So, you got that new smartphone you’ve been eyeing for a few months now? That’s good to hear! It would be fun to go straight to downloading apps you’ve wanted to try out or jumping online to connect with friends immediately. Still, before all that, it’s highly recommended that you familiarize yourself with everything that your new phone has to offer.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!It’s the perfect time for you to do some exploring and safety checking to ensure that all the mobile features are working well and that everything is personalized the way you want them to be. Here are five things you can do when you get your new mobile device:
1. Set up basic security
Before you store any personal data, photos, or notes, you’d want to ensure that your phone is secure and accessible to only you (and the select few you allow access to). You can create a screen lock for your phone, which is usually found in the device’s Passwords/Security section in your phone’s settings.
Depending on your phone model, you can now create a password using numbers, letters, or patterns. Just make sure that you create one that you can easily remember but is strong enough to keep curious eyes from accessing your phone! Also, if your phone has these features, you can set up biometric security measures to lock and unlock your phone using your fingerprint or facial recognition.
2. Check essential phone features
Once you’ve got your security locked, you can do some exploring. First, make sure that your device works properly and is up to par with your expectations. This process includes checking the internal and external features of your phone. It’s essential you go through this step to avoid future problems and immediately raise any concerns to the store or seller. Check these out when you do your exploring:
Essential apps
Are your phone’s tool apps (clock, calculator, recorder, etc.) all working fine? How about your notes app, messaging app, and gallery? It’s good to get a run-through before installing the apps you want for a smooth user experience.
Camera
For some users, the phone camera’s quality is one of the most significant aspects of a phone. It can even be a deciding factor about whether to get one phone model over another. So whether you’re a phone photography enthusiast or not, it’s essential to make sure that the phone camera optimally works before you start taking selfies and capturing memories. For instance, if the specs you read indicated that the phone camera has an excellent macro feature, then it’s best to make sure it works and works the way you expect it to.
Other external features
Of course, besides the phone’s internal processes, everything outside should be working just as well. You can check the buttons (power button, volume buttons, and others) if they’re all functioning the way they’re supposed to. If you have a phone with expandable memory, it would be a good time to check if the phone works fine with a memory card. You can also check the phone’s speakers and if the phone’s sound system works when you’re using external devices, like earphones or headphones. More importantly, you may want to check if the phone’s charger is working.
Connectivity
Living in this day and age when connecting with others is quite essential and where connections are mostly made online, it’s vital to check if your phone does not have connectivity problems. For example, can your phone connect to the WiFi? How about a cellular network? Do the Bluetooth features work?
These are just some essentials that you should go through before exploring other parts of your phone. Of course, you can proceed with exploring other apps and features afterward, too!
3. Import your phone contacts
Now that you’ve done all the checking, you can start importing or transferring your contacts from your previous device to your new one. Assuming that you’ve got a new SIM card to go with your new device, there are a couple of methods that you can follow to import these contacts. One way is to use your Google account. In your previous device, go to your accounts settings and choose the Google account you plan to use. From there, tap the option that syncs your contacts to your chosen account. Once you log in to this Google account on your new phone, voilà, your contacts should be transferred.
While you’re at it, you can start letting your friends know about your new number so that they can save your contact information. To add a little bit of fun to this process, you can try playing a couple of pranks on your close friends with this new number. Let them know, for example, that you’re about to deliver that pizza that they “ordered” a few minutes ago, then let that shock settle in before you reintroduce yourself. You can also try other ‘call from different number’ ideas if you want to take pranking to another level.
5. Install and declutter new apps
When you’ve got all that down, you can open the Play Store or App Store and download the apps you’re interested in while removing some that you don’t really want or need. Connect with your friends by downloading social media apps (Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, etc.) or try out that game you have been looking forward to playing. Once you download them, although this is optional, it’s recommended that you sort these apps by creating folders and grouping them accordingly. If your phone comes with already installed apps that aren’t essential in running your phone, or if you just don’t want them around, you can also uninstall them from your device. These tips allow you to easily find and access your apps without flooding your home screen.
4. Personalize phone settings
Finally, you can complete the personal touch to your phone by personalizing other phone settings. You can choose your phone’s theme or specify what your home screen looks like. Whether you’re after a minimalist look, a retro aesthetic, or you want to see your favorite character or pet once you look at your phone for an instant mood boost, you can change your lock screen and home screen backgrounds. Some phones also allow you to change the icon sizes, screen layout, and others. Turn on or turn off the notifications for your apps and choose how these notifications will pop up. You can do these and check out other phone settings to make your phone more you!
These are just a couple of things you can do first once you get your new phone. The rest is up to you. Have fun exploring apps and using your other phone features!