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iOS 18 Tips, Tricks, How-Tos, News

How To: iOS 18 Lets You Change Widget Sizes on Your iPhone's Home Screen Without Deleting Them First

Apple just made it easier to change a widget's size on your iPhone's Home Screen, so you no longer have to delete widgets and add different-sized versions of them. With iOS 18, you can adjust a widget's size straight from its current widget size on your Home Screen. The new method also works on iPad with iPadOS 18.

How To: With iOS 18, You Can Finally Hide App, Folder, and Widget Names on Your iPhone's Home Screen

I have always favored a neat and tidy Home Screen on my iPhone, and one of the best ways to achieve that is by removing all the app, folder, and widget names. With a few workarounds, you can do this on iOS 17, but Apple finally just gave us an official feature on iOS 18 to hide app, folder, and widget names on the Home Screen. And it also works for iPad on iPadOS 18.

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: 12 Reasons Why You Should Be Using Text Replacements on Your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

You probably know of Apple's Text Replacement feature for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, but you're probably not using it as much as you should. With it, you can create your own keyboard triggers for almost anything you can think of, whether it's an email address or an entire email. There are endless reasons to create custom text replacements — and we'll show you why.

How To: Set Up Contact Key Verification for the Highest Level of iMessage Security

Your iPhone is fairly secure by default, but Apple's Lockdown Mode takes it to Fort Knox levels of protection. If you're a high-value target for spyware, phishing attempts, and other sophisticated cyberattacks, it's an essential feature. But for almost everyone else, it's an extreme move. If you simply want to verify someone's identity when chatting, Contact Key Verification is a more practical option.

How To: Unlock the Apple Logo Emoji on Your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

Thousands of emoji are available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, and you can use these in many of the apps you have installed on your Apple devices. But there's one emoji you'll likely never see on any of Apple's official emoji keyboards, and its absence may surprise you at first, considering it's embedded in virtually every Apple product. That emoji is, of course, the Apple logo icon.

How To: Snooze Emails in Apple's Mail App So You Don't Forget to Check Them Out Later

Email accounts can quickly get out of control, and important emails can easily get lost if you don't have time to look at them right away. In Apple's Mail app, there's a simple way to be reminded of emails you want to read later, whether it's an email with tasks you need to complete, upcoming event details, or a message you need to reply to, and it works no matter the email account.

How To: Get Follow-Up Reminders in Apple's Mail App to Get Answers to Important Questions You Forgot You Sent

Important emails can slip through the cracks in any email client, especially sent emails you were expecting responses to but never received — and ultimately forgot about. Apple has an easy solution for this problem, helping you get answers in Mail for all your pending questions.

How To: You're Using Lidar on Your iPhone and iPad — And You Don't Even Know It

Lidar, a technology first used by meteorologists and aerospace engineers and then adopted in self-driving vehicles, has slowly crept into consumer electronics over the last five years. If you have a Pro model iPhone or iPad, there's a good chance it has a lidar sensor, and you're likely using it whether you know it or not.

How To: 17 New Accessibility Features Coming to iPhone and iPad with iOS 18 and iPadOS 18

In less than a month, WWDC, Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, will reveal the company's plans for the upcoming iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 software updates. But we already know what accessibility features will be hitting iPhones and iPads later this year, and many of them will be helpful to everyone, not just users with accessibility issues.

How To: Apple's iOS 17.5 Gives Your iPhone 32 New Features and Changes — Here's Everything You Need to Know About

Apple's latest iPhone software update — iOS 17.5 — is finally ready for prime time. Released on May 13, it includes at least 32 new features and changes you need to know about, from a new game and offline news access to new wallpapers and anti-stalking capabilities.

How To: 15 iPhone Tips for Busy Users to Maximize Your Productivity

When they first appeared, smartphones came with a promise to make our lives easier and make us more productive so we could have more free time and energy. But now, the average user spends almost 5 ½ hours daily on their smartphone. If that sounds like you, there are ways to use your iPhone more efficiently — without getting sucked into distractions.

Home Screen Customization: How to Hide and Show Specific Home Screen Pages on Your iPhone

Sure, you can remove apps from your iPhone's Home Screen without deleting them. But there's something satisfying about seeing them laid out and well-organized on the Home Screen, just a tap away, especially if you use user-selectable or custom icons for all your apps. Still, there may be days or situations when you want to hide apps without removing them entirely from the Home Screen.

How To: Make Your iPhone Do All Your Talking for You on Calls and in Person

When you don't feel like talking, let your iPhone do all the work. Yes, your iPhone can speak for you, and it works over phone calls and FaceTime calls. It will even work its magic over your iPhone's speaker for in-person conversations. While Apple created this feature to support people who are unable to speak and people who have lost or are losing their speech abilities, anyone can use it.

How To: Add Website Shortcuts to Your iPhone's Home Screen for Fast Access to Web Apps and Bookmarks

There's a way to get instant access to your most-used websites and webpages on your iPhone, and these shortcuts live directly on your Home Screen. Whatever you need fast, frequent, or more convenient access to, whether it's a vital web document or a web app without a native iOS app, your browser can make it happen.

How To: Customize and Use Control Center on Your iPhone for Quick Access to Your Most-Used Apps, Features, and Settings

If you're not using Control Center on your iPhone, you're missing out on a powerful tool that can streamline how you interact with your device, make certain tasks more efficient, and give you quick access to system tools, switches, and sliders for quick changes no matter where you are or what app you're in.

How To: Identify Any Song Playing on Instagram, TikTok, and Other Apps on Your iPhone Using Shazam

Since Shazam became available on iPhone, it's been easier than ever to identify a song playing somewhere in the background. You could hear something you like while watching a movie or sitting in a coffee shop, and all you have to do is open the Shazam app and have it listen for you. But what about music playing on your iPhone via Instagram, TikTok, and other social media apps?

How To: Update Your iPhone's Lock Screen with an Attention-Grabbing Note, Reminder, Warning, or Other Custom Message

There's a lot you can customize on your iPhone's Lock Screen — wallpapers and photos, widgets, the display mode, notifications, and even the time's font and color. But there's another feature that lets you add custom text for whatever you want, whether it's an inspiring quote, a reminder, a warning to anyone who dares touch your iPhone, or even just your name.

How To: Your iCloud Email Lets You Create Aliases to Protect Your Primary Email Address and Organize Your Inbox

On your iCloud Mail account, you can easily use subaddressing to create hundreds of new iCloud email addresses to give to companies and other parties, all of which go straight to your primary iCloud email address's inbox. The problem with these types of alternative email addresses is that you can't ever respond to emails with the plus tag intact. But Apple has another alternative for you to start using.

How To: Use Your iPhone's Built-in Image Analyzer to Reveal the Hidden Meaning Behind Symbols, Signs, and More

When you encounter a mysterious laundry care symbol or alarming vehicle indicator light, you might just ignore it rather than ask somebody, search online, or open a user manual for the answer. If you have an iPhone, there's an easier way to decipher the meanings behind perplexing symbols and signs—and it only takes a few seconds.

Text Replacements: The Secret Weapon to Typing More with Less on Your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

There are plenty of tools that'll help you type faster and more efficiently on your iPhone or iPad, such as Slide to Type, Dictation, and even a case with a physical keyboard. But one of the best tricks will help you type frequently used words, phrases, sentences, email addresses, and more faster, and you can sync your settings with your Mac so you can type more with less effort on all your Apple devices.

How To: Focus Profiles Will Change How You Use Your iPhone — Here's How to Set Them Up for Distraction-Free Experiences

There's a powerful tool on your iPhone that can fine-tune your iOS experience based on what you're doing and when, and it's completely customizable. With it, you can control what notifications appear or are silenced, who can call you, which Home Screen pages you want to view, the Lock Screens you can pick from, and more. And you can automate it based on a variety of triggers.

How To: Force Restart an iPhone 15, 15 Plus, 15 Pro, or 15 Pro Max When It's Frozen, Glitchy, or Won't Turn On

The iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max are Apple's most powerful iPhones to date with features like USB-C connectivity, improved camera capabilities, and faster CPUs. But no matter how impressive these phones are, they can still freeze, become unresponsive, or get stuck when powering on — and a force restart is how you get things working again.

How To: Use Your iPhone to Hear the World Around You Better, Spy on Conversations, Listen to Your Heartbeat, and More

What started as an accessibility setting for hearing aids turned out to be a super helpful tool for anyone with a good set of Bluetooth headphones. The problem is that most iPhone and iPad users still don't know about it. If you're one of them, you need to see what this underrated gem in iOS and iPadOS can offer you.

How To: Automatically Bypass Human Verification Prompts on Your iPhone, iPad, or Mac to Experience Fewer CAPTCHAs

Some websites require you to perform a verification task so they know you're human and not a bot. It helps websites curb spam, abuse, unauthorized access, and cyberattacks but also adds an obstacle for anyone trying to visit their content. If you find it more of a nuisance than a necessary evil, there's an easy way to reduce the number of human verification prompts you receive on your iPhone, iPad, and/or Mac.

How To: Turn a Viral TikTok Sound Bite or Song into Your iPhone's Next Ringtone

There seems to be no end to all the viral TikTok sound bites and trending TikTok songs, and there's a good reason why they are ingrained in the fabric of our pop culture. TikTok's short audio clips can evoke laughter, tears, and a wide range of other emotions, and many of them just happen to be the perfect length to add to your iPhone's or iPad's arsenal of ringtones.

How To: Make Siri Say Whatever You Want Every Time You Connect Your iPhone to a Charger

Whenever your iPhone's ringer is on, you'll hear Apple's iconic "Connect Power" chime every time you connect it to a wired or wireless power source, which lets you know that charging has started. There's no way to disable the sound without turning on Silent mode, but there is a way to make Siri automatically say whatever you want after a successful connection.

How To: Take Scrolling Screenshots of Entire Webpages, Text Documents, and More on Your iPhone or iPad

When you take a screenshot on your iPhone, it's automatically saved to your Photos app. You can ignore the screenshot thumbnail or swipe it away, but you shouldn't. If you open the screenshot editor instead, you'll gain access to your iPhone's most useful screen capture tool: full-page screenshots.

How To: 5 Hidden Features in Safari's 17.4 Update for iPhone and iPad You Didn't Know About

The latest 17.4 update for Safari includes a prompt for EU users to choose a different default web browser available in their region. It also gives us new ways to customize the Favorites Bar on an iPad. And Apple Cash virtual numbers are now supported as an AutoFill suggestion. But there are also some hidden changes in Safari 17.4 for iOS and iPadOS that you might not ever notice unless you keep reading.

How To: Unlock Your iPhone's Many Hidden Text-to-Speech Features to Make It Read Virtually Any On-Screen Content

Speech-to-text technology can be seen on your iPhone in various places, from the Dictation tool to Apple's new behind-the-scenes, auto-created transcripts for podcast episodes. Your iPhone also has some pretty impressive text-to-speech capabilities. With them, your iPhone can read webpages, documents, or whatever text is on the screen out loud to you — only some of these tools aren't easy to find.