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New or reconditioned iPhone? Discover how to know the origin of your Smartphone

The serial number of an iPhone hides a fact that can be very useful, especially when you are evaluating the possibility of buying a second-hand unit.

Just looking at the first letter of the model number of the team you will know if it is a unit that was purchased new or reconditioned, if it comes from a replacement for a repair in official technical service or if it is a unit that was recorded as standard.

New or reconditioned iPhone? Discover how to know the origin of your Smartphone

The first letter of the model number tells you the origin of your iPhone

With this information and other tips to buy a second-hand iPhone with less risk that you can read here, you can be quite calm and know that the unit you are acquiring is completely original.

You can find the model number of the iPhone by accessing Settings – General – Information and once inside look at the reference that appears, specifically in the first letter.

These are its meanings:

  • M: Sales unit ( Retail unit ). The units in which the model number begins with the letter M correspond to the terminals sold officially through the Apple distribution chain (Apple Store, Apple Store Online and authorized retailers: Apple Resellers, operators, large chains, etc.), etc…).
  • P: Engraved unit. The iPhone was customized by Apple with a word or phrase laser engraved.
  • F: Reconditioned unit ( Refurbished unit ). These terminals have gone through a process of restoration by Apple before putting them back to the window. They usually come from returns or from equipment that had problems and the Apple technicians repaired.
  • N: Replacement unit. The units marked with the letter N correspond with equipment delivered by authorized technical services as a replacement to a previous unit that presented technical problems.

It is important to mention that when checking the letter, you should look at the model number(in some cases it appears simply as a model) and not in the serial number of the device. It is a fairly common mistake and it can be confusing since the serial numbers do not match this nomenclature.

Have you been able to check if on your iPhone the lyrics match the origin you thought you had? I hope this information has been very useful for you.

Also See;iOS 13 and iPadOS 13 public beta 2 now available for download

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Hassan Abbas

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