Apple's iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max come in the same sizes as last year's iPhone 12 series.
All models feature the same design elements as those of Apple's 2020 models, such as an all-screen design with no Home button, two volume buttons, and a side button. The phones also come with Face ID but no Touch ID.
Why you should factory reset your iPhone
Trading it in or selling it may get you some cash back you can use to buy something else.
In the event you do not factory reset your phone, all your photos, data, and other things will be at risk. In addition to removing all data, your phone must be reset to its original state.
Occasionally, a factory reset may be necessary just to clean things up and improve performance.
iPhone 13 and 13 Pro users may have difficulty finding their way around Apple's new mobile device with its unclear instructions about how to reset it.
You can restore an iPhone back to its factory state by following these steps, which will remove all your personal information and any settings customizations.
How to factory reset an iPhone 13 and its variants:
- Go to Settings
- Select “General” at the bottom of the page
- Next, tap “Transfer or Reset iPhone” at the bottom of the new menu
- Then tap the “Erase All Content and Settings” button at the bottom.
After completing the process, the phone will delete anything not backed up and be reset to how it came out of the box. In addition, your iPhone will be reset to factory settings.
Using the hardware buttons to hard reset the iPhone 13 (All models)
The steps below are helpful when you want to reset a frozen hard, or stuck iPhone 13. This is not the same as a factory reset, as it will not remove any
- Quickly press and release the Volume Up button.
- Quickly press and release the Volume Down button.
- Press and hold the Side button until the Apple logo appears, then release the Side button.
During this process, you can turn off the iPhone using a slider. You should ignore it and continue holding down the Side button until the screen goes black. At that point, the Apple logo will appear, and after the restart is complete, the screen will activate again.
You don't have to shut it down entirely by force restarting the iPhone, which takes several more steps.
You can shut down the iPhone by going to the General section of the Settings app, scrolling to the bottom, and selecting Shut Down.
iPhone 13 button basics and functions
If upgrading from an older model, you should familiarize yourself with the new physical buttons on the iPhone 8 and X.
Your new iPhone 13 has two volume buttons on the left and a single side button on the right.
There is no Home button, so these three side buttons perform all functions.
How to power on iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
Press the Side button once to turn on your new iPhone. Ensure the device is charged if you don't see the Apple logo on the screen.
To charge your iPhone 13, plug it into a power outlet with the provided Lightning cable, and let it charge for a few minutes before attempting to power the device on again.
By holding down the Side and Volume up or Volume down buttons together, you will see two sliding buttons appear.
How to Power off iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
Hold the Side button and the Volume Up or Down buttons together until two sliding buttons appear on the screen.
Slide to power off by holding down the physical buttons and swiping right.
How to Activate Emergency SOS on iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
When you use the emergency SOS feature on your iPhone, the emergency services will automatically be notified of your location and your contact information will be shared.
Therefore, you are advised to use it only during an emergency or when you are in danger. Once you have performed Emergency SOS, you will have to enter your iPhone's passcode to reactivate your Face ID and unlock your iPhone.
Hold down the Side button and the Volume button to squeeze either side of the device.
Holding it for a few seconds will cause the Emergency SOS countdown to appear on the screen. If you want to alert your emergency contacts immediately, you can slide the counter across and call the emergency services immediately.
Using Settings -> Emergency SOS -> Disable Auto Call will prevent Emergency SOS from automatically calling emergency services when you press the Side button.
How to Disable Face ID on iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
By disabling Face ID on your iPhone, you will have to enter your passcode to unlock it.
- Hold down the Side button for a few seconds.
- Press and hold both Volume buttons at the same time.
- At the bottom of the screen, tap the Cancel button.
Using iPhone 13's Troubleshooting functions
It's a good idea to be familiar with these troubleshooting functions if you upgraded from a device that predated the iPhone 8 or iPhone X to avoid frustration.
How to Enter Recovery Mode on iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
If you're having trouble updating or restoring your iPhone over the air, you can enter recovery mode. You may try restoring the device with iTunes if, for example, the screen shows the Apple logo for several minutes without any progress bar.
Connect your iPhone to your computer using the Lightning cable that came with it. Make sure you have the latest version of iTunes installed on your Mac or PC if you're using macOS Mojave or earlier.
Open the Finder on a Mac running macOS Catalina or later. Open iTunes on a Mac running macOS Mojave or earlier or on a PC. If iTunes is already running, close it and reopen it.
Connect the iPhone to a computer and force restart it by following these steps, but don't release the buttons when you see the Apple logo. Stay on the screen until it goes into recovery mode.
- Press and instantly release the Volume Up button.
- Press and instantly release the Volume Down button.
- Hold the Side button until you see the recovery mode screen, then release it.
Select your device from the iTunes sidebar if you're using iTunes. If not, select it from the Finder sidebar.
If you see the option to Restore or Update, choose Update. Your computer will attempt to reinstall the software without erasing your data. The software will be downloaded to your computer.
Exiting Recovery Mode on iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
By pressing and holding the Side button until the “Connect to iTunes” screen disappears, your iPhone should reboot back into iOS.
How to Enter DFU Mode on iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max
When an iPhone stops responding, freezes or displays errors, the forced restart procedure described above may be able to help. On the other hand, DFU mode (which stands for Device Firmware Update) restores your iPhone if a restart or entering Recovery Mode did not resolve the issue.
DFU mode allows the device to interface with Finder or iTunes, update the firmware, and restore the OS without automatically installing the last downloaded version. If you have trouble using a beta version or if the jailbreak fails, you can install older versions of iOS.
Make sure to install the latest version of iTunes on your computer before following the steps below:
- Activate your iPhone if it's not already on.
- Use a Lightning to USB cable to connect it to your computer.
- Make sure iTunes is running on Macs running macOS Mojave or earlier and PCs. Make sure Finder is running on Macs running macOS Catalina or later.
- Press and simultaneously hold the Volume Up and Volume Down buttons on your iPhone.
- Press and hold the Side button (or power button) until your iPhone's screen turns black.
- After releasing the Side button, hold down the Side button and the Volume Down button together for about five seconds.
- Release the Side button, but continue to press the Volume Down button.
Wait for at least five seconds for Finder or iTunes to recognize that DFU recovery mode has been enabled.
iTunes should show a dialog saying, “This iPhone is in recovery mode. To use it with iTunes, it must be restored”. Finder users should also receive a message similar to the one above.
Follow the steps again if you cannot see the message.
As soon as you've closed the recovery prompt, you can restore your iPhone to factory settings by selecting Restore iPhone on the iPhone Recovery Mode screen. You will automatically exit DFU mode once the restoration process is complete, and your iPhone will proceed to the activation screen.
How to Exit DFU Mode
Here's how you can manually exit DFU mode after enabling it.
- Hold down the Volume Up button on your iPhone and quickly release it.
- Press the Volume Down button and quickly release it.
- The Apple logo will appear on the screen of your iPhone when you hold down the Side button.
You have now exited DFU recovery mode on your iPhone.