Technologies
Selling or Replacing Your Old iPhone? Make Sure to Factory Reset It First
Replacing your old iPhone is easier than ever, but it could be risky to sell your Apple phone if you don’t wipe all your personal data first.
If you’re buying the new iPhone 16E to replace your old iPhone, don’t just transfer data and sell your old device — you need to clear out all the personal data first. It’s important to know how to reset your Apple phone, whether you’re selling your old device or making it a hand-me-down for a relative, you need to make sure it’s wiped clean before you hand it off to a new owner. Here’s how to factory reset your iPhone.
No matter the reason you want to wipe your iPhone clean, it all boils down to making sure that all your personal data is gone. This can be sensitive and personal information, like family photos you definitely don’t want to hand off to a stranger. It also includes the litany of private details that your iPhone stores, from credit card information to contacts to everything in your apps.
Thankfully, it’s easy to factory reset your iPhone, although you’ll be asked several times to make sure you’re ready to clear it completely. You’ll also want to prepare before wiping your phone. Here’s how to do it.
Read more: Unresponsive iPhone? Here’s How to Force Restart Your Apple Device
Don’t go further without backing up your iPhone
The first step is to make sure all the data you want to keep is safely backed up. This can easily be done over iCloud, although you can also make a manual backup.
The same way you’d want to back up your iPhone before updating to iOS 18, head to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup and tap Back Up Now. This should take a little while, but you’ll be able to restore from this online backup if you need to.
You can also manually create a backup by connecting your iPhone to your computer, although the process differs between PC and Mac. You can still download iTunes to your Windows PC, through which you’ll sync your iPhone and create a backup through that software. With the end of iTunes on Mac in 2019, you’ll have to go through Finder to manage your iPhone, but otherwise, the process of backing up is relatively straightforward.
Note that iPhones are good at moving data wirelessly from one device to another in close proximity, making it easy to seamlessly transfer from your old device to a new one. After waking up your new iPhone, follow the on-screen instructions on your new iPhone to use its camera to scan your old device and let the process continue. It’s still smart to save a backup when you’re getting rid of your old iPhone.
Digitally sign out of every account you can
This is the most tedious step but a necessary part of the process, but it’s important to sign out of apps and services you’ve logged into. You should prioritize apps with more sensitive data, but it’s a good idea to ensure you’re fully logged out of anything with personally identifiable information.
You won’t want someone popping into email, contacts and calendar accounts, so head to Settings > Apps > Mail/Contacts/Calendar > Accounts to manually unlink those.
Bank and payment apps, external email and messaging apps, workplace software like Slack or authentication apps and even digital community apps like Discord are good to log out of. Lastly, if you’re selling your iPhone or giving it to someone else, make sure to disable Find My before erasing your phone. Go to Settings > [your name] > Find My.
If you’re moving to a new iPhone, transfer your cell service
If you’re about to reset an older iPhone that used to be your daily driver linked to your carrier account, you’ll want to transfer service to your new iPhone before factory wiping your device. Why? Because you’ll probably use your older iPhone to call your carrier to switch that service over. Don’t get stuck without a phone like I did.
You used to be able to yank your SIM card out of your old phone and stick it in the new one to carry service over. Not so much these days, as the iPhone 14 and later models sold in the US don’t come with a physical SIM card — it’s eSIM all the way. You’ll need to call your carrier to transfer your data plan over to your new iPhone, but it’s a pretty effortless process. If worse comes to worst (like if you’ve already wiped your old iPhone), you can bring your new iPhone into any of your carrier’s retail stores and they can digitally transfer service over to it.
If you’re just clearing out an old iPhone or will still use this one after resetting it, proceed to the next step.
Finally, here’s how to factory reset your iPhone
If you’ve done the above and are ready to reset your iPhone, open up the Settings app. Then tap General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings and confirm. You’ll be asked to enter your iPhone’s PIN code, then enter your Apple ID password (to unlink the device from your account and turn off Find My capability if you haven’t already).
Once you’ve done that, the screen will turn black and you’ll get a black progress bar at the bottom (similar to if you were updating to a new version of iOS). In a few minutes, the word «Hello» will appear on the screen in different languages, just like it did the first time you activated your iPhone. Congratulations, it’s been successfully reset.
That done, you’re now free to hand it off or send it on its way to a new owner.
Technologies
Level Up Your Pokemon Legends: Z-A Adventure With These Active Free Gifts
Get ready for a new adventure. These free mystery gift codes and rewards are available for you to grab today.
After 12 years, it’s finally time for Pokemon players to head back to the Kalos region in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, the newest game in the popular monster-catching franchise. If you’ve missed the worldwide capital of Mega Pokemon, fairy-type Pokemon and a whole bunch of baked bread, now’s the time to jump back into the world of pocket monsters.
The Switch 2’s first Pokemon game seems a bit scarier this time around. Though the beautiful Lumiose City projects safety and security, recent unexplained rampages from wild Mega Pokemon threaten the peace.
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Between unearthing the cause of this phenomenon and taking down competitors in the Z-A Royale Pokemon battle ladder, there’s a lot of work to do in the Kalos region. You’ll need special partners to get the job done — and there are some special Mystery Gifts that have just the powerful pals you’re looking for.
There are already multiple Mystery Gift codes you can use right now in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, unlocking rare Pokemon and tons of items to help you get started on a new Pokemon journey.
All active Mystery Gifts for Pokemon Legends: Z-A
While some Pokemon Legends: Z-A promo codes are uniquely tied to Nintendo purchases, we’ve gathered every free code and redemption requirement in one place for you here.
Below is a chart that contains every active Mystery Gift code for Pokemon Legends: Z-A, what it unlocks and its expiration date:
Active Pokemon Legends: Z-A Mystery Gifts
| Reward | Code or alternative redemption requirements | Expiration date |
|---|---|---|
| Ralts holding Gardevoirite | No associated code. Select «Get via internet» in the Mystery Gift menu. | Feb. 28, 2026 |
| 100x Poke Balls | Every code is unique. You can unlock the code for this Mystery Gift by purchasing the digital version of Pokemon Legends: Z-A. The code will be sent to the email associated with your Nintendo account. | March 10, 2026 |
| 3x Fast Balls, 3x Lure Balls, 3x Heavy Balls, 3x Level Balls | Every code is unique. You can unlock the code for this Mystery Gift by purchasing the Mega Dimension DLC. The code will be sent to the email associated with your Nintendo account. | March 10, 2026 |
How to redeem Mystery Gifts in Pokemon Legends: Z-A
If you have Mystery Gift codes to redeem in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, you’re likely eager to grab those rewards as soon as possible. But you need to do a little bit of legwork before unlocking the code redemption menu.
To unlock Mystery Gift functionality, you need to progress through the main story until you reach the third main mission, called A New Life in Lumiose City.
During this mission, you’ll meet Mable, the acting director of the Pokemon Research Lab in Kalos. Once you unlock Mable’s research, a new «Link Play» tab becomes accessible in the pause menu.
Within the Link Play tab, you can redeem Mystery Gift codes — as long as you’re connected to the internet.
What are Mystery Gifts?
Mystery Gifts are a long-running way to reward Pokemon players with extra goodies. The official gift distributions have existed since Pokemon Gold and Silver was released in 1999.
Back then, players needed to have special hardware — like a Game Boy Advance Wireless Adaptor — in order to acquire Mystery Gifts. Newer games make the process much easier, since you need only connect to Wi-Fi in order to access gifts for the Pokemon games on the Nintendo Switch.
While some Mystery Gifts are accessible for free, others are unlocked by promo codes that you’ll have to hunt down through specific means. Mystery Gifts are good ways to gather precious items, add mythical Pokemon to the Pokedex and capture rare shiny Pokemon.
Technologies
Will Tim Cook Step Down? Apple CEO’s Impending 65th Birthday Sparks Succession Talk
Apple is likely in the process of choosing someone to fill the chief executive role once Tim Cook decides to retire. Here are a few potential candidates that reports say are being considered.
Tim Cook‘s 65th birthday is next week, on Nov. 1. And with the Apple CEO’s special day almost here, talks have been growing as to who could be his successor should he choose to retire. Cook has made no official public mention of stepping down yet, but according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the tech giant is working behind the scenes to ensure a seamless transition when the time comes.
Cook replaced Steve Jobs in 2011, and after a period of uncertainty, Cook ushered Apple into its most profitable era. Stock-watching website Stocktwits reports that the company’s stock has increased by around 1,800% since Cook took over leading the company.
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Jobs may have introduced devices like the iPhone into everyday use that changed how we interact with technology, but Cook expanded on the Apple experience. Under his guidance, the company built upon Apple’s smartphone by introducing subscription services and more mobile products, including earbuds and wearables.
He introduced Apple Pay, Beats headphones became part of the company’s ecosystem, the Apple Watch launched 10 years ago, and Apple even entered the entertainment business, producing original Oscar-winning movies and Emmy-winning TV shows through Apple TV Plus.
Read more: Best iPhone in 2025: Here’s Which Apple Phone You Should Buy
We should reiterate that the notion of Cook stepping down is pure speculation at this point. We don’t know what Apple’s CEO is currently planning or what his thoughts about retirement may be. That said, there are a handful of contenders who have reportedly been part of the succession conversation.
Potential Apple CEO contenders
Apple likely has «a solid bench of successors» that the company’s board has been developing, says Bryan Ma, VP of Devices Research at IDC.
«But the anxiety gets amplified when there isn’t clear visibility for such a valuable and iconic company,» Ma says. «Compounding the challenge is the fact that the bar has been set by big rock stars like Steve Jobs and Tim Cook. The next generation of leaders have very big shoes to fill.»
John Ternus, Apple’s current vice president of Hardware Engineering, was top of Gurman’s list. Ternus has been with the tech giant for more than two decades, so he has the knowledge and experience for a chief executive upgrade. There would be value in having an engineer behind the wheel.
Ternus appeared during the September Apple event to introduce the iPhone Air. At 50, he’s the same age Cook was when he took over as Apple CEO.
Other potential contenders are also being considered, including Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering; Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing; and Jeff Williams, the company’s former chief operating officer, according to a report by Apple Insider. On Oct. 10, Bloomberg reported that Federighi also will soon be overseeing the Apple Watch operating system watchOS, while Ternus will be overseeing Apple Watch hardware engineering once Williams departs at the end of the year.
Federighi has been with Apple for a long time and has the public speaking experience — frequently speaking during Apple Events — that would be vital if he replaced Cook as CEO. Considering his current role, Joswiak has a more marketing perspective and a broader overview of the company and may not be as hands-on with the tech as Ternus and Federighi. And according to Gurman, Williams was viewed as a shoo-in to be Cook’s replacement until his role as COO was announced to be ending. (He’s now Apple’s senior vice president of design, watch and health.) Cook held the position of chief operating officer before he replaced Jobs as CEO in 2011. Sabih Khan will be stepping into that COO role, which also puts his name in the running.
When Cook steps down, Apple will undoubtedly have a pool of qualified talent to choose from to take up the leadership mantle. Who exactly will take the mantle remains to be seen.
Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Technologies
Meta Will Close Down Its Messenger Apps on Mac and Windows
You’ve got two more months until the apps are gone.
Meta is discontinuing its desktop Messenger apps for Windows and Mac. Starting Dec. 15, you’ll need to head to Facebook to continue chatting through the app on your computer.
Once the sundowning process begins, you’ll receive an in-app notification. You’ll have a 60-day window to continue using Messenger before the app is permanently shut down. (But don’t worry — the mobile app for Messenger will remain.)
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If you want to save your chat history, Meta suggests activating secure storage before the app is gone forever. Otherwise, your chat history will be gone forever, as well.
The Messenger desktop app is no longer available on the Apple App Store. After Dec. 15, Meta users who try to access Messenger on desktop will be redirected to Facebook.com. Users without a Facebook account will be redirected to Messenger.com.
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