Whisker from the past: Woman unlocks decade-old iPhone for feline memories

In an incredible twist of tech nostalgia, a Chinese woman unlocked her iPhone 4s after nearly 10 years, all to recover precious memories of her late pet cat.

Douyin (the Chinese equivalent of TikTok) user @伊娜娜 (Yi Na Na) recently shared the dramatic moment she powered on her decade-old iPhone and found just 288 minutes (nearly five hours) left before it could be unlocked. Back in 2015, after upgrading to a new phone, the woman’s parents mistakenly entered the wrong password multiple times, locking the device for a jaw-dropping 80,000 hours—around 10 years.

In a video shared with her followers, the Chinese woman recounted how she had long since forgotten about the phone, having got another one, but on a whim, she bought a charging cable to see if it still worked. Much to Yi’s amazement, the wait was almost over, and she began the countdown to unlocking it.

Finally able to access the phone, the woman found a touching video of her beloved, now-deceased cat, whom she adored.

“I couldn’t bring myself to reset the phone because I didn’t want to lose the videos of my cat. It was worth the wait.”

The woman’s patience struck a chord with many netizens, who dubbed her the “most devoted cat owner.”

Apple later clarified that the lengthy lockout period no longer applies with iOS 18. The maximum wait time is now just eight hours—far from the excruciating decade-long penalty she endured. With 10 attempts to enter the password, iPhone users are urged to avoid the dreaded permanent lockout, where the only solution is to erase the device’s data, reported Mustshare News.

For Yi, waiting 10 years was a small price to pay to relive her cherished memories.

In related news, a condescending new advertisement by US giant Apple sparked outrage in Thailand, with locals threatening to ditch Apple and their iPhones for Samsung.