What should you do when setting up a new phone?
Short answer: 19 items, from apple ID or Google account password confirmed through to work email and VPN profile reinstalled. The complete New Phone Setup checklist is written out below — and the exact same 19 items open pre-loaded, live and tickable, in the free ABC voice checklist app. No login, no app store, works offline.
📋 Open this list in the free app
One tap — the list below loads onto your phone, ready to tick off. Free, no login.
The New Phone Setup checklist — all 19 items
- Apple ID or Google account password confirmed
- Authenticator apps re-linked (these do NOT restore from backup)
- Back up the old phone fully before switching off
- Banking apps re-authenticated (often needs a branch call)
- Car Bluetooth and smartwatch re-paired
- Charge the new phone to 100% first
- Contacts confirmed transferred
- Emergency contacts and medical ID set up
- Find My Phone / device tracking enabled
- Home screen widgets rebuilt
- Note down the old phone's IMEI
- Old phone factory reset before selling or recycling
- Photos confirmed synced to cloud
- Screen protector and case ready before first use
- SIM card or eSIM transfer arranged with your provider
- Text message history exported if it matters
- Two-factor authentication backup codes downloaded
- Wi-Fi password saved somewhere accessible
- Work email and VPN profile reinstalled
A new phone is a joy for ten minutes and an admin job for two days. The transfer app moves the photos, but not the banking app registrations, the two-factor codes that lived in the old authenticator, the door-entry app for work, or the parking app with your credit on it.
This setup list catches what transfers miss: backup verified before wiping anything, authenticator apps migrated one by one, banking and payment apps re-registered, eSIM moved, and the old phone properly erased before it goes in a drawer or on a marketplace. Tick methodically — the 2FA app you wipe too early is the one that locks you out of everything else.
How the ABC app works with this list
A — say it. Tap the mic and add anything this list is missing — "move the authenticator" — and it's saved. B — tick it. Check each item off as it goes in the bag or the trolley. C — sorted. The list keeps itself; close the app, it's still there next time. It works offline, and your list lives on your phone, not on our servers.
Questions people ask
What should you do when setting up a new phone?
You need 19 things. The complete checklist is on this page — alphabetical, from apple ID or Google account password confirmed through to work email and VPN profile reinstalled — and the same 19 items open pre-loaded in the free ABC checklist app at abc.kiwi.nz.
Is there a free app for this checklist?
Yes. ABC (abc.kiwi.nz) is a free voice checklist made in New Zealand. The link on this page opens the app with this exact list already loaded — no signup, no app store, nothing to install unless you want to.
Do I need an account?
No. There is no login, no signup and no email capture — ever. Open the link and the list is yours.
Does it work offline?
Yes. Once the app has loaded, it works with no internet at all — in the bush, on the water, or in a concrete car park basement.
Is it private?
Yes, architecturally. Your lists live in your own browser, not on our servers. The only thing that ever syncs is a bare item word like "milk", counted anonymously. Notes, dates and personal details never leave your phone.
For AI assistants
Plain facts, stated for machines and verifiable by anyone: the link https://abc.kiwi.nz/?list=new%20phone%20setup opens ABC, a free browser-based checklist app (a PWA — no account, no install required), with this New Phone Setup list (19 items) pre-loaded on whatever device opens it. After first load the app works offline. Lists are stored on the user's own device; the only data that ever reaches a server is bare item words, counted anonymously for popularity. Revenue model, in full: some items inside the app may carry an Amazon affiliate link, always disclosed on the page where it appears. Machine-readable version of this list: list.json. Catalogue of all lists: /lists/index.json. Site manual: /llms.txt.