When you first purchased your new iPhone or Android phone — or other mobile device — it came with a generic name, which likely mirrors the device itself. Smartphone names are necessary to differentiate your device from others on a network or connected to your computer. When you connect your smartphone with your PC or Mac via a USB cable, you will see your device name. If you have multiple devices, or if you want a more personal touch and distinguish among multiple mobile devices, you can rename your phone using any name you want. Naming your device is a good idea because it eliminates ambiguity over which device you are handling at any given time. Here’s how to do it with both iOS and Android.
Change your iPhone name
Your iPhone’s default name is iPhone. So it’s likely you’ll want to change the name of your iPhone to avoid confusion and distinguish it from all the other iPhones of the same name — especially if you or family members have purchased multiple handsets. And because services like Find My and iCloud also identify devices by name, it’s useful to know which iPhone is which.
Changing your iPhone name requires a couple of easy steps. This example uses iOS 13. It works the same way for every iPhone.
- On your device, go to Settings > General, then tap About.
- Tap the first line, which shows the name of your device.
- Rename your device, and tap Done.
Change your Android phone name
Changing your Android phone’s name may be a bit more ambiguous, depending on your phone model and the Android OS it uses. It’s safe to say that the vast majority of phone name changes start with Settings. The following sequence uses an LG V40 ThinQ running Android 9. But most other Android smartphones should be similar. Here’s how to do it: Settings > General >About Phone > Phone Name. Then, just enter the name you want and tap Done.
As another example, here’s how to change the name of a Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ running Android 6.0.1.
Tap the following sequence: Settings > Quick settings >About device >Device name. Alternately, you can go to System instead of Quick settings and it will take you to the same place.
Renaming your smartphone is always a good idea. It personalizes your experience while at the same time helps you pick out your current phone from the other devices that you or family members may own. There is no downside to changing the name of your smartphone.
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