Apple released iOS 18 for all iPhone customers this week, however a few of us have had entry to the brand new software program for a bit of longer. In reality, we have been testing out iOS 18 for months throughout the developer and public beta phases, and we have discovered a number of hidden methods that we wager will improve your iPhone expertise.
The newest providing from Apple brings huge adjustments to the iPhone, together with extra customization to the lock and home screen, new features to the text messages, a devoted app for passwords and a very redesigned photograph album.
That is solely what’s on the floor, although.
As all the time, Apple makes a giant deal of some options and never a lot about others. And yearly, we undergo the most recent iOS and search for any hidden options that are not solely hidden, however that can also and can have an effect on how we use our iPhones daily. In the event you’re working iOS 18, these are a number of of the hidden options and settings that Apple did not actually discuss, however that you must positively know.
For extra, listed below are seven iOS 18 settings you want to change right away, how you can back up your iPhone the right way and why you would possibly need to wait before you update.
Restart your iPhone from the brand new management heart
You do not have to press any bodily buttons to restart your iPhone when you’re working iOS 18. The redesigned management heart options all of the basic controls you are used to, like brightness, quantity, orientation, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, however there are a number of new controls, together with one to restart your iPhone.
All it’s essential to do is swipe down from the top-right of your iPhone and press and maintain down on the brand new energy button within the top-right of the management heart. You’ll be able to’t simply faucet it although, it’s a must to maintain it down for a second or so, after which the slider to energy off your iPhone will seem.
To show your iPhone again on, you may nonetheless must press and maintain the bodily aspect button.
On iOS 17 and earlier, the one method to restart your iPhone is to press and maintain both quantity button and the aspect button.
There are a number of methods you’ll be able to share a Wi-Fi community and password with folks by way of your iPhone, and there is a new method to do it on iOS 18. Utilizing a QR code fills in a number of gaps for tactics to rapidly share your Wi-Fi info:
- Share with a number of folks without delay. As a substitute of individually sending out your Wi-Fi password, you’ll be able to have everybody scan the QR code out of your telephone.
- Share with somebody not saved as your contact. Close by share for Wi-Fi would not work except that individual is in your contacts.
- Share with somebody that has Android. Close by share and AirDrop do not work with Android units.
So when you meet any of these situations and you do not need to textual content the Wi-Fi password to them, you need to use the QR code. Go to the brand new Passwords app, go to the Wi-Fi part, faucet on the community you need to share after which hit Present Community QR Code. If the opposite individual scans the QR code with their digicam, they will be linked to the Wi-Fi community.
This solely works for Wi-Fi passwords, not common passwords.
Modify the beam width of your flashlight
The flashlight on the iPhone is getting a giant improve. When you’ve lengthy been capable of change the depth of the flashlight, on iOS 18 now you can additionally modify the beam width of the sunshine, so long as you’ve a appropriate mannequin. You’ll be able to go extensive, to cowl extra space with much less gentle, or go slim, to make use of extra intense gentle over much less space, and in every single place in between. It is a enjoyable characteristic to mess around with for lighting folks for pictures.
To make use of the brand new characteristic, flip in your flashlight (use the lock display screen or management heart), and a brand new consumer interface will seem within the dynamic island. You’ll be able to change the sunshine depth by swiping up and down, however to vary the beam width, you may must swipe left and proper. In the event you faucet anyplace within the dynamic island, you’ll be able to flip the flashlight on and off.
A large flashlight beam (left) and a slim beam (proper).
Word: This characteristic solely works on iPhone fashions with the dynamic island, together with the iPhone 14 Professional, iPhone 14 Professional Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Professional and iPhone 15 Professional Max.
Transcribe Voice Memos and make them searchable
The Voice Memos app is extremely handy for capturing concepts or tune snippets, however they’ve all the time been obfuscated. You can provide them a descriptive title, however that does not assist if you need to discover that one memo you recorded that accommodates the phrase “porcupine.” In iOS 18, although, the app can create transcriptions of your voice memos and seek for phrases that have been beforehand out there solely as audio waveforms.
Within the Voice Memos app, faucet considered one of your memos to disclose its controls after which faucet the Edit Recording button, which seems like a waveform. Or, faucet the three-dots button to the correct of a memo and select Edit Recording.
Subsequent, faucet the Transcribe button to create the transcription (or view the textual content if it is already been transcribed). Faucet Accomplished.
Take an current voice memo (left) and create a transcript of the recording (proper).
Now, if you use the Search subject, the app seems by the transcripts along with the titles for outcomes. The textual content can also be out there all through iOS – if you carry out a search from the house display screen, you may see Voice Memos as a class with the memos that embrace the search time period (you might must faucet Present Extra Outcomes to disclose it).
With transcripts made, voice memos are extra simply searchable.
Disguise app labels for a cleaner house display screen
Is your property display screen feeling a bit of too cluttered? If that’s the case, this new characteristic might assist. Now with iOS 18, you’ll be able to do away with app labels, or the names of the apps that you just see beneath every app icon on your property display screen. In the event you can acknowledge an app from simply the icon, who wants the label?
On your property display screen, press and maintain down on any clean house, till you enter jiggle mode, after which hit Edit > Customise. A menu will seem on the backside of the display screen; select the Massive choice, which can make your app icons barely bigger and take away the app labels.
This may also take away the app labels from the folders within the App Library.
Change an app to a widget with out leaving the house display screen
Not each iOS app has a widget to your house display screen, but when it does, you need not dig by the widget edit web page to seek out it. In the event you’re working iOS 18, and there is an app that you just need to flip right into a widget, you are able to do so in a short time proper from your property display screen.
On a supported app, press and maintain down on the icon on your property display screen to carry up the fast actions menu. If the app has a widget, you may see an app icon subsequent to quite a lot of widget icons (as much as three). Faucet on any of the widget icons to vary the app to a widget. If you wish to return from the widget to the app, go to the fast motion menu and hit the app icon on the left.
This solely works for apps which have widgets on iOS.
Secretly determine songs utilizing the Motion Button
No lie, it is satisfying when somebody asks, “What tune is that this?” to have the ability to activate Music Recognition on the iPhone and get a solution rapidly. However to get the reply means very noticeably asking Siri to run Shazam or activating Music Recognition in the control center. Would not it’s enjoyable to let your mates assume you’ve got been blessed with an encyclopedic information of pop music?
In iOS 18, you’ll be able to come shut utilizing the Motion Button (at present out there simply on iPhone 15 Professional fashions). Go to Settings > Motion Button and swipe by the choices till Acknowledge Music is chosen.
Assign the Acknowledge Music characteristic to the Motion Button after which determine songs by simply holding the button.
To make it work, simply press and maintain the Motion Button for a few seconds. Shazam seems within the dynamic island to take heed to what’s taking part in and identifies the tune. In the event you’re sneaky about activating Shazam and peeking at your telephone, nobody must know you bought some assist from a supercomputer within the cloud.
Discover photographs with handwriting and illustrations within the Images app
Lots is altering within the Images app in iOS 18, from the way in which issues are organized to the flexibility to make use of generative AI to remove objects in photographs (coming next month). Apple has additionally tucked a number of surprises into the app that can assist you kind by your library.
Scroll down previous the principle library itself to view classes equivalent to Individuals and Pets and Reminiscences till you attain Utilities. Faucet it to view the complete listing – however notice {that a} new characteristic of this interface is the flexibility to swipe left to view extra panels. Previous to iOS 18, Utilities included choices to view hidden, just lately deleted and duplicate pictures.
Now, it contains many extra choices. Faucet Handwriting to view photographs with handwriting in them. Searching for photographs which can be illustrations and never images? Faucet Illustrations (although in our testing this appears to seize quite a lot of screenshots, too).
View photographs that include handwriting in your Images library in iOS 18.
Did the hosts of your favourite podcast say one thing particularly humorous or considerate that you just need to share with somebody? Within the Podcasts app in iOS 18, you’ll be able to ship an episode to a pal with the playback superior to that second — however the functionality is not straightforward to seek out.
Faucet the Now Taking part in bar within the app on the backside of the display screen to view the playback controls and pause the episode. Use the progress bar to return to the beginning of the part you need to share.
Subsequent, faucet the Extra (…) button and select Share Episode. Within the sharing choices that seem, faucet From Begin beneath the episode title, after which choose From [the current time]. Faucet Accomplished.
Begin by sharing the episode itself.
Lastly, select the tactic of sharing, equivalent to by way of Messages or Mail. When the recipient receives the shared episode and opens it within the Podcasts app, they will see the choice to Play from [the time].
Specify that the shared episode begins on the time you selected.
