In this hands-on video and tutorial, we highlight 7 hard-to-find iPhone features that are virtually impossible to encounter unless you know where to look.
Apple’s marketing does a great job of highlighting iPhone features everyone should use. However, it rarely focuses on uncovering the little things, which is a shame because iOS has many hidden gems that make using the iPhone more accessible and enjoyable.
Some of these features are buried deep in the menus, while others lack a toggle in Settings, making them nearly impossible to discover. We thought it would be great to create a video to raise awareness about these features.
Our videographer Michael Billig calls them hacks and workarounds, but they’re simply regular features with very low visibility, which is why most mainstream users never get around to using them. So grab your iPhone and follow along with our ten-minute video walkthrough to discover seven excellent features that you can only find if you know where to look.
The video covers topics like creating custom vibrations, getting live real-time captions for any video, charging your iPhone faster, using one-handed mode, and more. We’ve listed them all below.
1. Charge faster, with safety in mind
It’s well known that you can fast-charge your iPhone by using a 20-watt or higher adapter. But regardless of which charger you use, you can reduce the charging time by 3 to 7 percent if you put your iPhone in Airplane mode while it’s plugged in.
Additionally, heat is a major factor that can reduce the lifespan of the battery. To ensure a safe charging experience, consider removing your iPhone case when fast charging. And importantly, avoid leaving your charging iPhone in direct sunlight or inside a locked car on a hot day.
2. Move the keyboard to the left or right for one-handed use
Typing with one hand on the iPhone can become cumbersome, especially on the larger Plus or Pro Max models. To make it easier, press and hold the globe icon, then move the keyboard to the left or right side for a more comfortable typing experience.
Keep in mind that even this smaller version of the on-screen keyboard supports QuickPath swipe typing, allowing you to swipe your finger across the keys to type words quickly.
3. Create custom vibration for notifications
Your iPhone vibrates the same way for all calls and notifications, making it hard to differentiate between them without looking at the screen. One simple solution is to create and set custom vibrations on your iPhone.
For example, you can set a long vibration pattern for your spouse’s contact. This way, when they call or text, you’ll know it’s them, even if your iPhone is in your pocket.
4. Press, hold, and slide
Many iOS interfaces let you touch and hold an element, then slide your finger without lifting it to select an item.
For example, you can touch and hold the Safari app icon on the Home Screen and slide your finger across the pop-out menu to access your bookmarks. Similarly, inside the Settings app, touch and hold the back button in the top left corner and slide to quickly jump to a specific page.
5. Type to Siri
Siri is a voice assistant, but there can be situations, like in a library or a public place, where you don’t want to speak to it. In these cases, you can type your request to Siri instead of giving it a spoken command.
On older iPhones, you can set Siri to either listen to you or accept your typed input. On newer iPhone models that support Apple Intelligence, you can both speak and type to Siri, without having to choose one or the other. We’ve mentioned everything in detail in our dedicated guide on using Type to Siri.
6. Use Reachability to bring down the iPhone screen
If you have small hands, it can be a pain to swipe from the top of the screen to open Notification Center, Control Center, or tap elements at the upper part of the screen.
In these cases, just make a small swipe-down gesture at the bottom of your screen, and it will bring down the entire display!
7. Live Captions
While Live Captions are definitely helpful for people with hearing issues, anyone can use them when they can’t listen to the audio and would rather read the captions.
For example, imagine you’re in a noisy waiting room without your AirPods. In this case, you can play videos in your favorite social media app and enable Live Captions from the Accessibility Settings, which will display the video’s dialogue as captions on your screen.
Live Captions also work with FaceTime calls, making them an important feature when you can’t hear the other person clearly.
What are some of your favorite iPhone features that you think most users might not be aware of?
Also, be sure to check out: 10 surprising things your iPhone can do that you may not know about