Hi everyone, its great to be back this year (again 😂) and see familiar (and new!) faces. Looking to buy a iPhone 14 Pro Max outright this year so excited for the event and pre-order and then launch day (like everyone else 😁). Have moved from being a student to working full-time (no more discount codes sorry)! So will have to choose the pick-up from store option to get mine on launch day (that's going to be hectic on a Friday in London 😂)
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPhone 13 UK iPhone 13/13 mini/13 Pro/13 Pro Max Pre-release, Orders and Dispatch Thread
- Thread starter Jinjin
- WikiPost WikiPost
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
- Status
Have you seen O2's new switch up system...its basically like the iPhone upgrade program but cheaper. You pick the phone (you can pick 36 months to make it cheaper) and then the airtime (so for a 13PM (256gb) with 150gb data is £62 p/m). Then whenever you want to upgrade you just hand the phone back in and they give you a new one and you go on a new contract (no new credit check either once you have the line with them) - and no additional cost. Seems like a pretty good deal to me unless your ultra keen on buying the phone outright.
EE messed up all their price plans imo they've completely changed them and started adding speed caps and made the rest of them ridiculously expensive for what it is (a sim only plan!). Currently rocking £8 p/m for 40gb data (is 20gb but since I have virgin media at home it doubles the data allowance) from O2 - such a good deal 😂. I'd agree that EE is the best and Vodafone takes a close second but when I know that I can get 40gb for £8 I just don't want to pay more.
Yeah, planning on leaving O2 to be honest as I've found their data to be awful otherwise I'd be interested in that.
Hi everyone, its great to be back this year (again) and see familiar (and new!) faces. Looking to buy a iPhone 14 Pro Max outright this year so excited for the event and pre-order and then launch day (like everyone else
). Have moved from being a student to working full-time (no more discount codes sorry)! So will have to choose the pick-up from store option to get mine on launch day (that's going to be hectic on a Friday in London
) and see familiar (and new!) faces. Looking to buy a iPhone 14 Pro Max outright this year so excited for the event and pre-order and then launch day (like everyone else 
). Have moved from being a student to working full-time (no more discount codes sorry)! So will have to choose the pick-up from store option to get mine on launch day (that's going to be hectic on a Friday in London Good to see you back and congrats on becoming a grown up
You thinking of the earliest slot for a London pick up?
I’m still thinking home delivery for me but swaying…
Hahaha thank you 😁! The opposite actually! I basically work 8am-6pm every day so will need to pick up after work! It's more carrying the iPhone through the crowds and the underground that gives me anxiety 😂 will buy a padlock for my bag and put an AirTag in itGood to see you back and congrats on becoming a grown up
You thinking of the earliest slot for a London pick up?
I’m still thinking home delivery for me but swaying…
Tbh I understand that - it does depend what you want to do with your mobile data when you're out and about...seems to work well for me though!
Took my 12 Pro to a MM SMARTdrop Kiosk at a local Asda earlier. Took me 2 or 3 attempts to position the phone to it’s liking as it kept saying it couldn’t read the IMEI and to re-position.
Anyway, once it worked it was literally a couple of minutes and I was paid the quoted amount on the order. Payment was by faster payments - already in my account and that even on a Sunday.
Would use again, unfortunately as we know the 13 series is currently excluded from the SMARTdrop option.
Anyway, once it worked it was literally a couple of minutes and I was paid the quoted amount on the order. Payment was by faster payments - already in my account and that even on a Sunday.
Would use again, unfortunately as we know the 13 series is currently excluded from the SMARTdrop option.
This is excellent news as I’m going to use it myself in a couple of weeks but felt a little apprehensive.
As a matter of interest was your phone immaculate or did it have minor signs of wear and tear? (I’m assuming that you stated its condition as ‘Good’).
I’d class it as pretty much mint. Might have been the odd microscopic scratch I’m sure.
Can you clarify at what point you signed out of your iCloud account and wiped / reset the phone. I presume that has to be done after the IMEI number has been read?
No - I’d completely wiped / erased all settings. Had the QR code from the order on another phone which I scanned to commence the process at the kiosk.
On a wiped / erased iPhone the IMEI is available by tapping the ‘i” at the bottom right of the Welcome (first) screen when you turn on the device.
One of the checks the machine completes is that there’s no icloud lock. So I’m not sure how you would go on if you hadn’t wiped the phone first / signed out of iCloud etc.
That’s really helpful thank you. All my concerns have been laid to rest.
I was puzzled as to how the IMEI number could be read if the phone had been reset to factory settings with just the welcome screen visible. Now I know.
Just read about this - Seems you have to be in store to make the reservation and get the switch confirmed. So for a new model launch you would have to be there at 1pm on a Friday to be sure you've got a handset reserved for launch day.
Not as smooth as the Apple system which is done online.
I'll let them realise it needs to be reservable online, then have another look next year.
I'm leaving O2 shortly as they've mucked me about proper over my cellular Apple Watch.
I've had to call them 3x times to be put through to technical support to re-provision my Apple Watch plan. Each time time they've taken the details down and have said somebody would come back to me within 72 hours. Each time they've failed and I've had to follow up. The third time was the last straw. Asked to be put through to cancellations for my PAC code - of course suddenly they couldn't do enough for me, apart from get my cellular Apple Watch back online!
My Apple Watch being connected isn't critical, but it has made me sit up consider what they would be like if main number and SIM went down. EE, whilst not cheap, at least have UK call centres and were actually helpful and resolved technical issues same day when I was previously with them.
Last edited:
I mean with reference to launch day's/pre-orders/iPhone availability, yes that would be awkward! Maybe it'll be developed some more hopefully!
I had problems when I joined O2 earlier this year. Luckily there's an O2 shop near where I work so they were able to sort it out for me. I also had problems with the Apple Watch when I was with Vodafone. It seems it's a bit of a problem with networks activating Apple Watches.
@mrandyyu / @AVBeatMan how have you found the cellular capability of the watch? Is it something you’d recommend?
To be honest I've used it only a hand full of times. When you use it it works perfectly and I've asked people if I sound clear on the "phone" and they say they can't tell the difference between phone and watch. I'd say if you go to the gym or just out for a walk it's great as you don't have to take your phone with you. I pay £5 a month so figure why not?
Hmm, usually when I go to the gym, I take my phone, but maybe I shouldn’t and rely on the workout app I have, it might also help me keep focussed at the gym actually.
That said, reception inside my gym is painful on the iPhone, so I probably wouldn’t benefit from it
I use the cellular on the watch loads especially when out walking the dog and all calls are really clear both ends. ok for short a convo but wouldn’t wanna use it for long
Last edited:
I love the cellular functionality when O2 allows it to work for me.
I run a lot and it allows me to be contactable by my family, or for me to reach out to them when out and about without having to carry my phone. They can also track me via FindMy, so can see how close I am to home. I can also stream podcasts to my AirPods when out on a run.
As per AVBeatMan, the call quality is indistinguishable from my iPhone for the people on the other end of the call. My only gripe is the speaker could be a touch louder.
I work at a large production facility and I don't always carry my phone if I nip off somewhere for what was only supposed to be for a few minutes. The Apple Watch simply hands off to the cellular network when it's out of range of my phone and I can still be reached by colleagues etc.
It's not critical functionality, but it's so useful to my daily life which is why I'm annoyed that O2 won't pull their finger out and help me. Worth the £5 a month for me for the connectivity.
I remember when I went to the gym with a cellular Apple Watch I had an annoying problem. I would leave my iPhone in the changing room locker and hope to use cellular on the watch to stream music. However bevause the watch could pick up a faint signal from the phone it wasn’t high enough quality to stream Without buffering but it also prevented the watch from going into cellular mode for data. Used to drive me crazy and defeated the purpose.Hmm, usually when I go to the gym, I take my phone, but maybe I shouldn’t and rely on the workout app I have, it might also help me keep focussed at the gym actually.
That said, reception inside my gym is painful on the iPhone, so I probably wouldn’t benefit from it
Last edited:
