimize your backup:

• Open Settings and find the iCloud section;
• Go to Backup;
• Select your iPhone backup.

Wait for the list of components to load and switch off the unnecessary ones (the Media Library usually takes up the most space).

Also, check the Photos section in the settings and, if necessary, turn off iCloud Library, as photos and videos often take up the most space in the cloud.

Ringtone volume on iPhone

Sometimes iPhone owners confuse media (video, music) volume with ringer and alarm volume. If you adjust the volume with the side buttons, you may accidentally turn the ringer down and miss an important call or oversleep. To avoid this:

• Open Settings and select Sounds and vibrations;
• Turn off the "Change with buttons" toggle;
• Set the "Ringtone and notifications" slider to the desired volume level.

From now on, the side buttons will only adjust the media volume, not the ringtone and alarm.

Turn off content update

Background content update is supposed to allow apps to load data in advance so that everything opens faster when you launch it. However, in practice, this feature usually consumes unnecessary battery power and provides minimal benefit. To disable it:

• go to Settings and select General;
• go to Content Updates;
• click Content Updates at the top of the screen and select Disabled.

As a reminder, the iPhone SE 3 is still a popular option for those who want to join the Apple ecosystem on a budget. In 2025, the company released the continuation of the series in the form of the iPhone 16e, which has better performance but also a higher price.

We also wrote that the iPhone 16 Pro turned out to be a fairly "safe" update from Apple. Although it's one of the best smartphones on the market, it's hardly worth upgrading to it for iPhone 15 Pro owners. It is worth waiting for the iPhone 17 Pro, which has much more to offer.