iOS 12 Tips & News « iOS & iPhone

News: ARKit 2.0 Brings Persistent, Shared Experiences & 3D Object Detection to Apple Mobile Apps in iOS 12

As expected, Apple revealed today at the WWDC keynote that ARKit 2.0 will support multiplayer gaming support and persistent content, which will arrive this fall with iOS 12.

How To: Unlock the Hidden Weather Lock Screen Widget in iOS 12 on Your iPhone

There are a lot of things that make iOS great, but lock screen widgets are not among them. If you want more information on your lock screen other than the date, time, and notifications without having to swipe to a sidebar of widgets, you'd normally look toward Android. However, iOS 12 aims to shake that up a bit with a secret Weather widget for the lock screen — not for the Today view.

News: 51 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Install iOS 12 on Your iPhone Yet

This year's big iPhone update, iOS 12, aims to solve many of the issues that arose during iOS 11's controversial, buggy tenure. With that in mind, it may be tempting to jump on board the new software immediately and leave iOS 11 in the dust for good. Here are some reasons why you might want to reconsider joining the iOS 12 beta.

How To: Access Your Photo Library in Messages for iOS 12 to Send Already Taken Pics & Vids

Ever since 2009, you could send a photo or video that you've already taken right from the Messages app on your iPhone. You would just tap on the camera icon next to the new message box, then choose either to take a new one or select one from your library. If you're running iOS 12, that's no longer the case, but that doesn't mean the capability is gone entirely.

How To: iOS 12 Makes It Easier to Use Two-Factor Authentication for Third-Party Apps & Websites — Here's How It Works

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a great way to add another layer of security to sensitive third-party apps and websites like Venmo. However, before iOS 12, to log into a particular 2FA-secured app or site on your iPhone, you'd have to memorize or copy the SMS code from Messages, then jump back in a timely manner to log in. Apple's latest iOS version streamlines this process.

How To: Find Songs by Lyrics in Apple Music for iOS 12 — With or Without a Subscription

Has this ever happened to you: You're singing a song in your head and want to look it up on Apple Music but you just can't think of its name or even who recorded it? In iOS 12, if you can sing it, you can search for it, as the update lets you find songs in Apple Music by lyrics alone. It's like Shazam, only instead of identifying music by sound, it uses the lyrics in your head.

How To: Downgrade iOS 12 Back to 11.4 on Your iPhone

Apple's goal with iOS 12 is to smooth out the problems with its famously flawed predecessor. Of course, change isn't for everyone, and by iOS 11.4, Apple had a pretty stable thing going. If you're not digging all the bugs and new features included in the iOS 12 beta, here's how to downgrade your iPhone back to iOS 11.4.

How To: Screen Time, App Limits & Downtime: How to Use iOS 12's New Parental Controls

Among iOS 11's many criticisms, one of the more surprising complaints came from parents worried that Apple wasn't doing enough to monitor and control their children's iPhone usage. Apple seems to have taken these issues to heart, as iOS 12 introduces new and improved parental controls to help encourage healthier mobile habits for kids.

How To: Download iOS 12 Beta on Your iPhone Right Now

Apple revealed the first glimpse of iOS 12 at WWDC 2018 on June 4, and if you want to try out all of its new features before everyone else gets the stable release in September, you can install one of the betas on your iPhone right now.

Caution: Here's All the Apps That Are Buggy or Broken on iOS 12 Beta for iPhone

The iOS 12 beta has already earned admiration for its superior performance to last year's controversially buggy iOS 11. That doesn't mean it's free from problems, however. The latest from Apple has plenty of bugs and glitches of its own to contend with, many of which, unfortunately, affect the apps we use every day.

News: 46 Cool New iOS 12 Features You Didn't Know About

The next big iOS version for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch was revealed by Apple at WWDC 2018. While they showed off a few new features iOS 12 has to offer, there is much more lurking beneath the surface, some of which is hidden from plain sight. We've rounded up all the big picture items and secrets features and changes we could find so you know exactly what to expect when iOS 12 hits the masses.

News: Here's How Apple's Stopping Police from Breaking into iPhones

Since the San Bernardino shooting in 2014, Apple's been engaged in a game of cat and mouse with law enforcement. Authorities want access to evidence on criminals' iPhones, but Apple wants to protect all of its customers' personal data equally. The latest installment in this saga has Apple outright disabling the Lightning port.

News: Apple Just Broke Its Update Cycle Record with iOS 12 on the iPhone 5S

With each year that we anxiously await Apple's next big version of iOS, there comes the sad reality that the eldest iPhones will not continue to receive support. That's not the case with iOS 12, however, as the software will be compatible with all iPhones currently running iOS 11, going back as far as the iPhone 5S.

How To: Access Your Screen Time Usage Stats Faster in iOS 12 for iPhone

Apple's digital health initiative in iOS 12 includes Screen Time, a settings menu that shows you how much time you spend playing games, reading news, and whatever else it is you do. This menu also lets you schedule downtime away from your iPhone, set time limits for your apps, and more. While this is all great, it's hidden inside the Settings app — but there's a faster way to access this data.

How To: Create Your Own Shortcuts in iOS 12 to Get Things Done Faster with Siri

Apple is putting their Workflow acquisition to use with the new Shortcuts feature, integrated right into Siri. It allows you to connect commonly-used actions to a phrase that you activate with Siri. In addition to some of the other speed improvements in iOS 12, Shortcuts will help streamline your mobile experience.

How To: Register a Second Face ID Look on Your iPhone X in iOS 12

Setting up Face ID is simple, but getting it to work correctly every time is a different story. While there are numerous tips for getting Face ID to work every time you need it on your iPhone X, Apple has added a new option in iOS 12 that lets you add an "alternative appearance."

News: The One Thing That Sucks About iOS 12's New Snapchat-Like Camera Effects for iPhone

During their iOS 12 presentation at WWDC 2018, Apple showed off new, Snapchat-like effects and stickers for photos and videos in Messages. While these new options are fun, they're missing something that takes away from the appeal, especially since Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, and similar apps already let you do it.

Bedtime Mode: How to Keep Notifications from Distracting You at Night on iOS 12

Let's say you wake up in the middle of the night and check your phone to see the time. As soon as you do, you're greeted by a wall of notifications on your lock screen. You just wanted to know how much longer you could sleep, but now your mind's racing after seeing all of the messages you need to deal with. Thankfully, iOS 12's new Bedtime Mode has a solution for this problem.

How To: Grouped Notifications in iOS 12 Makes Browsing Alerts on Your iPhone Way Less Annoying

Apple's linear Notification Center has been scattershot at best since iOS 9 when we could group notifications by app. Without any type of grouping ability, the notification history becomes more of a nuisance of random alerts based on time alone, making it a treasure hunt to find the notification wanted. Now, iOS 12 has addressed this issue, bringing back groupings — with improvements.

How To: Get iOS 12's New Wallpaper on Any Device

Apple announced iOS 12 during WWDC 2018. While it will be some months before the official version releases to the public, you can still enjoy some of the new additions now. For example, you can get the new wallpaper introduced with the update, whether you're using an older iPhone or an Android device.