Get Acquainted With the iPhone 6

The new iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus is in your hands -- the culmination of weeks of anticipation.

Perhaps you were one of the millions of people who woke up in the middle of the night last week to be one of the first to pre-order the new smart phones. Or maybe you spent hours, days or even weeks camped outside an Apple store for the chance to be one of the first people to upgrade.

Now that the prize is in your hands, here's what you need to know to get acquainted with your new phone.

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Getting Set Up

Assuming you've already backed up your data from your old iPhone to the iCloud or iTunes, you're now ready to get started.

Once you turn on your new iPhone, swipe the screen when prompted to begin setting it up. Choose a language, connect to Wi-Fi and then sign into your iCloud account.

Important: Don't upgrade to iCloud Drive just yet. The service, which makes sure you have the most up to date versions of your documents everywhere, only works on iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite, which has not yet been released to the public. This means you could potentially be unable to access your documents on another device.

Restore Your Backup

You should see the option "Restore From iCloud Backup." If you'd rather sync from iTunes, make sure you're connected via a lightning cable and select "Restore From iTunes Backup."

Depending on how much data you have to transfer, this could take a while. The iPhone should restart when the restoration is complete.

If you've never used an iPhone before, choose "Set Up As New iPhone." Moving from an Android device shouldn't be too painful.

Check out all the details on how to make the switch here.

Security

Make sure you activate Touch ID when you're prompted during set-up. Your thumb print could make all the difference in keeping your private photos and messages secure.

New features

The iPhones are also packed with new features, including "reachability." With a double touch, the display can slide down so users can reach "anything" at the top of the phone, an ideal feature for multitasking.

You also now have a reason to take the stairs -- the iPhone 6 will have a barometer for elevation.

Both devices also boast better cameras that have a faster and sharper focus. The takeaway here: Your Instagram feed is going to get even more awesome soon.

Apple Pay, the company's digital wallet that is slated to make its debut in October, will also be supported on the new iPhones.

Battery Life

When it comes to battery life, both phones meet or exceed the iPhone 5 in all metrics -- so you may notice at least a slight difference.

The iPhone 6 has up to 14 hours of talk time on a 3G network, while the iPhone 6 Plus boasts up to 24 hours, according to information posted on Apple's website.

When it comes to surfing the Internet on Wi-Fi through the devices, the iPhone 6 has up to 11 hours while the iPhone 6 Plus can handle an additional hour.

The iPhone 6 has up to 11 hours of video playback, while the iPhone 6 Plus has up to 14 hours.