27 things you didn’t know your iPhone could do
Even though we use our iPhones all day every day, there are still a handful of features that are relatively unknown.
Some of these features are buried in the Settings menu while others are hidden in plain sight.
Plus, there are a few things Siri can do for you that you may not know about.
(Note: Most of these features are available in iOS 8 and higher, while some are available in iOS 9 and higher.)
Respond to texts without unlocking your phone.
Lisa Eadicicco
You can respond to texts directly from your lock screen by pulling down on the notification drawer and swiping over to the left on the text notification. You’ll see a “Reply” option, and tapping it will let you type a response without having to unlock your iPhone.
Respond to texts while you’re in an app.
Lisa Eadicicco
If you’re in an app, you can swipe down from the top and access the notification drawer to answer a text the same way you would on the lock screen.
See which apps drain the most battery.
Lisa Eadicicco
Want to know why your iPhone battery is draining faster than usual? Head over to Settings >General >Usage>Battery Usage. This will tell you which apps are occupying the most battery power.
View every photo someone has texted you, and vice versa
Lisa Eadicicco
There’s an easy way to view every photo and video you’ve sent someone. Just open the messaging thread in the “Messages” app and press the “Details” button in the upper right corner.
Send audio and video messages that self-destruct.
Lisa Eadicicco
You can send audio snippets and video messages that expire after two minutes. If you head to Settings>Messages and scroll to the bottom, you’ll notice a section for audio and video messages. You can choose to let them expire after two minutes or never.
Share your current location with a friend.
Lisa Eadicicco
If you don’t feel like explaining where you are, you can simply send your location to another person via text message. Just tap the “Details” button in the upper right corner of your message thread and select “Send My Location.”
Let your friends track where you go.
Lisa Eadicicco
If you want your friends or a family member to be able to track you as you move, you can complete the same steps mentioned in the previous slide and choose the “Share My Location” instead of “Send My Location.” You can choose to share your location for one hour, until the end of the day, or indefinitely.
Mute text messages.
Lisa Eadicicco
You can mute text message notifications for individual contacts and conversations. Just head over to your messaging thread and switch the “Do Not Disturb.”
Leave a group conversation.
Lisa Eadicicco
Group texts can be effective for reaching many people at once, but also annoying. If you want to leave a group conversation, simply tap the “Details” button in the upper right corner of the group conversation and select “Leave Conversation.”
Name a group conversation.
Lisa Eadicicco
If you frequently chat with the same group or are talking with multiple people about a particular topic, naming a group conversation can be helpful. To do this, head over to “Details” in the message thread and fill in the “Group Name” field with an appropriate title.
Multitask within emails.
Lisa Eadicicco
If you’re in the middle of an email, you don’t need to trash it to return to your inbox and browse other messages. As you’re composing an email, simply tap the top of the message where it says either “New Message” or the subject and drag it down to the bottom of the screen. This will push the message to the bottom so you can look at other emails. When you want to return, simply tap the email to keep editing it.
Forward text messages to other contacts.
Lisa Eadicicco
You can forward text messages to other contacts the same way you would an email. Just double tap the message you want to forward, press the “More” option that appears next to the text, and that specific sentence, word, or phrase will appear copy and pasted into a new message. Fill in the “To” field at the top to forward that message to someone else.
Use Siri hands-free.
Lisa Eadicicco
You don’t always have to hold down the home button to launch Siri. If you have the new iPhone 6S, just say the phrase “Hey Siri”to launch Apple’s virtual assistant (any phones older than the iPhone 6S must be plugged in to a power outlet for this feature to work). Just head over to Settings>General>Siri and turn on Enable Hey Siri first.
Tell Siri how to pronounce names.
Business Insider / Matt Johnston
You can also teach Siri how to pronounce names. First, launch Siri and ask her to say the name in question (i.e. if it’s your name, ask “What’s my name?”). When she answers, tell her that she’s not pronouncing it correctly. Make sure you use her pronunciation so that she knows which word you’re talking about. Siri should then ask you how to correctly pronounce the name. Once you do, she will present three ways to pronounce the name. Choose the correct one, and Siri will remember it.
