We’re positive you’ve already mastered the most important new functions, but if you’re looking for more ways to improve your day-to-day, you’ll find them here.
To help you out, we’ve highlighted some characteristics we think are essential (or at least helpful). Before you dive deep into the article, you may want to read how tablets and smartphones differ from each other at the difference.wiki.
1. Disable the Screen from Continuously Lighting up (14 Pro Only)
The always-on display on the iPhone 14 Pro minimizes the wallpaper and emphasizes the time. It’s turned on by default, but you could discover it’s not worth the battery life it takes away. To that end, you can disable it if you so choose.
To disable the Always On feature, go to Settings > Display and Brightness. Simple.
The sleep mode can be programmed to turn off at night if you prefer it to be on during the day. Navigate to Preferences > Concentrate > Sleep. Under the ‘Schedule’ menu, you can automatically configure a sleep focus to activate at a predetermined time every night. When it kicks in, your always-on screen will turn off automatically when the sun goes down.
2. Use the Haptic Keyboard
Apple’s default keyboard now has haptic feedback as of iOS 16. Finally. When you type, you’ll be able to feel light taps or vibrations directly beneath the screen. Select “Keyboard feedback” from the menu that appears after selecting “Sound and Haptics” in the settings menu. Turn on the haptic switch.
3. Percentage Battery Indicator
As we discussed in our iOS 16 video, you can now set the battery icon in your status bar to display the actual percentage of battery life. Enable the ‘battery percentage’ option in Settings > Battery.
4. Modify How You Send Alerts
In iOS 16, the number of pending notifications is automatically displayed as a ‘count’ at the bottom of the Lock Screen. However, you may alter this to show a stack of notification windows or a list of actual notifications.
To do this, go to Settings > Notifications and tap one of the other two options for ‘Display As’ at the top of the screen.
5. Put a Passcode on a Secret Note and Protect It with Face ID
It is now possible to protect individual notes in Notes using FaceID verification. In the past, the only way to secure your phone was with a passcode, but now you have more options. To activate this function, select ‘Password’ from the Settings > Notes menu. After that, choose “Use Device Passcode” and “Use FaceID” on the following screen. You can now access notes without entering a unique password.
If you wish to secure a particular note within the app, press and hold on to that Note until a menu displays, and then select “lock note” from the list. When you next try to unlock it, FaceID will be used to verify that it’s you.
6. Recall or Delete Sent Imessages
It’s possible that after you send a message, one of two things will happen: (a) you’ll quickly regret it and wish to unsend it, or (b) you’ll make an embarrassing error, maybe even both of those things. Those issues have been addressed in iOS 16, so that’s good news. Previously sent iMessages can be retrieved and revised.
Launch the Messages app, compose your message, and hit the send button as usual; then, press and hold the message for a few seconds once the message has been delivered. You can choose between “Edit” and “Undo send” from the drop-down menu. Pick whichever one suits your needs better at the moment. However, if the recipient doesn’t have iOS 16, they will still see the message even though it says it was never sent.
7. Removing Multiple Images
To save up space on your iPhone and in iCloud, you can now effortlessly delete duplicate photographs with Apple’s updated Photos app.
You need only access your photo library and select ‘Albums’ from the menu. If you look closely, you’ll see a section labeled “Duplicates” toward the bottom of the page. Now you can either hit ‘merge’ near each match, or hit ‘select’ at the top, manually choose each image you want to delete, and hit the delete trash can icon at the bottom.
8. Drag Foreground Subjects Away From Backgrounds into New Documents
The ability to crop people out of photos and send them as cutouts to other apps is a neat new feature in iOS 16. You may easily drag and drop it into another document or onto a picture you’re editing in Photoshop, Pages, or another program.
To remove the subject from the background, tap and hold it, as usual; while keeping it with the same finger, swipe away from the app and open the one you want to drop it into.
For example, if you’re using Pages, you have to launch the app, make a new document (or launch an existing one), and drop the image into it. (If you’re having trouble, look at the video we embedded near the top of the page; it demonstrates the method.)
Suppose you want to share them in a different way, as we demonstrated in our iOS 16 videos. In that case, you can do so by tapping and holding the subject, waiting for that white line to appear around it, and then tapping either “share” and selecting the destination you want to send it to or “copy” and opening the app manually to paste it in.
9. Take Pictures with a Resolution of 48 Megapixels
Another feature exclusive to the iPhone 14 Pro, this one takes photos at a whopping 48 megapixels by using all of the available pixels on the primary camera’s sensor.
To change the format of your photos, tap the Camera icon in the menu and then tap Formats. Flip the switch labeled “Apple ProRAW,” then ensure the resolution is set to 48 megapixels. Toggle ‘RAW’ now appears at the top of the camera app’s interface. To take a full 48-megapixel RAW photo, just hit the button.
10. Turning Macro Mode On or Off By Hand
The manual macro mode switch is also helpful because the abrupt transition between 1x and macro has been an issue with recent smartphone versions. Go back to your phone’s settings and toggle the “Macro Control” switch on.
Launch the camera app and get close to an object to see the macro logo in yellow. You can turn it off by tapping the symbol whenever it displays; it’s turned on by default.
11. Customize Your 3D Sound Environment
With iOS 16, you may customize the sound coming out of your AirPods’ Spatial Audio using the front-facing FaceID sensors. AirPods 2 and 3, as well as AirPods Pro, are supported (first and second gen).
Access it by opening the case for your AirPods, ensuring they’re connected, and then going into the Settings menu on your device. Select AirPods from the menu, and then look for “Personalized Spatial Audio” on the following screen. Follow that by selecting “Personalize Spatial Audio” from the subsequent screen.
You’ll be guided through a process where the front-facing depth sensors collect measurements of your face and ears to create a personalized Spatial Audio profile for usage with your paired AirPods.
12. Check the Wi-Fi Network’s Security Key
Access to the network’s password is a valuable capability that has been lacking for some time. With iOS 16, you can finally. Access this information by going to “Settings,” “Wi-Fi,” and then tap the information icon next to the network you’re using. In response to your tap, it will utilize your FaceID to verify that you are who you say you are and will then disclose the passkey. You will see “Password” on the following screen.
13. Apple Maps Lets You Add Many Stops To Your Trip.
Apple Maps in iOS 16 allows you to add intermediate locations to your route. It’s as simple as navigating, entering your destination, and selecting the car or drive symbol.
You can now add a stop to the list that appears under “Directions” before beginning the turn-by-turn navigation. Tap it, add the holidays you want to make, and rearrange their order. You can now press the “Go” button to begin navigation with your desired visits pre-programmed.
14. Brief Remark
Quick Note is an iOS feature that, as its name suggests, allows you to begin composing a note in the Notes app rapidly. Navigate the “Note Page with Plus” control by clicking the “Control Centre” drop-down menu. If you tap that, the Notes app will open, and you may begin typing a new note immediately.
15. Take a Screenshot by Tapping the Back Button
Taking a screenshot or hiding the notifications is as easy as tapping twice or thrice on the back of your iPhone, thanks to a neat little technique. Also, you can find this option in the accessibility menu.
Find ‘Touch’ in the menu at Settings > Accessibility. Find the “Back Tap” option at the bottom of the next screen. Select “Double Tap,” then pick “screenshot” (or whatever else you want) from the menu. If you press twice on the back of your phone, it will now snap a screenshot.
16. Tap Siri’s Keyboard
The option to text queries to Siri is another accessibility aid for people who have trouble speaking or listening. The first step, though, is to turn it on.
You can locate Siri by logging into Settings and tapping on Accessibility again. When you start Siri by holding down the side key, you can now type requests and see the results on the screen by toggling on ‘Type to Siri’ on the next screen.
17. Hands-Free Operation (Aka Reachability)
iOS has a feature that makes accessing the top of the screen simpler by using only one finger. It’s called Reachability, and when it’s on, all you have to do is swipe down from the bottom of the screen to lower the top half of the display, making it easier to reach.
To enable ‘Reachability,’ go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch.
