Hacker News Reader

Comment by akerl_ | Hacker News Reader

I was originally on board for comments like "If a person buys a MacBook Pro and iPhone, that person cannot connect their iPhone to their new MacBook Pro without buying an adapter or cable."

But I can't remember a time I've plugged my current iPhone into a computer, ever. I had the original iPhone, where I had to plug it in constantly to manage music, sync contacts, and update the OS, but it hasn't been like that in my experience for a while.

View on HN

I never plug it into my computer to sync, but I often plug it in to charge. Plugging it into the wall to charge would require carrying an adapter, which would be annoying.

This is it exactly. I still need to charge the thing, and I often have it sitting next to my computer. So I charge from the handy port I've got right there... with an adapter.

How do you reinstall OS or make non-iCloud backup without computer?

Is reinstalling the OS on an iPhone really a thing? I can't imagine that any significant number of people do that. Non-iCloud backups are probably more common but still extremely rare, as are any backup solutions that require more than a few minutes to set up and permanently automate.

I’m reinstalling OS every time instead of updating. I don’t trust automatic updating and I like the feel of new device.

For the first part, probably just take it to the Apple store or just "factory reset" it. I don't think the average apple user cares enough to completely reinstall iOS themselves. Same goes for non-iCloud backups - the average person probably doesn't care enough to do backups normally, much less plug it into their computer manually. I'm not saying you're wrong, but rather taking your complaint with a grain of salt. It's sad but the average apple user (from my experience) doesn't care.

I can't think of a time I've wanted to reinstall the OS. I've wanted on several occasions to factory wipe the device (trading in the phone, fresh start, repurposing it, etc), but "Reset all content and settings" is an option locally on the device.

As far as backups: as a matter of general data hygiene I don't let my iPhone or my laptop be the source-of-truth for anything. Contacts sync to iCloud and Google, Photos to Google and Dropbox, etc etc.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com