Introduction
Smartphones are the all-in-one center of information today. We use them to text and call and email; catch the bus and pay for groceries; reserve seats, check into our flights and browse for any fact we need in a pinch. They’re the way to connect with friends, loved ones, colleagues and neighbors. Contactless service ranges from food delivery to dog walking. Smart phones aren’t an option anymore, but a daily necessity.
More than half of smartphone users in the country choose to rely on Apple services. With more than 113M iPhone users in the U.S. alone, you’re not the only one carrying that cracked screen in your pocket. Shouldn’t you know everything about the device that knows everything about you?
Here are 5 tips for maximizing the use of your iPhone.
#1 Make the Most of Siri
This built-in assistant gets under-utilized by many users. Meanwhile, her capabilities have only expanded with every iOS update that rolls out. Siri can…
- Remind you of tasks when you leave or arrive at a place, if you have Location Services on
- Screen-share photos, videos and media; if it cannot share the screen, it will send a screenshot instead
- Locate other Apple devices, like your Macbook or AirPods
- Toggle Settings off and on; for example, “Siri, turn off Low Power Mode”
- Turn on Airplane mode and self-disable
- Tell jokes!
These are just a few unique uses of the virtual assistant. If you’re like most people, and mostly use Siri to look up strange facts or locate good coffee nearby, consider branching out and taking advantage of all of her other myriad features.
#2 Keyboard to Trackpad
We all know how annoying it can be when we misspell a word so badly that even autocorrect can’t leap to our rescue, but when we try to click the correct part of the paragraph to edit these typos, it highlights the whole text or can’t seem to get on the correct side of the space between words.
If you press and hold down the spacebar, your keyboard will suddenly transform into a trackpad instead. Then just scroll to the place you want, and start typing away. Briefly turn your keyboard into something that’s much easier to control. No more fat fingers!
#3 Goodbye Copy Machine
Did you know that you can scan and send documents directly from your phone these days? Even a few years ago, you likely had to download sketchy apps or hunt down a printer to get the job done.
No more. Open up the app that you want to upload the document to, like your email, text or notes. From there, your camera can scan any document you have in front of you. The feature attempts to auto-capture your paper but you can also manually adjust the edges to match the corners of the document more accurately. Then your phone scans and saves it so you can send it wherever you need.
#4 Drag Files
Copy-pasting images can get surprisingly frustrating on the iPhone. Whether your screen is having trouble knowing when you’re holding down on a photo versus trying to drag it, now you don’t have to worry about clogging up your camera roll with those really funny Instagram story you wanted to show your friends.
Instead, go to the image, video, link or even PDF that you want to drop into your notes or DMs. Hold down to drag it to the top or bottom of your screen. Still holding onto the file, use a second finger to scroll and open up the app you want to load it onto. Then just drop it in and watch it load.
#5 Hide Sensitive Apps
Have anything on there you don’t want people to notice if they look over your shoulder or scroll through your phone looking for something else? You don’t have to delete and redownload the app every time you want to use it. Instead, take advantage of the hidden function.
Press and hold the app and wait for it to start shaking, indicating the app screen is ready to edit. From the menu that pops up, choose Remove App. Don’t freak out, you haven’t gotten rid of all its data! A second menu will appear asking whether you want to delete it and all its data, or just Remove from Home Screen. Then you should be able to search for the app and find it easily stored in the system, but it won’t appear readily visible on your home screen anymore. Problem solved!
Conclusion
These five hidden features are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what you can do. There are so many cool features available on your iPhone to make your life easier, your errands quicker and your communication smoother. With screen time taking up a significant portion of a person’s day (around seven hours for the average American), why not learn all there is to know about the place that you turn to so often?
Take some time today to learn all of the unique features available to you on your iPhone! You never know what capability you’ll discover next, that will forever transform your day to day activities. With the world at your fingertips, why not customize it however you want?
References
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/236550/percentage-of-us-population-that-own-a-iphone-smartphone/
- https://www.tomsguide.com/opinion/17-hidden-iphone-features-everyone-should-know
- https://parade.com/1219269/marynliles/funny-things-to-ask-siri/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kwx2MTw42bo
- https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210336
