Hot iOS & iPhone How-Tos
How To: Set an Alarm on Your iPhone for When Your Battery Reaches Full Charge
Out of all the myths about the iPhone's battery, one that's very true is that charging your phone overnight is bad news. Keeping the charge level at 100% puts the battery under strain, which can permanently damage it. Apple took steps to address the issue in iOS 13, where your battery stops charging when it hits 80% in some scenarios, but that's not always enough.
How To: The Notes Widget Sucks — So Here Are 4 Better Ones for More Useful Sticky Notes on Your Home Screen
I won't mince words: the Notes widget in iOS 14 is bad. But you're not stuck with it if you want sticky notes on your home screen.
How To: Install Facebook Lite on Your iPhone
In an ongoing effort to improve its services and become more accessible to users from all regions, Facebook has released a streamlined version of its social media app. Though the leaner Facebook Lite is only officially available in Turkey for now, there's a simple workaround you can use to get the app in any country.
How To: The Simple Way to Stop Your iPhone from Sending Unwanted Audio Messages
Your iPhone's audio messages may get you in trouble if they haven't done so already. It's way too easy for your iPhone to start recording without your knowledge, only to send a friend or family member a conversation you're having about them. (Awkward.) Luckily, protecting yourself takes only the flick of a switch.
How To: Why Your Lost AirPods Say 'Offline' or 'No Location Found' in the Find My App
If you lose your AirPods, AirPods Pro, or AirPods Max, you can turn to Find My to locate them. But sometimes, things don't go according to plan, and many things can go wrong. For example:
How To: See Passwords for All the Wi-Fi Networks You've Connected Your iPhone To
Your iPhone goes with you pretty much everywhere you go, and unless you have unlimited data on your cellular plan, you've probably connected to dozens of Wi-Fi hotspots over the years. Wi-Fi passwords are saved to your iPhone so you can auto-connect to the router or personal hotspot again, but finding the plain text password for a network hasn't always been easy.
How To: Apple's Weather App Just Got 13 New Features and Changes in the Latest iPhone Software Update
Apple's Weather app keeps getting better and more refined with each new software update. For example, 2023's big update gave us yesterday's weather, averages, and wind maps, while 2022's unleashes Lock Screen widgets, severe weather alerts, and an iPad version. Now, we have significant changes to feels-like details, an update to measurement units, more pollutant statistics, and more.
How To: Quickly Open Your Favorite Apps Just by Tapping the Back of Your iPhone
In recent years, accessibility features on the iPhone have been given more attention by Apple, which means more people with disabilities can take advantage of everything iOS has to offer. These features are also beneficial for non-disabled users, and iOS 14 has an exciting one that everyone will want to use: Back Tap.
How To: Use This Trick to View Your Complete Clipboard History and Recopy Anything
Your iPhone's clipboard can only save one item at a time, so it may seem impossible to retrieve your entire history of copied text, images, and other content. Luckily, there is a workaround you can use to find and copy your past clipboard contents, but you have to implement it first.
How To: Hide or Restrict Apps, Features, Content & Settings on an iPhone
Apple has tools built into iOS to help parents monitor the iPhone habits of their children. However, those same tools can be used by everyday iPhone owners to both hide apps they don't care about, as well as restrict features they don't need or that infringe on privacy. Whether you fit into one category or the other, all iPhone users can benefit from the "Restrictions" feature.
How To: 8 Ways to Shut Down and Restart Your iPhone 13, 13 Mini, 13 Pro, or 13 Pro Max
There are multiple ways to turn your iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro, or 13 Pro Max on and off, but it can be confusing because those ways will either shut down, power on, restart, or force restart the device.
How To: Missing Burst Mode? Here's How to Find It on iPhone 11, 11 Pro & 11 Pro Max
Burst mode on iPhone is a great way to ensure you capture the photo you truly want, especially when your subject is moving too fast. You'd be forgiven for thinking that Apple ditched the feature entirely on iPhone 11, 11 Pro, and 11 Pro Max, since a long-press of the shutter button now records video instead. However, burst mode is alive and well on your new iPhone — it's just hidden.
How To: Monitor the Battery Levels of All Your iPhone Bluetooth Accessories with Just a Swipe
The battery icon in your iPhone's status bar gives you a visual idea of how much power is left, and there's a battery percentage option you can switch to or view in the Control Center, depending on your model. But what you may not know is that there's a way to view the battery percentage of every device connected to your iPhone, from AirPods to Bluetooth speakers and your Apple Watch.
How To: Switch Between Miles and Kilometers in Apple Maps on iOS 16
Apple removed the option to quickly change between miles and kilometers when using Apple Maps on iOS 16, but it's not entirely gone — it's just not as easy to find.
How To: 8 Ways to Take a Screenshot on Your iPhone 13, 13 Mini, 13 Pro, or 13 Pro Max
Using an iPhone isn't difficult, but it can be if you're using it for the first time, especially if you switched from an Android phone. That's primarily because of the massive difference in the user interface between the two operating systems. And when it comes to taking screenshots, you have more options than just using the hardware buttons.
How To: Your iPhone's Hidden Field Test Mode Finally Lets You Bookmark Network Measurements for Easy Reference
If you've ever used your iPhone's hidden Field Test mode to view your signal strength in decibel-milliwatts, locate the tower you're connected to, or find out the radio frequency in use, you no longer have to dig through all of the confusing-looking data every time you need to check. Apple updated Field Test's interface in iOS 15, and one improvement gives you more control of the Dashboard.
How To: Add Custom Shortcuts to Your iPhone's Share Sheet & Reorganize Them for Quicker Access
With Shortcuts, Apple has designed a way to create your own tools and automations right on your iPhone. And to top it off, your creations can be accessed in a variety of ways, including Siri phrases, widgets, and the Shortcuts app itself. Perhaps even more useful is adding them as custom actions to your Share Sheet and making them available to you system-wide.
How To: How Thieves Unlock Passcodes on Stolen iPhones (And How to Protect Yourself Against It)
Back in 2010, iOS developer Daniel Amitay developed a camera security app for iPhones that used an unlock screen almost identical to that of the iPhone.
How To: FaceTime Finally Lets You Send and Receive Video Messages — Here's How It Works
Missing a FaceTime video call no longer means missing out on a conversation. With the latest FaceTime update, an incoming caller can leave you a video message when you don't answer — and you can leave a video message for somebody who misses or rejects your FaceTime video call.
How To: Get Water Out of Your iPhone's Speaker with a Simple App
Whether you drop your iPhone into a toilet or your dog's water bowl or regularly take it into the shower or pool, water will likely become nestled inside its speaker grilles. Water exposure causes audio playback through the speakers to soften and sound muffled, and getting that water out is no easy task. Luckily, there's an app for that.
How To: 23 Things Your iPhone's Volume Buttons Can Do Besides Volume Adjustments
The volume buttons on the side of your iPhone can do more than just adjust the volume levels for media, ringers, alerts, Siri, and other sounds and voices. You can use them to perform different actions in certain apps and even create custom actions using the Shortcuts app. It's not exactly button mapping, but it's as close as you'll get without jailbreaking iOS.
How To: Annoy Your Friends on iMessage with a Barrage of Automated Texts
Back in its infancy, the App Store was filled with text bomb apps that allowed users to send a barrage of text messages to friends, family, and foes. It was a fun way to annoy people, but Apple quickly scrubbed the apps because of technical issues. Although text bombs are still banished, you can now use a Siri Shortcut to send text bombs through iMessage on your iPhone.
How To: Tired of Tapping? Use an External Keyboard on Your iPhone and Unlock Tons of Keyboard Shortcuts
Your iPhone goes with you everywhere, and its touchscreen interface is all you need to navigate and use all your installed iOS apps. But an external keyboard can make your iPhone an even more efficient tool for productivity tasks such as drafting long emails, composing detailed notes, and writing reports in your favorite text editor.
How To: Use iOS 17's Live Voicemail Feature on Your iPhone — Everything You Need to Know
Visual Voicemail revolutionized phone calls and the voicemail system when Apple introduced it with the original iPhone. Now, thanks to iOS 17, Apple has done it again with its newest calling feature, Live Voicemail. This feature uses speech-to-text technology to show you voicemail transcriptions on the incoming call screen in real time, helping you decide if it's important enough to answer the call.
How To: iPhone 16 Series — Preorder and Release Dates, Prices, and Where to Get One
Apple announced the new iPhone 16 and 16 Pro series models on Sept. 9, and the focus on this year's smartphones was Apple Intelligence with an even smarter Siri. But generative artificial intelligence isn't the only new feature these devices come with. There are improved cameras, more advanced processors, new buttons, and more.
How To: Convert Multiple Live Photos into 1 Continuous Video on Your iPhone
Live Photos capture the seconds before and after you take a photo, creating a fuller and also unique moment to share with friends and family. Unfortunately, it has been nearly impossible to share Live Photos with non-iPhone users — until now. Thanks to iOS 13, you can easily convert a Live Photo into a video, and even stitch multiple Live Photos together to create one long video.
How To: Make Your Home Screen's Photo Widget Show Only One Image or Specific Albums in iOS 14 Instead of Random Pics Every Hour
Your iPhone's new home screen widgets are awesome — until they're not. Photos, in particular, is a big disappointment. It gives you a taste of having your favorite photos appear alongside your apps but ruins it by changing the photo randomly every hour without your input. While nothing can be done with the Photos widget, there is a way to get the pictures you want to see on your home screen.
Apple Pay Cash 101: How to Accept or Reject Money from Friends & Family
What happens when somebody sends you Apple Pay Cash inside of an iMessage? Do you have to add it to your Apple Pay Cash card on your iPhone manually or does it miraculously appear there automatically?
How To: Everything You Can Do with the Camera Control Button on Your iPhone 16 or 16 Pro
The devices in the new iPhone 16 series lineup have one feature no other iPhone models have: a physical Camera Control button. If you use your iPhone to take photos or record videos, the Camera Control speeds up the process and gives you immediate control over adjusting settings and values using intuitive gestures. But what exactly can you do with it?
How To: Set a Custom Contact Poster on Your iPhone Others Will See When You Call Them
A new feature in Apple's latest big iPhone software update lets you personalize how you appear on other people's incoming call screens and even customize individual contacts on your own incoming call screen if they don't have a preferred style to show you.
How To: 11 New Apple Maps Features That Improve Hikes, Search, Favorites, Saved Locations, and More on Your iPhone
Apple Maps just received a major upgrade in its latest software update, and some of its new features are perfect for urban explorers, national park adventurers, and everyday travelers alike. Some of these enhancements provide more personalized and precise guidance, making every journey more enjoyable and efficient.
How To: Apple's New Cutout Tool Magically Isolates Subjects and Removes Backgrounds from Images on Your iPhone
One of the most useful new features Apple included on iOS 16 lets you instantly lift the subject out of a photo, separating it from the background. Once extracted, you can paste, save, or drop the cutout wherever you want as a new image, and you can even make it a sticker in messaging apps.
How To: Printable iPhone 11, 11 Pro & 11 Pro Max Cutouts — See Which Size Is Right for You
Whether you're ordering a new 2019 iPhone model online or just want to know how they look in your hand before buying in person, use these printable cutouts to see which one looks and feels best.
How To: Reset Safari's Experimental Features to the Defaults to Fix or Troubleshoot Browsing Issues
Safari's advanced experimental features give you access to new browser initiatives, upcoming web tools, element changes, behavior adjustments, and other preliminary feature tests in development by Apple. If you use them on your iPhone, you can either improve your Safari experience or wreck it. Resetting the flags provides a fresh start.
How To: Swap the Flashlight and Camera Lock Screen Controls on Your iPhone to Open Apps, Toggle Settings, and More
It's no secret that you can quickly toggle the flashlight and open Camera from your iPhone's Lock Screen using the bottom left and right buttons. But what you may not know is that you can customize those buttons to perform different actions on your iPhone.
How To: 11 Hidden iOS Features You Won't Find in Any Apple Docs
There are many things your iPhone or iPad can do, and Apple does an excellent job of documenting everything on its website. But there are some features that won't show up in any Apple manuals or help pages.
How To: Always Use Dark Mode or Light Mode for Any App on Your iPhone
Some apps look great with Dark Mode, and some do not. So when you have system-wide Dark Mode enabled on your iPhone and are using an app that only looks good in Light Mode, you'd normally have to turn the dark appearance off manually, then switch it back on when you leave. But there's a workaround that can automate the process for you.
How To: Program Your iPhone's Physical Buttons to Open Apps, Perform Actions, or Do Almost Anything Else
Your iPhone only has a few physical buttons, buttons with a set number of default actions assigned to them, like sleeping your display, controlling volume levels, and even taking pictures. But as much as these buttons can do for you, they can do more. You're not stuck with the out-of-the-box defaults. Every push button on your iPhone can be customized in one way or another.
How To: Save YouTube Videos Directly to Your iPhone's Camera Roll
Downloading YouTube videos for offline use to watch later has always been a problematic endeavor. Dedicated third-party apps don't last long in the App Store, web-based converters aren't very functional on mobile, and rogue apps outside the App Store are tricky to sideload and open up the possibility of vulnerabilities. But that doesn't mean you still don't have a few good options.
How To: 22 Features the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro Models Have That Other iPhones Don't
While many of the features in the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro series build on what we've seen in previous iPhone models, Apple has packed the 2024 lineup with iOS 18 and plenty of fresh upgrades worth considering.