Where would we all be without smartphones in the modern age? These marvels of technology help us to keep in touch with people or call for help in the case of any emergencies. Not only that but they give us internet access, the ability to catch up with emails on the move and a handy way to take photos, amongst other features. All this put together makes modern mobile phones very handy and essential for going about your daily routine.
Of course, one of the big names in smartphones is the iPhone. Made by Apple, it is still one of the most popular around and largely responsible for taking mobile phones to where they are now. If you own an iPhone though, it is important to get the most from it. The below tips show you how to use it like a pro and are the ten most useful iPhone tricks to find out about.
10 – Move More Than One App At Once
A good idea to make it quicker to find what you want on your iPhone is keeping your apps well organised. This means you can instantly find the one you want without having to waste time searching for it. Moving apps around one by one though can be a pain and time-consuming. iPhones running iOS 11 or above can make this a distant memory with the ability to move numerous apps at once. Just tap and hold the desired app icon and move it a little so they ‘x’ in the top left corner disappears. This then allows you to do the same with other apps before moving the whole bundle to somewhere new.
09 – Make The Screen Even Dimmer When Needed
If you ever use your iPhone in a dark environment, then you will know how much of a pain a bright screen can be. Even setting the screen on your iPhone to its lowest setting may not be dark enough. Rather than just putting up with it, there is a great tip to help. If you go the ‘Zoom Filter’ option in the ‘Settings’ menu on your phone, there is a ‘Low Light’ function to select. Simply use the power button the side to adjust the screen to be extra dim.
08 – Use The Calculator Like a Pro
One of the most useful features on the iPhone is the calculator. Great for working out split bills in restaurant or for adding up bills at home, it is one thing that you probably use a lot. It can be a pain though when one wrong move messes up your whole calculation, meaning you have to key it all in again. Rather than having to do this, a simple swipe from left to right over the results section will cancel your last action. If you want to undo a few of your last steps, you can do this numerous times.
07 – Set Up Custom Alerts
Did you know that your iPhone has the ability to set different tones and rings for different contacts in it? This is a great way of instantly knowing who is calling you so you can react as appropriate. It saves lots of times from always having to get your phone out to check and also means you grab any important calls from a specific person you are waiting for. Custom vibrations can also be set for the same effect in quieter places, like the cinema. This is one cool feature to get to grips with if you own an iPhone.
06 – Use The Magnify Feature
If your eyesight is not good with small writing or something is simply too tiny to see, then use the magnifier function on your mobile. This is a great feature for things like product information on labels or prescription details from your Doctor. It is key to note that this is a separate function from the ‘Zoom’ one in the Camera app. The Magnifier feature has various levels of optimisation so you can really look more closely at things. In the ‘General’ part of your ‘Settings’, there is a slider bar to adjust how much magnification you require.
05 – Search For Songs
Lots of people could make use of this feature but simply don’t know about it. Let’s face it – it can be a real pain if you hear a song you like but don’t know the title of it or who it’s by. This can be really annoying as you then don’t know what it is to listen to again. Your iPhone can help here with its song search feature. Just go to the search field in the Music app or iTunes app and type the lyrics in. Your phone will then bring up the song they relate too.
04 – Sleep Better With The DND Feature
If you are running on iOS 12 then you could use your iPhone to sleep better. One of the real things that can keep you awake sometimes is the thought of waking up to a deluge of missed notifications. To get around this, put on the ‘Do Not Disturb’ setting before bedtime. Once set in place, this feature will silence any calls and texts and divert all alerts to your Notifications Centre while on. Another cool thing this delivers is the Weather screen being the first thing you see on your home screen when you wake!
03 – Measure Stuff
This again is a cool tip for iPhones that operate on iOS 12. There is an app to download which uses advanced AI, AR and computer vision to measure anything you like while on the move. This is very handy for builders who may be out on a job or even when getting ready for DIY projects at home. Rather than needing to find or remember a tape measure, your phone will do it for you. Just point your phone’s camera at what you want to measure and it will give you the details required.
02 – Cut Back on Data Usage
Apps are a key part of what makes smartphones so good but some can really eat into your data. This can see you use up your allowance quickly each month or even go over it to incur costs. To help stop this from being an issue, you can block certain apps from using your data. Just go to the ‘Settings app’ function and the ‘Cellular’ sub-menu. This then allows you to disable data usage for specific apps and help to conserve the data you have left.
01 – Amend Your ‘Respond with Texts’ Messages
As you will have your iPhone on you most of the time, you can often get phone calls when it is not possible to pick up. Work meetings are a great example of this. When this does happen, you can select the ‘Message’ option to reply with rather than picking the call up. One great tip though is amending the standard messages you can pick to respond with. Just head to your ‘Settings’ and find the ‘Respond with Text’ option. You can then amend the 3 default messages shown to what you would rather say.
If you own an iPhone, then the above tips will help you get the most from it. This powerful mobile phone is great for a whole number of uses but only if you can use it to its full potential. Once you take a few of the above tricks on-board, you will be using your iPhone like a pro in no time at all.