iPhones Articles

Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-24-2022

Believe it or not, most of the technical and creative innovation in photography today is coming not from the big DSLR manufacturers but rather from mobile phone makers. Your Apple iPhone is a brilliant mixture of art and science, and its camera is ready and able to help you capture your next stunning photo. Discover how to create bold, strong compositions that hold your viewer’s attention. Master the technical side of iPhone photography. And as the word photography literally means light-writing, immerse yourself in the exciting possibilities for manipulating light. The future is bright for iPhone photographers such as you.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-15-2022

It's not always obvious how you can modify how your iPhone works. For example, you can use Settings to change how the Safari browser protects you from being tracked online or which online calendar's events are shown in iPhone's Calendar app. This Cheat Sheet gives you a rundown of some of the most useful features and apps so that you can find what you need to customize your iPhone's behavior.

Article / Updated 01-14-2022

Before iOS 11 came out, long-time iPhone users pined for a way to browse files stored on their devices, as opposed to being limited to finding documents and other files only within the apps they’re intended for or created by. When iOS 11 came out, it introduced a new app called Files, which allows you to browse not only for files stored on your iPhone, but also see stuff you stored on other online (cloud) services, such as Google Drive, Dropbox, and others. How to use the Files app You’ll find the Files app on the second home screen, by default. Tap the Files icon to open the app. On the Browse screen: Tap the Search field to search for items by title. Tap a source in the Locations or Favorites sections to browse a particular service or your iPhone. Tap colors under Tags to search for files you’ve tagged according to categories. Once in a source, you may tap files to open or preview them, and you may tap folders to open them and view their contents. Tap Select in the upper-right corner of the screen and then tap items to select them for an action. Available actions, found at the bottom of the screen, include Duplicating files: Make copies of selected items. Moving files: Move files to other sources. Sharing files: Share files with other people in a variety of ways (Messages and Mail, for example). You can even invite them to make edits, if you like. Deleting files: Trash files you no longer need. Should you like to retrieve a file you’ve deleted, go the Browse screen (tap Browse at the bottom of the screen if you’re not already there) and tap Recently Deleted. Tap Select in the upper-right corner, tap the file you’d like to retrieve, and tap the Recover button at the bottom of the screen. The file will be placed back in the location it was originally deleted from. Please note that some services may not allow you to retrieve a file you’ve deleted; if you don’t see the file you’re looking for, contact that particular service.

Article / Updated 11-08-2021

If you are an iPhone user who has visual challenges, the black-and-white screen option offers a black background with white lettering that some people find easier to use when reading text. The White on Black accessibility setting reverses colors on your screen so that backgrounds are black and text is white. To turn on this feature, tap the Settings icon on the Home screen. Tap General and then scroll down and tap Accessibility. In the Accessibility dialog, tap the White on Black On/Off button to turn on this feature. The colors on the screen reverse. Tap the Home button to leave Settings. The White on Black feature works well in some places and not so well in others. For example, in the Photos application, pictures appear almost as photo negatives. Your Home screen image will likewise look a bit strange. And don’t even think of playing a video with this feature turned on! However, if you need help reading text, White on Black can be useful in several applications. For more help on iPhone accessibility features, check out iPhone Accessibility Options for Easier iPhone Operation.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 10-12-2021

Your iPhone can be so much more than a communication tool to talk into. Aside from making calls and creating your contacts, you should make yourself familiar with the many options available on the iPhone touchscreen. You'll also want to be able to handle troubleshooting when your Apple device acts strangely or stops working. When you need a bit of levity, check out our 10 ways to have fun with Siri. And finally, if you have an iPhone with Face ID, you’ll discover Face ID–specific tips for creating animoji and putting your iPhone into recovery mode.

Article / Updated 10-06-2021

You can lock your iPhone so its touch screen doesn't work. This prevents the iPhone from dialing phone numbers, playing music, or doing anything else when it's in your pocket, rubbing against your pants, or in your purse making contact with keys and other stuff. Apple makes locking your iPhone a snap. In fact, you don’t need to do anything to lock the iPhone; it happens automatically, if you don't touch the screen for one minute. Can’t wait that long? To lock the iPhone immediately, press the Sleep/Wake button. To unlock it, press the Sleep/Wake button again. Or, press the Home button on the front of the screen. Either way, the on-screen slider appears, but your iPhone doesn’t actually awaken until you drag the slider to the right with your finger.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 10-01-2021

Get a rundown of some of the most useful features and apps so that you can find what you need to customize your iPhone’s behavior. See how to get the most out of Siri (your iPhone’s virtual assistant), review some favorite apps for news and weather, and discover several of the most popular apps for multimedia.

Article / Updated 03-26-2021

If you're like most, you might find it helpful to know how to delete and organize apps on your iPhone. How to delete apps on iPhones You may delete many of the Apple apps that came with your iPhone as well as any third-party app you no longer want or need. Here’s how to delete almost any app on your iPhone: Long-press any icon, and then choose Edit Home Screen to start the icons jiggling. Tap the little – (minus sign) in the upper-left corner of the app you want to delete. A dialog appears, informing you that deleting this app also deletes all its data. To remove the app from this device, tap Delete App. If you instead tap Move to App Library, the app will be removed from the home screen and only appear in the App Library. You can download any app you’ve purchased again, for free, from the App Store. So deleting it means only that it's gone from your device. You can always get it back by downloading it again unless, as previously stated, the app is no longer available in the App Store. Just remember that deleting an app from your iPhone this way doesn’t get rid of it permanently. Even then, it’s not really gone forever because you can download purchased apps again for free. And, of course, you can download free apps again for free because, well, they’re free. If you see a warning that deleting the app also deletes any associated data, you may want to save the data before deleting the app. Different apps have different schemes for importing and exporting data; the important thing is that if you create documents with an app (notes, images, videos, and such), deleting the app will delete any files you’ve created with that app unless they’re saved to iCloud or elsewhere. Forewarned is forearmed. If you delete an app and later change your mind and want it back on your iPhone, just tap your-face-in-a-circle in the App Store app and then tap Purchased. Then just tap the little cloud icon to reinstall the app on your iPhone. How to organize apps on iPhones You can have up to 19 Home screens (or pages) of apps. And if you’re like many iPhone users, you’ll soon have a substantial collection of apps on your iPhone. So let’s look at a few ways to organize those apps for easy access. To rearrange apps or create folders on your iPhone, long-press any app or folder and choose Edit Home Screen, which makes the app and folder icons jiggle and dance and little “delete me” minus signs appear on the apps. A folder icon is the same as an app icon when it comes to rearranging icons on-screen. Also, the app or folder you press and hold down to start the jiggling doesn’t have to be the one you want to move — any app or folder will do. To move an app or folder after the jiggling starts, press it, drag it to its new location (other apps on the screen will politely move out of its way to make space for it), and release it. If you move an icon onto another icon and pause for a second, a folder will be created. If you move an icon onto a folder and pause for a second, the folder will open so you can place the icon wherever you like in the folder. Like Home screens, folders can have more than one page; if you see two or more little white dots at the bottom of the folder — one for each additional screen — swipe left to see the next screen or swipe right to see the previous one. To move an app to a different Home screen after the jiggling starts, press the app and drag it all the way to the left or right edge of the screen. The preceding Home screen or next Home screen, respectively, will appear. Keep dragging the app to the left or right edge of each successive Home screen until you reach the screen you want. Then drop the app in its new location on that screen. If the screen already holds 20 apps, the last icon on the page will be pushed to the next Home screen. Be persistent — sometimes it takes a few tries to make the screens switch. All these techniques work with apps on the dock (Phone, Safari, Messages, and Music by default), as well as with apps on Home screens and folders. iOS 14 introduced the ability to add widgets to any Home screen. To do so, long-press an app or folder and choose Edit Home Screen, then tap the + in the upper-left corner of the screen to see the Widget gallery overlay. Tap an item for more info; tap the +Add Widget button to add the widget to the current Home screen. To move the widget to a different Home screen, long-press an app or folder and choose Edit Home Screen and then press and drag the widget left or right to move it to the previous or next Home screen. A few more facts about Home screens. We mention this elsewhere, but in case you missed it: The little dots above the four apps on the dock indicate how many Home screens you have. The black dot denotes the current Home screen; the gray dots represent other Home screens. And last but not least, we’d be remiss if we didn’t at least provide the following reminders. After you have a few screens full of apps and folders, remembering where you put a particular app can be difficult. When that happens, Search can quickly find and launch apps no matter which Home screen they’re on or folder they’re in. Or ask Siri to open the app by name. Finally, take advantage of multitasking by double-tapping the Home button (Touch ID) or swiping upward (Face ID) to quickly switch between recently used apps. There you have it — you now know everything you need to know to find, install, delete, and organize iPhone apps! App Clips App Clips are, according to Apple: A small part of an app experience designed to be discovered the moment it is needed. App Clips are associated with a particular product or business, and load within seconds to complete a specific task, such as renting a scooter, purchasing a coffee, or filling a parking meter. They can be easily discovered and accessed by scanning a new Apple-designed App Clip code, or through NFC tags and QR codes, or shared in Messages or from Safari, all with the security and privacy expected from apps. App Clips, which require an active internet connection, are invoked by pointing your iPhone camera at a QR code, tapping an NFC tag with your iPhone, or tapping a link to an App Clip in Mail, Messages, or Safari. A banner appears describing the App Clip and what it does. Tap the banner and an overlay lets you choose to either use the App Clip immediately or visit the App Store to download the full version of the app. If you choose to use the App Clip right away, it opens and behaves like any other app, allowing you to complete the task without visiting the App Store or downloading an app to your iPhone. When you’re done, exit the App Clip as you exit any app (by pressing the Home button or swiping upward). Note that the App Clip will remain in your multitasking app switcher for a while unless you specifically close it by swiping it upward. App Clips are a convenient way to perform a task that would otherwise require a visit to the App Store. So, keep an eye out for App Clip NFC tags, QR codes, and links — they can save you time and bandwidth.

Article / Updated 03-26-2021

If you’ve ever been desperate to find a bathroom in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language, or are merely a famished tourist seeking a decent place to eat, you'll surely appreciate the iPhone's new Translate app, which arrived with iOS 14. As of this writing, the app can translate text or voice across a dozen language pairs, even when you're offline: English US and UK, Arabic, Chinese (China mainland), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. Tap the microphone icon and speak to have your words translated. Or type text using the keyboard native to the chosen language. Here’s what's neat: That language-specific keyboard will automatically slide up; you need not manually download or select the keyboard. Apple supplies a Favorites area for saved translations. When you select a keyboard in a different language — or English for that matter — you can select different software keyboard layouts (QWERTY, AZERTY, QWERTX) and a hardware keyboard layout (if you connect a hardware keyboard via Bluetooth). You can also turn the phone to its side to enter a conversation mode with a split screen showing text from two speakers, as shown in the following figure, left. Or tap a button when you’re in landscape mode to grab a local speaker’s attention, as shown, right. From any view, press the play arrow to hear the translated phrase spoken out loud. It could be a lifesaver when nature calls. A keyboard for all borders Apple continues to expand the iPhone’s global reach by supplying international keyboard layouts for more than 120 languages. To access a keyboard that isn’t customized for Americanized English, tap Settings  →  General  →  Keyboard, Keyboards  →  Add New Keyboard. Up pops a list with custom keyboards for numerous countries. Have a multilingual household? You can select, in turn, as many international keyboards as you want. When you’re working in an app that summons a keyboard, tap the international keyboard key until you see the keyboard you want. Tap again to select the next keyboard in the list of international keyboards (as well as the Emoji keyboard) that you turned on in Settings. Keep cycling to get back to your original English layout. Here’s an alternative method for summoning a keyboard you’ve enabled: Press your finger against the international keyboard key to summon a pop-up window that displays all the keyboards that are ready for action. Slide your finger along the list until it lands on the keyboard you want to use (or Keyboard Settings) and then release it to select that keyboard. You can use handwriting character recognition for simplified and traditional variations of Chinese. Just drag your finger in the box provided. Some Chinese keyboards don’t rely on handwriting. And here’s another neat trick: You can type in two languages you’ve enabled without switching from one to the other. Just type the appropriate word or words in whichever language makes sense and the iPhone takes a stab at what it thinks you mean to type next — in the appropriate language. The list of compatible paired languages includes English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish. And this multilingual typing feature is also supported for English and Chinese.

Article / Updated 03-26-2021

New with iOS 14, your iPhone now has two new features: the App Library and built-in widgets you can add to your Home screens for easy access. Visiting the App Library With iOS 14, Apple supplied a potentially simpler and faster way to access apps: App Library. You can find it at the very end of your home screen pages as you swipe from right to left. At top is the App Library screen is the search bar, as shown, left. If you tap inside the box, all apps on your phone will be listed alphabetically, as shown, right. You can scroll down to the app of choice, enter the app name in the search box, or tap a letter on the side to jump to listings beginning with that letter. The # symbol (after Z) takes you to apps whose names begin with a number. Just below the search box, Apple organizes apps into Suggestions and Recently Added. The latter is self-explanatory. The former consists of suggested apps based on time of day, location, or activity. On the rest of the screen, Apple intelligently lumps apps into various categories, such as Social, Health & Fitness, and Games. Apps in these groupings appear in order of those you use most. Watching widgets Apps and the App Library serve an obvious purpose. But sometimes you just want to glance at the headlines, a weather forecast, or other information. With that in mind, Apple added widgets, which you can customize on any of your Home pages and the today view. iOS 14 includes built-in Apple widgets for Weather, Clock, Calendar, News, Maps, Fitness, Photos, Reminders, Stocks, Music, TV, Tips, Notes, Shortcuts, Battery, Screen Time, Files, Podcasts, App suggestions, and Siri Suggestions. Third-party developers can also contribute widgets. You can find these widgets in a centralized hub or widget gallery. How do you get there? Glad you asked. Press and hold down anywhere on the Home screen to make the apps jiggle, as if you were going to rearrange them or move them into folders. Only now tap + in the upper-right corner. If you see a widget you like, drag it out onto the Home screen or the today view. Couldn’t be much easier than that. If you’re in the today view while the phone is still wiggly, you can also tap Edit at the bottom of that view to add widgets. The rectangles representing widgets are larger than those for corresponding apps or folders, so they stand out. The figure shows widgets for Apple’s Calendar, News, and Music apps. You can also drag one widget on top of another to create a widget stack. You can then flip through these stacks. Inside a stack, Apple displays what it thinks is the right widget based on the time, location, or activity. You can also curate widgets into smart stacks that show up at the right time. For example, you might see widgets for the News app when you wake up, the Calendar app as an appointment time nears, and a Fitness summary come evening.