iOS 17 is just around the corner, and you’re probably excited about getting the latest iOS update onto your iPhone so that you can enjoy all that it has to offer, like interactive widgets, Contact Posters, NameDrop, Safari Profiles, and so much more. While you can always jump right into updating, you can also take this as an opportunity to clean house a bit and get your device ready for iOS 17.
Let’s go through a list of things to check so that you can be sure your iPhone is ready for iOS 17.
1: Can your iPhone run iOS 17? Check iPhone compatibility with iOS 17
You will need to make sure that your iPhone can run iOS 17, which is more specific with system requirements than prior iOS releases.
The official list of iOS 17 compatible iPhone models is as follows:
- All iPhone 15 models
- All iPhone 14 models including iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 14 Plus
- All iPhone 13 models, including iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max
- All iPhone 12 models, including iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max
- All iPhone 11 models, including iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
- iPhone XR
- iPhone SE 2nd generation and newer
2: Update Your Apps
Chances are that most of your apps have been updated to include support for iOS 17, so you’ll want to update your apps to make sure they’re fully compatible with iOS 17, and the new features available, like interactive widgets.
Head to the App Store, and choose to update your apps.
3: Clean Up, Free Up Storage Space
Major OS updates offer a good time to clean up a bit, delete iPhone apps that you aren’t using or don’t need, and to free up storage space on your device.
Given that new major iOS updates usually require at least 10GB free of storage to download and install, you’ll want to make sure have space available on your device.
You can often free up a lot of storage by removing photos and videos from your iPhone too, but you’ll want to be sure that you copy them to Photos on a Mac first so that you don’t lose any of your precious memories.
4: Back up your iPhone
You need to make sure your backup your iPhone before installing iOS 17. Backing up your iPhone allows you to recover in case something goes wrong, restoring your data and getting back on track. Failure to backup could lead to permanent data loss, and that’s a horrible experience nobody should go through.
Backing up iPhone to iCloud is easy, but you can also backup an iPhone to Mac with Finder or backup iPhone to a Windows PC with iTunes.
Don’t skip making a backup!
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That’s it, you’re now ready to install iOS 17 onto your iPhone. The iOS 17 RC is available now for anyone in the beta programs, and the final version of iOS 17 will be released to the general public on Monday, September 18.
You can also use these same tips to get an iPad ready for iPadOS 17, which will also debut on the same day.
Are you going to install iOS 17 right away, or are you waiting? Let us know your thoughts and opinions in the comments.
