However, as with everything in the world of technology, it doesn’t always work and some users find that their iPhones do not appear in My Computer when plugged in. Don’t panic though, as there are steps that can be taken that’ll get your Windows PC to locate your iPhone.
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Use a certified Lightning cable
Before we go any further, it’s probably worth mentioning that you should only use the Lightning cable supplied with your iPhone by Apple, or a certified Lightning cable. Some of the cheaper Lightning cables found online and in small stores only offer the ability to charge the phone with no offer of data transfer.
If you’re using a Lightning cable that doesn’t offer data transfer capabilities, that is more than likely why your iPhone isn’t being detected by your PC. You can pick up an official Lightning cable from Apple or trusted retailers like Currys PC World for £19.
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Make your iPhone ‘trust’ your computer
When you plug your iPhone into your Windows PC, you should see a message appear on your iPhone asking you whether it should ‘trust’ the computer. Trusting a computer allows it full access to your iPhone and all its data, which is what we want it to have. Unlock your iPhone and tap ‘Trust’ when the message appears.
Though logically it should only appear once, we’ve noticed it appear more than once when plugging our iPhone into a PC, so even if you’ve trusted it before, keep an eye out for a pop-up to reconfirm the trusted status.
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Install any updates and restart your PC
If you’re sure that you’re using a certified Lightning cable and that your computer is trusted, the next step is to install any available updates on your PC. This could be an update for iTunes, or even Windows itself.
To check for an iTunes update, simply open iTunes, click Help > Check for Updates and follow the on-screen prompts.
For Windows 10 updates, simply head to Start > Settings > Updates & Security > Windows Update and select “Check for Updates”.
It’s also worth updating your iOS software too, as Apple is always squashing bugs within the operating system and it could be that your current version of iOS is affected. To check whether there is an update available for your iPhone, simply head to Settings > General > Software Update.
Once you’ve updated iTunes, Windows 10 and your iPhone, you should also restart your PC. Once restarted, your iPhone should hopefully appear in My Computer. If not, keep reading for the next solution.
Update iPhone drivers
If trusting your PC still doesn’t make your iPhone appear in My Computer, there’s one possible solution left to try – updating your iPhone’s drivers. This is the most technical of the three solutions we offer, although it isn’t overly complicated.
To update your iPhone drivers, the first step is to plug your iPhone into your PC, then go to Control Panel > Hardware and Sound. Once opened, locate “Apple iPhone” under the Unspecified section, right click it and select Properties. A new window should appear – click the Hardware tab, click Properties and then click Change Settings.
A new window should open. Select the Driver tab, and then click “Update Driver”. From here, you can either search the web for the latest iPhone drivers or direct it to the folder where iPhone drivers are stored within iTunes. For most users, this will be C:Program FilesCommon FilesAppleMobile Device SupportDrivers, but it will depend on your default install location.
Once located, click OK and then Next. You’ll then see one of two messages: either your iPhone drivers are already up-to-date, or a new driver will be installed. If it’s the latter, your iPhone should appear in My Computer shortly after the driver has been installed.
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Lewis Painter is a Senior Staff Writer at Tech Advisor. Our resident Apple expert, Lewis covers everything from iPhone to AirPods, plus a range of smartphones, tablets, laptops and gaming hardware. You’ll also find him on the Tech Advisor YouTube channel.
