it's probably best to get hold of a reconditioned iphone X or slightly later. And rather have ios 17 kept on it. As I have decided it's better to not use later versions. The phone will work more efficiently when the system no longer supports updates!

Best wishes

Sep 7, 2026 1:44 PM in response to croloriarc295

Re: “So i can reset my iphone XS and continue using it with ios 17 it seems. Is that correct?”

If it is running iOS 18, resetting it will not downgrade it to iOS 17. And if it isn’t running an up-to-date release of iOS 18, iMessages and FaceTime will break after next January.

Sep 7, 2026 1:51 PM in response to Servant of Cats

Thanks

That's even better!

I have my iphone 6s still working on 15.7 and it's fine. So the newer phone (XS) will be fine with it's bigger screen and different camera options.

If you're looking for a 13pro max i would send it out to you gladly (it's a 1T byte version). In blue with no damage to the screen. If you pay postage. It's just that it's ended up with the ios versions since ios 18!

Best wishes

Sep 7, 2026 4:01 PM in response to croloriarc295

croloriarc295 wrote:

That seems great.

I don't use phase time or 'i mess ages'. I've always found it poor and inefficient

Suit yourself. I use the Messages app all the time to send text messages to, and receive text messages from, relatives who have iPhones. Those messages travel as iMessages.

What is the difference between iMessage, RCS, and SMS/MMS? - Apple Support

Also note that when that security certificate in iOS 17 expires, iMessages and FaceTime might not be the only things on your iPhone XS that will break. Those are just the things that Apple emphasized in release notes, when pushing out assorted iOS, iPadOS, and macOS updates to address the certificate expiration issue.

If you do not update your iPhone to the latest version of iOS that it can run, and things break, don't come back here saying that you were not warned.

Sep 7, 2026 3:59 PM in response to croloriarc295

croloriarc295 wrote:

If you're looking for a 13pro max i would send it out to you gladly (it's a 1T byte version). In blue with no damage to the screen. If you pay postage. It's just that it's ended up with the ios versions since ios 18!

These forums aren't for buying, selling, or even giving away equipment. (Nor are they a good place to post any sort of personal contact information, given that spammers and scammers might scrape it off and use it for less than ethical ends.). The phone you describe would be a definite upgrade over the one I am using now in every respect except for "pocketable size", but I'm afraid I must decline the offer.

However, if your phone is in good condition, and you are so against using iOS 26 (and 27, which should be out almost any time now) that you want to give the phone away, I would suggest

Saving your data
Finding a local charity or social services office that could put the phone to good use (e.g., to give a homeless person a means of looking for a job)
Preparing the phone for a new owner by following the steps that Apple outlines in What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support . That's important both to wipe your data, and to allow the recipient to properly set up the phone as their own.

Transferring your data from an iPhone running iOS 26 to one running iOS 17 or 18 will be the trickiest step. You can't restore a backup made using iOS 26 to a phone running an earlier version of iOS. So you will be looking at other means of data transfer - like synchronizing as much data as possible to iCloud, importing data to a Mac or Windows PC, or possibly, in some cases, just resigning yourself to the loss of data that you can't easily transfer.