7 Useful iPhone Tips You Might Not Know

Friday January 18, 2019 12:48 pm PST by Juli Clover

So you've been using an iPhone for years now and think you have it all figured out? Don't be so sure. We've gathered up 7 tricks obscure enough that even the most seasoned ‌iPhone‌ user is likely to learn something new, so make sure to check out our latest YouTube video and read below for a little spoiler of all of the tips that are included.

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Reopen Last Closed Safari Tab - In Safari, if you press on the "+" button at the bottom of the display, you can reopen tabs that you've recently closed.

Set a Music Timer - Like to listen to music when falling asleep but want it to turn off after a set time? In the Clock app, choose "Timer," scroll to the end, and select "Stop Playing" as an option. That'll stop your music when the timer runs out.

Move Multiple Apps - When you're moving apps on your Home screen, if you long press on one, drag it away a bit and then tap others while continuing to hold the first, you can group them all up and move them together.

3D Touch for Folder Notifications - Have a bunch of apps in folders? If one of your folders has a little red badge, you can 3D press on the folder to see which app has a pending notification at a glance.

Simple Settings Access - In an app like Messages or Photos and want to get to the Settings quick? Just say "Settings" to Siri and it will open right up.

‌Siri‌ Song History - In the iTunes Store app, you can find a list of all the songs you've ever asked ‌Siri‌ to identify. Just tap on the three line icon at the top of the display and then choose "‌Siri‌."

Passcode Lock Apps - Apple doesn't let you passcode individual apps, but there's a Screen Time workaround. In the Screen Time section of the Settings app, choose "App Limits," and set a 1 minute timer on "All Apps & Categories." Go to "Always Allowed," add apps you DON'T want to lock, and then the rest will require a Screen Time passcode to access.

Did you learn something new? Now it's your turn. Let us know your most obscure, hidden ‌iPhone‌ trick that MacRumors readers should know, and we might feature it in a future video.

Top Rated Comments

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Unity451

12 months ago

Move multiple apps! Didn't know that, but that's awesome!

Rating: 16 Votes

vicviper789

12 months ago

I wonder how many other things are in iOS that are genuinely useful that I don’t know about because it isn’t obvious. There really needs to be an indicator of something is 3D pressable

Rating: 10 Votes

psynnott

12 months ago

Just recently found this -

Redial : simply press the green phone call button with no phone number entered to redial the last number called.

Rating: 7 Votes

Nabby

12 months ago

I like the move multiple apps as well, as that was one I didn't know.

The biggest feature surprise to me wasn't in this article. It's holding the space bar down to move the cursor in a text field. I find that WAY much easier to make sure I'm put my cursor at the correct location. I don't know when that functionality was added, but I think it came with iOS12.

Rating: 7 Votes

I7guy

12 months ago

Nice tip regarding reopening the last closed Safari tab.

Rating: 5 Votes

lunarworks

12 months ago

That music timer is really handy. Someone should make a shortcut for it.

Rating: 5 Votes

AngerDanger

12 months ago

I for the life of me cannot get this to work.

Try dragging an app away from its original position, and then while you're still holding it, tap others.

[USER=771561]@jclo[/USER], the wording is a little ambiguous in the article; perhaps it could be clarified.

Rating: 5 Votes