How to Reset Cell Phone

A mobile phone reset will erase everything on the phone and restore it to factory settings. You can use this method when the phone fails as it can solve most hardware related problems. Before selling or donating a mobile phone you should also restore it to factory settings. Don’t forget to back up important data before proceeding as everything will be wiped clean.

Table of Contents

Iphone

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Backup iPhone before resetting. Reset iPhone will erase all data stored on the device. Make a backup so you can restore your data after the reset. Music and other iTunes content needs to be synced back to iTunes or downloaded from iCloud after setup. There are 2 ways to backup iPhone data: ^{[1] X Research Source}

Open the Settings app and select “iCloud”. Scroll down and select “Backup”. Select “Back Up Now” to start iCloud backup. This is to save the selected data items in the previous screen to your iCloud account.
Connect iPhone and computer, turn on iTunes. Select iPhone in the row of buttons at the top of the page and click “Back Up now” with “This Computer”. This is the operation to backup iPhone data to the computer, and save all photos and videos.

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Reset iPhone in the Settings app. You can perform the reset process directly on your iPhone without using iTunes on your computer. If you can’t access your phone or you forgot your Restrictions code, see the next step.

Open the Settings app on your iPhone and select “General”.
Scroll down and select “Reset”.
Select “Erase All Content and Settings” then confirm that you want to erase the data on your phone. You will be asked to enter your screen lock password and Restriction code (if applicable).
Wait for the iPhone to clear data and restart. This process will take a while. After your iPhone restarts, you can either reset it from scratch or load a backup.

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Reset iPhone using iTunes. If you can’t access your iPhone because you don’t remember your screen lock password or Restriction code, you need to use iTunes to reset iPhone.

Put the device into Recovery Mode. Power off iPhone and hold down the Home button. Continue holding the Home button and connect your iPhone to the computer. Turn on iTunes and keep holding the Home button until the iTunes logo appears on the phone screen. You can restore iPhone from iTunes.
Connect iPhone to computer and open iTunes.
Select iPhone and then click the “Restore iPhone” button.
Wait for your iPhone to erase all data and set it up again.

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Reset iPhone using Find My iPhone. If you don’t have a computer to connect your iPhone to but can’t access it because you forgot your screen lock password or Restriction code, you can use Find My iPhone to set up your iPhone remotely.

Go to icloud.com/find and sign in with the same Apple account used on your iPhone. You can use the Find My iPhone app on another Apple device by signing in as a guest.
Click the “All Devices” menu and select your iPhone.
Click the “Erase iPhone” button and confirm. iPhone will automatically perform the reset.

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Enter the original Apple account to bypass the activation lock. Any Find My iPhone enabled iPhone has an Activation Lock. This is a theft prevention lock, preventing unauthorized users from resetting a stolen iPhone. To bypass the activation lock, you need to enter the Apple account and password associated with the device.

If you bought a used iPhone and didn’t know the user’s password first, you’ll need to ask them for the password. If they’re not present, relinquish ownership of the device at icloud.com/settings by signing in, selecting iPhone under “My Devices”, then clicking the “X”.
This is the only way to bypass the activation lock. If you cannot contact the previous owner, the device cannot be accessed. Remember to check that the activation lock is disabled before buying a used iPhone.

Android

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Back up important data. Reset Android will restore factory settings and erase all data on the device. Don’t forget to back up important data before performing a device reset.

Open the Settings app and select “Backup & reset” to see backup options. You can back up most of your data to your Google account, including your contacts and settings.
Photos need to be backed up to your computer or Google Photos account. Read the article Transfer Photos from Android to Computer for detailed instructions.

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Reset Android from Settings app. You can reset your Android device from the Settings app. The following instructions may vary depending on the Android model and manufacturer, but the basics are still the same. If you can’t access Settings because you locked your device, see the last step of this section.

Select “Backup & reset”. You can find this option under “Personal”.
Select “Factory data reset” and confirm. This is an operation that erases all data on Android and allows you to restore the device’s factory settings as it was when it was shipped.

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Reset Android from Android Device Manager. If you can’t access your Android device because you lock the screen, or lose it but want to erase all data, you can use Android Device Manager.

Go to google.com/android/devicemanager or open the Android Device Manager app on another Android device and sign in with your Google account.
Click the “Erase” button on your Android device’s tab. Confirm that you want to erase the data on the device.

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Reset Android using Recovery Mode. If you cannot access your Android device and cannot use Android Device Manager, you can reset it using Recovery Mode.

Power off the Android device.
Press and hold the Recovery Mode button. Depending on the device, you must press and hold the Volume Up + Home + Power button or Volume Down + Power button at the same time. Continue holding the button until the Recovery Mode logo appears.
Use the volume rocker to navigate the recovery menu and the Power button to select.
Select “recovery”, then select “wipe data/factory reset”.

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Enter the original owner’s Google account password (if required). Many newer Android devices have an Activation Key linked to the owner’s Google account. Here’s how to prevent your phone from being stolen. If prompted, you’ll need to enter the Google account password associated with the device before performing a factory reset to reset it.

If you bought a used machine, you will need to contact the previous owner for the password.

Windows Phone

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Back up important data. Reset Windows Phone will erase all data stored on the device. Don’t forget to transfer photos to your computer or OneDrive account, you should save important data in a safe place.

You can back up most of your Windows Phone data by going to the Settings menu, choosing “Update & security”, and then choosing “Backup”. Don’t forget to enable both options, then connect your Windows Phone to a power source and wireless network. This method does not back up the images.

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Reset Windows Phone in the Settings menu. You can reset Windows Phone directly from the Settings menu. If the phone cannot be accessed, see the next step.

Open the Settings menu. You can find this in the “All apps” list on the Start screen.
Select “About”. You must open the “System” section first if you are using Windows 10.
Select “Reset your phone”. Once confirmed, Windows Phone will proceed with the reset process, you will have to wait for a while.

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Reset Windows Phone using Find My Phone. If you can’t access your phone or it’s locked, you can visit the Find My Phone website:

Go to account.microsoft.com/devices and sign in with your Microsoft account.
Select the Windows Phone on which you want to delete data.
Click the “Erase” button next to the phone information section. Once confirmed, the device will proceed with the reset process.

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Reset Windows Phone from recovery menu. If you can’t access Windows Phone, you can restore from recovery mode. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Power off the phone, press and hold the Power button and the Volume down button at the same time until the phone vibrates.
As soon as the phone vibrates, release your hand and press the Volume Up button.
When you see the exclamation mark (!), press and release the following buttons in order: Volume Up, Volume Down, Power, Volume Down. The machine will proceed with the reset process.

BlackBerry

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Data backup. Resetting your BlackBerry device will erase all data on the device, so don’t forget to save important data. This process BlackBerry also deletes the IT policies that you received from the company’s service, contact IT to see if this is a corporate phone.

The simplest way to back up your BlackBerry is to use the BlackBerry Desktop software. Connect your BlackBerry to your computer with a USB cable and click the “Back Up Now” button on the BlackBerry Desktop software to initiate the backup process.

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Reset your BlackBerry 10 device. If you’re using a newer device running the BlackBerry 10 operating system (Z10, Q10, Q5, Z30, P’9982, Z3, Passport, Classic, Leap), follow these steps. here to securely erase data. If using older equipment, see the next step: ^{[3] X Research Source}

Swipe down on the Home screen and tap the “Settings” button.
Select “Security and Privacy” and then select “Security Wipe”.
Enter “blackberry” in the text field to confirm you want to erase the data on the device.
Enter your BlackBerry account and password if prompted. This step only appears on operating systems 10.3.2 and later.
Press the “Delete Data” button to proceed with the deletion and reset process. Do not turn off the power or remove the battery during the reset process.

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Reset your BlackBerry device. If you use an older BlackBerry (Bpd, Curve, Pearl, Storm, Torch, Style), follow these instructions to safely reset your device: ^{[4] X Research Source}

Select “Options” on the BlackBerry Home screen.
Click “Security” or “Security Options” and then select “Security Wipe”.
Check the dialog box corresponding to the data you want to delete..
Type “blackberry” in the text field then select “Wipe”. Do not turn off the power or remove the battery during data deletion.

Steps

Iphone

Android

Windows Phone

BlackBerry

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