A new feature called “Repair State” discovered in the iOS 17.5 beta means that users will no longer have to turn off Find My Phone when handing their devices in for repair. This information was originally reported by 9to5 Mac, who found the evidence for the Repair State mode in the iOS 17.5 beta 4 released for developers on Thursday.
Apple and authorized repair centers require all devices to have their “Find My” feature turned off as a security measure. The reason is to help prove that the user owns the device. However, there have been some complaints that this has become more complicated since the introduction of Stolen Device Protection in iOS 17.3, which has a delay when changing sensitive settings like Find My Phone.
The new Repair state allows users to confirm that they're about to send the device in to repair with their Apple ID and password. Apple technicians can then easily confirm the customer owns the phone and proceed with the repair. It should be noted that this feature is only available on iPhones; it is not currently an option on iPads.
There is one issue reported in the beta. It appears that iPhones can be placed into the Repair State Mode accidentally when trying to remove it via the Find My App. When trying to remove the device from the app a message will pop up saying “This iPhone is linked to your Apple ID and cannot be removed while it’s online, but you can still prepare it for repair.”
Unfortunately, the phone cannot currently be removed from the Repair State. It should be noted that this is likely due to Apple not including the option yet, or because it requires Apple technicians to confirm that the phone has been repaired. Due to this fault avoid enabling the repair state until Apple confirms a method for users to undo the action themselves.
While iOS 17.5 is not a major update, this kind of addition is great for the day-to-day use of a new phone. It's good to see that Apple is using the time before the release of iOS 18, which has been called the biggest iPhone update ever, to improve the user experience. While it's great to know that getting a phone repaired is less of a hassle, the better idea is to avoid damage. On that note, we have 5 tips to protect your phone and avoid the repair centers.
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