606: A Decade of Half-Presses

iPhone Setup

Setting up a new iPhone can be a daunting task, as John Siracusa and Casey Liss discuss their experiences. John shares his frustration with the activation process, which left him stuck on a screen for an hour, fearing a call to Verizon was inevitable 1. Casey, on the other hand, found the phone transfer process smoother this year, though he still faced challenges with eSim transfers 2.

It's never going to get past the screen. Like, there was no skip, no thing. Like, I'm assuming it was trying to transfer, you know, my phone number, esim, whatever thing from my 14 pro to my 16 pro, it just wouldn't and couldn't do it.

--- John Siracusa

Despite these hurdles, Casey rates the overall software setup experience as a solid A-minus, noting that while time-consuming, it was largely issue-free 2.

   

Watch Transfers

Transferring data to a new Apple Watch presents its own set of challenges. Marco Arment describes his struggles with cellular plan transfers, often needing to cancel and restart the process to achieve success 3. He notes that while the phone transfer was seamless, the watch transfer required multiple attempts and some technical maneuvers.

The only way I ever get the watch to work is to cancel the plan from at and t's website for the old watch and then have the new watch start over again.

--- Marco Arment

Marco also shares his preference for a smaller watch size, finding it more comfortable and aesthetically pleasing, especially for sleep tracking 4.