How To Identify What Phone You Have

A phone model is a type or design of smartphone that manufacturers typically release in a series. For instance, Apple released the iPhone 11 Pro in the iPhone 11 series in 2019.

The make and model that you have will partially determine how much money you will receive for your device, as newer models tend to be worth more as well as certain brands.

The way that you can find out what model you have will depend firstly on if you have an iPhone or an Android device.

If You Have an iPhone

Launch your Settings menu and navigate to General > About, then look at the Model Number and Model Name at the top of the menu. By default, the Model Number displayed will start with a letter M (replacement iPhones have their model numbers starting with the letter N), which provides a more detailed identification of your device: i.e. its colour and storage capacity.

You can also tap on the Model Number to display the number starting with a letter A that you can look up on Apple’s Support page. This will help you to find the name of your iPhone since older iPhones do not store this information in the About menu.

If you are unable to turn on your iPhone, the model number can be found on the rear of the device in small print. You should see that the text has a combination of the letter ‘A’ and a number, which you can search on the Apple Support page online.

If you have a more recent iPhone, for example newer than iPhone 7, then the A number will be printed inside the SIM tray.

If You Have an Android

Android devices are manufactured by different brands, but the principle remains the same. Simply look for the model number which will tell you which Android device you have.

Launch the Settings menu and look for either About Phone or the System tab (these options might vary depending on the manufacturer). More recent Android devices will have the model name displayed in the About phone section, for instance the Google Pixel 2 XL, Samsung Galaxy S8 and newer devices.

Older Android devices might only store the Model Number in the About phone section. Once you have located this number, look it up online and you will be able to identify which Android you have.

Another way of finding out your Android device’s model is to look at the back of the device. Depending on the manufacturer, the Model Name might be printed on the back of the phone as a part of the design. However, this is becoming less common in pursuit of cleaner design.

If the model name is nowhere to be found on the back of the device itself, look for an entry combined of numbers and letters. For instance, Samsung will have SM-XXXXX printed on the back of the device. Next, head to Google and search the discovered number.