If Nothing We Suggest Helps

If you tried every trick in the book (this one) and still have a malfunctioning iPhone, it’s time to consider shipping it off to the iPhone hospital (better known as Apple, Inc.). The repair is free if your iPhone is still under its one-year limited warranty.

You can extend your warranty as long as two years from the original purchase date. To do so, you need to buy the AppleCare+ Protection Plan for your iPhone. You don’t have to do it when you buy the phone, but you must buy it before your one-year limited warranty expires. The cost is $99.

Here are a few things you should do before you take your phone in to be repaired:

Your iPhone is erased during its repair, so you should sync your iPhone with iTunes before you take it in, if you can. If you can’t and you entered data on the phone since your last sync, such as a contact or an appointment, the data won’t be there when you restore your iPhone upon its return.

Remove any third-party accessories, such as a case or screen protector.

Remove the SIM card from your iPhone (as described in the earlier section “Problems with Calling or Networks”) and keep it in a safe place.

Do not, under any circumstances, forget to remove your SIM card. Apple doesn’t guarantee that your SIM card will be returned to you after a repair. If you forget this step, Apple suggests that you contact your local AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint store and obtain a new SIM card with the proper account information. Ouch.

Although you may be able to get your iPhone serviced by your provider or by mail, we recommend that you take it to your nearest Apple Store, for three reasons:

No one knows your iPhone like Apple. One of the geniuses at the Apple Store may be able to fix whatever is wrong without sending your iPhone away for repairs.

The Apple Store will, in some cases, swap out your wonky iPhone for a brand-new one on the spot. You can’t win if you don’t play, which is why we always visit our local Apple Store when something goes wrong (with our iPhones, iPads, iPods, and even our laptops and iMacs).

Only the Apple Store offers an Express Replacement Service (ERS) for iPhones needing repairs. The AppleCare Express Replacement Service costs $29 when your iPhone is under warranty or covered by an AppleCare Protection Plan. This service provides you with a new iPhone when you have to send in your old one for service.

If your iPhone isn’t under warranty or AppleCare, you can still take advantage of the Express Replacement Service — it costs you a lot more, though. See Figure 16-5 for the costs at press time or visit http://support.apple.com/kb/index?page=servicefaq&geo=United_States&product=iphone for current pricing and more information on the ERS service.

If visiting an Apple, AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint store isn’t possible, call Apple at 1-800-MY-IPHONE (1-800-694-7466) in the United States or visit www.apple.com/contact to find the number to call in other countries.

If you choose the AppleCare Express Replacement Service, you don’t have to activate the new phone and it has the same phone number as the phone it replaces. All you need to do is pop your old SIM card into the new phone, sync it with iTunes or iCloud to fill it with the data and media files that were on your sick iPhone, and you’re good to go.

If you’ve done everything we’ve suggested, we’re relatively certain that you’re now holding an iPhone that works flawlessly. Again.

Figure 16-5: Prices for Express Replacement Service at press time.

If at this point you aren’t holding an iPhone that works flawlessly and has most (if not all) of your stuff on it, it’s time to break out the big guns and make an appointment with a Genius at your local Apple Store. Call the support hotline (800-275-2273) or visit the support web page at www.apple.com/support/iphone .

That said, some or all of your stuff may not be on it. If that’s the case, the following section offers a two-trick solution that usually works.