How To Back Up Your iPhone
The ability to back up an iPhone will save your app files, game progress, photos, and important data. Most of us build our lives around our mobile phones in this digital world. Our phones help us communicate, learn, create, and connect with others. But unfortunately, our phones are susceptible to getting damaged, lost, or stolen.
If your files are not backed up, you lose all the data on the phone, including photos, videos, documents, and contacts. However, if you back up your files regularly, you don't have to worry about losing essential data since you can recover them when your phone insurance replaces your phone or you buy a new one.
Read on to uncover the benefits of backing up your iPhone, and how to do it safely and securely.
Why Should You Back Up Your iPhone?
Before you get into the process of backing up your phone, you need to know why it's necessary. Here are four reasons to back up your iPhone:
Backups Keep Important Data Safe
The longer you have your iPhone, the more irreplaceable data you likely have on it. Sure, you can redownload songs or re-sign into your accounts. But other files, like pictures of friends and family, messages, or saved notes may be irreplaceable.
For example, if anything happened to the picture you took with a cherished friend you hadn't seen in years, it would be a considerable loss. If you back up your iPhone and store your photos regularly, you’ll never know that loss.
Your Phone’s Susceptibility to Damage Or Loss
A modern smartphone is convenient because of its mobility, but its small size makes it easy to lose or damage. According to some, the average iPhone user will break their screen ten weeks or less after purchasing their device.
Repeatedly bumping, banging, or smashing your phone will eventually render it useless. If you damage your phone in a minor way, you'll be able to fix it or transfer your data to another device. However, if you cause more permanent damage by dropping your phone into the toilet, your phone may never recover, and you may lose all of your data.
You might be able to get that data back if you remembered to back up your iPhone before the accident. If you did, you could move them to your new, working smartphone.
Your Phone's Hardware Can Fail
It is easy to think that the only way your phone can get damaged is if you drop it in water or from a high place. However, this isn't always the case. Sometimes, a sudden software or hardware malfunction could damage an irreparable smartphone. For example, when you jailbreak your iPhone, it could “brick” and stop functioning. Likewise, if your iPhone's hardware fails, you’ll most likely have to get a new one. To avoid losing your virtual information, remember to back up your iPhone regularly.
You Can Lose Data Accidentally
If you've taken multiple precautions to keep your iPhone safe, you might not feel the need to back it up. However, even when you put every possible protection in place, technology is not 100% perfect.
Your toddler might be playing with your phone and mistakenly delete a critical file. Your phone could glitch during a restart and delete all your phone numbers. You could even lose all your photos while updating your phone's software. These situations do not happen frequently, but being on the receiving end would be frustrating to say the least. In such circumstances, having a backup to recover your files would be a lifesaver.
How To Back Up Your iPhone
If you make the wise decision to back up your iPhone, you'll need to decide where to store the backup. Generally, you have two options. You may choose to move the data to Apple's cloud storage center. However, this requires you to have a sizable internet data plan. Thus, many phone owners with personal computers or external hard drives back up their iPhones to a second device.
An external hard drive is immediately accessible as long as it doesn't take any physical damage from dropping, fires, dust, or water. However, iPhone backup files are typically large and can quickly take up disk space. Cloud storage keeps your files in a damage-proof space. You have up to 2 terabytes of space with cloud storage, whereas most hard drives can hold up to 5 terabytes of information. Both options have pros and cons, so it’s essential to make the choice that’s right for you.
How to Back up Your iPhone to Computer
If you choose to back up your iPhone using iTunes, it means that your backup will be stored in your computer. To do this, you'll need to have a functional lightning cable and iTunes installed.
To send your iPhone backup to your computer using iTunes, first connect your iPhone to the computer using the lighting cable and open iTunes. In some cases, iTunes will automatically open when your computer recognizes your iPhone. Once iTunes opens and shows that you have connected your device, open the summary page. Then, click File > Devices > Backup.
This simple process will enable you to back up all your iPhone data, including pictures, videos, app data, and text. The primary advantage of this method is that you can restore every backup quickly with iTunes. Also, with iTunes, you can back up your iPhone as often as you like, at no charge. First, however, there are some things you must remember:
If you choose to back up your iPhone through iTunes, you take on the responsibility directly. This responsibility means that if you do not do the backup yourself, it will not happen. Although it only takes a few minutes, many people forget. Of course, failing to back up your iPhone means that you may lose your important data when an emergency occurs.
iPhone backups are large and take up storage space quickly. If you do not have enough hard disk space on your computer, it will not store the iPhone backup. In that case, an external hard drive may be an option.
How to Back Up Your iPhone to iCloud
If you wish to back up the contents of your iPhone to Apple's iCloud, the first thing you should do is ensure that you have active WiFi. Next, follow these steps:
Step 1
Open your device's Settings section and tap on your account. Next, tap on "iCloud."
Step 2
When iCloud opens up, tap backup and ensure that iCloud Backup is on. If it isn't, toggle it on yourself. With this setting in place, iCloud will have your permission to back up your phone's data whenever it is locked, charging, and connected to WiFi.
Step 3
To immediately carry out the backup, tap on "Backup Now" and remember to keep your phone connected to WiFi. An unstable internet connection can mess up your backup, so use a reliable internet connection. If you want to know the last time iCloud backed up your device's contents, the date and time will be visible beneath the "Backup Now" button.
Why Should I Backup My iPhone to iCloud?
The primary advantage of backing up your phone using Apple's iCloud is that you can automate it and forget about it. You don't have to set reminders to do a manual backup. However, the downside is that Apple's iCloud does not include every file or setting, unlike an iTunes backup.
Some of the data that Apple does not save to iCloud in a backup include:
- Content in your Calendars, Contacts, Notes, iMessages, and other data already stored in iCloud
- Your Apple Pay information
- The settings for your Touch ID and Face ID
- Content from the App Store
- Content from your iCloud Music Library
- Any music that you did not buy from iTunes or Apple Music
Furthermore, iCloud storage is not free. Apple offers the first 5GB of files for free. After that, Apple charges $0.99 per month for 50GB, $2.99 per month for 200GB, and $9.99 per month for 1TB of iCloud space. This pricing is comparatively high compared to third-party options. So, if you are a content creator, using iCloud may not be the most cost-efficient alternative. Fortunately, you can always consider third-party storage options.
How To Back Up Your iPhone With Online Third-Party Storage Services
Online third-party storage services are non-Apple applications that can run on your iPhone and move data from your phone to a third-party cloud. These third-party options typically cost less than getting iCloud storage. Also, they give you freedom if you decide to switch to Android, as they work on both platforms.
Although third-party cloud services give more flexibility, they cannot provide comprehensive backup solutions for iPhone users. Typically, they can back up your iPhone's photos, videos, and contact. However, they will not be able to back up your iPhone's text messages, applications and app data, voicemail, and other things related to your phone.
Thus, it is best to use a third-party cloud backup with your free iCloud storage. This way, you can back up your apps, contacts, settings, and messages to iCloud storage and save photos and videos to a third-party online storage service.
Popular third-party online storage services are Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Amazon Cloud Drive, and Dropbox. Many of these providers let customers take advantage of other features with their subscriptions. For instance, media content creators can manage their photos and videos using Google Photos, separate from Google Drive. Likewise, Microsoft bundles its proprietary services with OneDrive. You can also use encrypted cloud storage options if you are concerned about privacy.
Creating a Backup for Your Backup
Use the free 5GB iCloud storage to back up your phone data. Next, back up your iPhone to your computer using iTunes. You'll need to do this regularly, especially if you take lots of pictures. At the minimum, you will have to back up your phone once a month or every other week to be safe.
Once you have backed up your iPhone to your computer, set up a third-party backup for the computer's data (using Google Drive or Dropbox, for example). This way, your Google Drive or Dropbox account will contain all your iPhone's data, and you will always have direct access to it.
Conclusion
Backing up your iPhone is vital as your device holds your information and can get damaged or lost reasonably easily. There are three ways to back up your iPhone: using iTunes or using Apple's iCloud. Confirming that you’re well-versed in all iPhone backup options will ensure that you choose the right one for your life.
