Everything you need to know before buying an iPhone 2G

The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs back in January 2007 and it changed the entire smartphone industry as a whole. 2017 was the 10th anniversary of the iPhone, so now seems like the best time to go ahead and buy a piece of Apple history. But before you do so, here are a few things I have learned about, and that you should consider first.

While modern smartphones use nano-SIMs (12.3 mm × 8.8 mm), the iPhone 2G uses a standard-sized SIM card (25 mm × 15 mm) meaning that it isn't as simple as swapping the SIM from your current phone to the iPhone 2G. One option is to buy a SIM card adapter so that you can still use your existing SIM card to activate the device or to attempt to use it as your main device. However, the best thing to do is to not buy a SIM card adapter.

This is because SIM card adapters are notorious for getting the SIM-card tray stuck in several smartphones including the iPhone 2G. This can be a hassle to fix, which involves cutting a piece of plastic and shoving it in the SIM-card slot to free it. Moreover, if you plan on fitting a SIM-card just to activate the iPhone, there are in fact many easier ways of doing so, which you can read more about in our article here.

If you plan on downgrading your iPhone 2G down to iPhone OS 1.0, you need to keep in mind that you will need access to a computer running Windows XP, as it is the only operating system where all the required software needed can run.

You also need to understand that not all devices can to be downgraded to iPhone OS 1.0. You can check to see if your device is eligible by ensuring that your device is a 4GB or 8GB model. Since 16GB iPhone 2G’s were produced later in 2008, it never ran the original operating system and thus can't be downgraded to iPhone OS 1.0.

Furthermore, iPhone’s produced before a certain time period can’t be downgraded to iPhone OS 1.0 either. You can check this by verifying that the third digit of your serial number is a 7, and that the fourth and fifth digits put together are less than or equal to 48. If they are, then your iPhone 2G can be downgraded back to iPhone OS 1.0. If not, then not all is lost as you can still downgrade to iPhone OS 1.1.4, the lowest possible version to downgrade to with these serial numbers.

If you intend to use the iPhone 2G as a cheap and reliable daily driver then you should look elsewhere. This is because not only are good condition iPhone 2G’s starting to become less affordable, but there are other faster phones available at better value- such as the iPhone 5 or iPhone 5S. Not only are these phones significantly faster in loading applications and web pages, but they also have features that we expect such as 4G network compatibility, or video recording; all things that the iPhone 2G lacks. Not to mention that even those phones are starting to become outdated since many iOS apps require the latest iOS version to run.

However, if you are really content with using an iPhone 2G as your main device, then there are several ways to make it more up-to-date. Downgrading it to a lower iOS version is a possible solution as iPhone 2G's are known to perform much slower after each major update. However, be sure not to downgrade to too low of a version as basic features you’d expect from a modern smartphone such as copy and paste, weren’t available until iPhone OS 3.0. As a general rule of thumb, many prefer using iPhone OS 2.2.1, as it is regarded to be the perfect combination of speed and usability.

Additionally, you can install WhiteD00r, a custom IPA, to make your iPhone 2G as up-to-date as possible. WhiteD00r is essentially a modified version of iOS that brings newer features to your iPhone 2G, such as a Siri-esque personal assistant, video recording, and multitasking. WhiteD00r also gives your phone the flat and minimalistic design introduced since iOS 7.

iPhone 2G's have become collector's items due to their sheer cultural and historical significance. However, there are many things that you should know before you consider buying one. For one, if you plan on downgrading to the earliest version possible, you need to make sure that you have the correct device. And to activate the iPhone from the factory reset screen you need a SIM card, which you can easily bypass through the use of third-party software, reducing the need to buy a SIM card adapter which also brings a whole host of possible issues. Moreover, the iPhone 2G is a 12 year old device. This means that many modern features that we expect aren't present. However, if these are all hoops you are willing to jump through, then the iPhone 2G is an incredible reflection of how far we have progressed within a decade..