Apple this week released iOS 16, the latest version of iOS with a new customizable Lock Screen, major new additions to Messages, and enhancements to Mail, Maps, and more.
Other than the headlining features, there are a number of quality-of-life changes, improvements, and new capabilities baked into iOS 16 that help improve the iPhone experience. We've listed 16 hidden features and changes from iOS 16 that you may not have known about below.
Get Rid of Duplicate Photos - The iOS 16 Photos app can let you know if you have multiple identical photos, giving you the opportunity to delete the extras to save space. Duplicate photos are listed in a new "Duplicates" album that appears if you have duplicates to deal with.
AirPods Updates - It's simpler to manage AirPods settings in iOS 16 with a dedicated section that pops up in the Settings app when AirPods are connected. iOS 16 also adds a Personalized Spatial Audio feature that uses the TrueDepth camera to scan your ears, providing a unique listening experience tuned just to you.
Face ID in Landscape Mode - iPhone models running iOS 16 support Face ID in landscape mode, making it easier to unlock the iPhone when it's not held in the standard portrait orientation. The feature is limited to the iPhone 13 and later.
Hidden and Deleted Photo Protection - In iOS 16, you need to authenticate with Face ID or Touch ID before the Hidden and Recently Deleted photo albums can be accessed. This essentially locks these albums from view should someone gain access to your phone while it's otherwise unlocked.
WiFi Password - If you've ever been frustrated by an inability to access the WiFi password of the network you're using, that's changing in iOS 16. In the iPhone's WiFi settings, you can see the password of the network that you're connected to.
Haptic Feedback for Keyboard - There's a keyboard setting in iOS 16 that lets you enable haptic feedback that can be felt when you're typing. The vibrations are for each key tap, offering users a physical confirmation that a letter has been tapped.
Copy and Delete Screenshots - When you take a screenshot on iOS, alongside being able to save the screenshot to Photos, save as a Quick Note, and save to Files, you'll now be able to "Copy and Delete." The new option saves the screenshot to your clipboard and then deletes it from your Camera Roll, making it easier to use one-time screenshots without them being saved to your device and needing to be cleaned up later.
Ability to Delete Find My, Clock, and Health - With iOS 14, Apple allowed users to offload some of the apps that come pre-installed on the iPhone. With iOS 16, Apple is expanding the number of apps you can delete from your phone, which now includes Find My, Clock, and Health. Deleted apps can be redownloaded from the App Store later if needed.
Built-In Currency Converison - Thanks to new features in Live Text, iOS now includes built-in currency conversion within the Camera and Photos apps. Simply hold your iPhone camera up to a price tag, wait for the Live Text icon to appear, tap and hold on the price, and select "Convert." Live Text also supports translation and measurement conversion.
See Your Battery Percentage - In iOS 16, Apple is giving users the ability to display their battery percentage directly in the status bar inside of the battery icon, removing the need to swipe into Control Center to check on their battery level. The battery percentage toggle is not available on all iPhones.
Use Siri to Hang Up a Call - A new settings in iOS 16 lets users use Siri to hang up an active call. By heading into Settings > Accessibility > Siri and activating Call Hangup, users can now say "Hey Siri, hang up the call" to end an active call. Note that the other person/people on the call will hear your request to Siri before being hung up on.
Prevent Accidental Call Hangups - Users on iOS 16 will now have the ability to disable the side button from ending an active call. In prior versions of iOS, pressing the side button and locking the iPhone while in a call would instantly end it. In iOS 16, Apple allows users to disable that to prevent accidents by going into Settings > Accessibility> Touch and toggling on "Prevent Lock to End Call."
Sorting Options for Playlists - In Apple Music on iOS 16, users will now have the ability to sort playlists by title, artist, album, and release date. The new sorting option can be found by pressing the three dots in the upper right-hand corner when viewing a playlist.
Full-Screen Music Player - One major but possibly lesser-known feature of iOS 16 is that Apple is bringing back the full-screen Lock Screen music player. When listening to a song from Apple Music, Spotify, or other third-party music apps, press on the album art on the Lock Screen from Now Playing to enter the all-new player look. Tap the full-screen album art to minimize Now Playing.
Spatial Audio Just for You - With the latest AirPods and some Beats earphones, iOS 16 users can activate Personalized Spatial Audio. Personalized Spatial Audio uses the LiDAR scanner on the iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro, or the iPhone 14 Pro to scan the geometry of the user's ears in order to deliver a better Spatial Audio experience.
New Warning While Charging - On iOS 16, if your iPhone is warm, you'll get a new notification letting you know that charging will be paused until your iPhone's temperature cools down. This is done in order to prevent possible long-term damage to your iPhone's battery.
For the ultimate walkthrough of everything new in iOS 16, see our comprehensive roundup.
* Spatial Audio Just for You - With the latest AirPods and some Beats earphones, iOS 16 users can activate Personalized Spatial Audio. Personalized Spatial Audio uses the LiDAR scanner on the iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro, or the iPhone 14 Pro to scan the geometry of the user's ears in order to deliver a better Spatial Audio experience.
So much wrong on this part. You don’t need a pro phone to get this. It uses the TrueDepth camera that is used for Face ID, not the LiDAR Scanner. Also this is available for first gen AirPods Pro.
That seems like a weird feature to add. I have signed friends into my wifi network for them because I didn't want to share the password (and I use my guest network for IoT stuff). So, now they technically could go in and reveal the password if they wanted to know it. Not a big deal, but I'm not sure why making it possible to reveal passwords already typed in is every really a good idea from a security standpoint.
That was never a secure way to connect someone: if their keychains are synced across devices, they could have always accessed them in plain text from their Macs…
* WiFi Password - If you've ever been frustrated by an inability to access the WiFi password of the network you're using, that's changing in iOS 16. In the iPhone's WiFi settings, you can see the password ('https://www.macrumors.com/2022/06/06/ios-16-wifi-network-password/') of the network that you're connected to.
That seems like a weird feature to add. I have signed friends into my wifi network for them because I didn't want to share the password (and I use my guest network for IoT stuff). So, now they technically could go in and reveal the password if they wanted to know it. Not a big deal, but I'm not sure why making it possible to reveal passwords already typed in is every really a good idea from a security standpoint.
Wednesday July 13, 2022 11:55 am PDT by Juli Clover
Set to come out this fall, iOS 16 is the next-generation version of iOS, and it is laden with tons of major changes, such as an all new customizable Lock Screen. There are also a number of smaller, lesser known features, and in our latest YouTube video, we highlight some neat additions that you might not know about.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Pinned...
Apple is adding the ability for users to lock their Hidden and Recently Deleted albums on iOS 16, requiring user authentication through Touch ID or Face ID to access.
Apple says that starting with iOS 16 this fall, both albums will be locked by default. Currently, both the Hidden and Recently Deleted albums are exposed, allowing anyone who may grab access to your phone the ability to go...
Tuesday October 11, 2022 6:39 am PDT by Sami Fathi
In a few weeks, Apple will release iOS 16.1 for all compatible iPhones, marking the first major update to the iOS 16 operating system since its public release in September.
With iOS 16.1, Apple is bringing several new changes, features, and bug fixes to iPhone users. We've highlighted five noteworthy changes below. iOS 16.1 is currently still in beta testing with developers and public beta...
Thursday December 1, 2022 8:44 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to publicly release iOS 16.2 for the iPhone in mid-December, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The update remains in beta testing for now, with at least eight new features and changes already uncovered so far.
iOS 16.2 introduces a number of new features, including Apple's new whiteboard app Freeform, two new Lock Screen widgets for Sleep and Medications, the ability to hide...
Wednesday September 28, 2022 2:02 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple today explained why iPhone users who recently updated to iOS 16 may not see the new Duplicates album in its stock Photos app, and what they can do about it.
New to iOS 16, the Photos app will automatically detect any duplicate photos and videos in users' libraries and collate them together in a Duplicates album for inspection, giving users the option to merge duplicate sets and delete...
Wednesday September 14, 2022 12:28 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Though iOS 16 was just released on Monday, Apple is already moving on to testing the next update to the operating system. iOS 16.1 was seeded to developers today, and it introduces a handful of new features that are worth noting.
Lock Screen/Home Screen Customization
When tapping on the "Customize" interface on the Lock Screen, there's now an option to choose between customizing either the...
Monday September 12, 2022 9:58 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released iOS 16, the newest operating system designed for the iPhone. As with all of Apple's software updates, iOS 16 can be downloaded for free. iOS 16 is available on the iPhone 8 and later, with Apple this year dropping support for the iPhone 6s, iPhone 7, and the original iPhone SE.
iOS 16 is typically accompanied by iPadOS 16, but Apple is still working on iPadOS 16 features ...
Wednesday November 16, 2022 8:32 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to release iOS 16.2 in December, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and a report about the update enabling 5G support in India. The update remains in beta testing for now, with many new features and changes already uncovered.
iOS 16.2 introduces a number of new features, including Apple's new whiteboard app Freeform, two new Lock Screen widgets for Sleep and Medications, the...
Saturday December 3, 2022 10:23 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max, and iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max models feature a LiDAR Scanner next to the rear camera that can be used to measure a person's height instantly in Apple's preinstalled Measure app.
To measure a person's height, simply open the Measure app, point your iPhone at the person you want to measure, and make sure they are visible on the screen from...
Friday December 2, 2022 2:13 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple in late October began testing iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2 updates, providing betas to both developers and public beta testers. As of now, we've had four total betas, with the fourth beta having been released earlier this week. iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2 are expected before the end of the year, and we thought we'd try to narrow down the launch timeline.
With only four betas released since...
The next-generation MacBook Pro models could feature faster RAM, according to a recent report from a reliable source.
MacRumors Forums member "Amethyst," who accurately revealed details about the Mac Studio and Studio Display before those products were announced, recently provided information about Apple's upcoming 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. The new machines are expected to feature...
Thursday December 1, 2022 8:44 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to publicly release iOS 16.2 for the iPhone in mid-December, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The update remains in beta testing for now, with at least eight new features and changes already uncovered so far.
iOS 16.2 introduces a number of new features, including Apple's new whiteboard app Freeform, two new Lock Screen widgets for Sleep and Medications, the ability to hide...
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Mass shipments of Apple's long-rumored AR/VR headset may be delayed until the second half of 2023 due to unspecified "software-related issues," according to the latest information shared today by tech analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Apple headset render by Ian Zelbo Kuo said mass shipments of components for the headset are still likely to begin in the first half of 2023, but he believes that mass...
Thursday December 1, 2022 4:37 pm PST by Juli Clover
With the launch of iOS 16.1, Apple rolled out a Emergency SOS via Satellite, which is designed to allow iPhone 14 owners to contact emergency services using satellite connectivity when no cellular or WiFi connection is available. The feature was put to the test in Alaska today, when a man became stranded in a rural area. In the early hours of the morning on December 1, Alaska State Troopers ...
Saturday December 3, 2022 10:55 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While we're still around nine months away from Apple unveiling the iPhone 15 lineup, rumors already suggest that the higher-end Pro models will have even more exclusive features than usual compared to the standard models next year.
There are currently at least five features rumored to be exclusive to iPhone 15 Pro models:A17 chip: iPhone 15 Pro models will be equipped with an A17 Bionic...
With Black Friday and Cyber Week shopping events winding down and the calendar flipping over to December, our attention is starting to turn to 2023 and all of the Apple news we're expecting to see.
This week saw an alleged benchmark leak for an "M2 Max" chip expected to make an appearance in upcoming Macs like the MacBook Pro early next year, as well as fresh rumors about the iPhone 15...
Friday December 2, 2022 10:54 am PST by Juli Clover
Google is continuing on with its attempt to convince Apple to adopt the RCS messaging standard, publishing a new "it's time for RCS" blog post. Promoted heavily by Google, RCS or Rich Communication Services is a messaging standard that is designed to replace the current SMS messaging standard.
It provides support for higher resolution photos and videos, audio messages, and bigger file sizes, ...
Monday December 5, 2022 11:44 am PST by Juli Clover
Due to production issues at Apple supplier factories in China, the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are backordered and basically out of stock at every store. If you were planning to gift or receive an iPhone 14 Pro model for the holidays and didn't already get one, you're basically out of luck because they're gone until late December.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
Top Rated Comments
So much wrong on this part. You don’t need a pro phone to get this. It uses the TrueDepth camera that is used for Face ID, not the LiDAR Scanner. Also this is available for first gen AirPods Pro.