I have a love-hate relationship with getting a new iPhone. It's shiny and new and oh-so scratch-free, and I want to set it up to run just perfectly. But that's the kicker: Setting it up is such a chore. I have to remember all the different toggles I switch on or off, and that's before choosing a new wallpaper and redesigning my home screen layouts. It's a lot.

Also: 12+ iPhone settings you can change to noticeably improve its battery life (iOS 26 and older)

I actually recently made a list of all the little settings I change first, since I got a new iPad, which runs iPadOS, a tablet-optimized version of iOS, and I had to go through this tedious exercise again. Apple gives you a good device out of the box, but some defaults are noisy and waste battery, and there are several buried tools that unlock cool features.

My list strictly includes iOS settings and features I change, add, or disable first on a new phone. It's not about customizing my home screen with color, widgets, and folders. I do start with Liquid Glass, though, since that affects your entire system and experience.

Liquid Glass gives iOS a more translucent look. It's pretty, but it can also make text and controls harder to see, in my opinion. To adjust it, I have a few options. First, I can go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Liquid Glass, then choose between Clear and Tinted. Next, I can go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size and turn on Reduce Transparency.

For even more control, press and hold the home screen, tap Edit in the corner, then choose Customize. From there, I can adjust the Liquid Glass look, choose options such as Clear or Tinted, set it to Always or Auto, and change app icon size and brightness.