How Tos

The 2023 Worldwide Developers Conference will take place the week of June 5 to June 9, and like the last three years, it will be an online event, although select developers and students will be invited to Apple Park. To kick things off, Apple holds a keynote event on the Monday to introduce new hardware and software, which is what makes it of interest to the general public. During the...

Tired of toggling your iPhone's Orientation Lock for certain apps? Keep reading to learn how you can make iOS do it for you automatically. In iOS, many apps display a different view when you rotate your iPhone from portrait to landscape orientation. Depending on the app and the way you use it, this behavior isn't always desirable, which is why Apple includes the Orientation Lock option in...

WhatsApp in May 2023 introduced a new Chat Lock feature that allows you to secure select conversations in your inbox behind a passcode, fingerprint, or Face ID authentication. Keep reading to learn how it's done. Millions of users rely on WhatsApp as a means of privately and securely communicating with others, which is why the company's developers are continually seeking new ways to improve...

WhatsApp is rolling out a new ability for users to edit messages after they have been sent over the popular Meta-owned encrypted chat platform. Keep reading to learn how it works on iPhone and Android. It's been a long time coming, but WhatsApp has finally brought its much-anticipated sent-message editing feature to the chat service. When Apple released iOS 16, it introduced the ability...

Previously, WhatsApp has allowed users of the encrypted messaging platform to link up to four devices to their account, but only one of those devices could be a smartphone. Happily, that's now changed, and WhatsApp has introduced the ability to use the same account on multiple phones. So now you can link another phone as one of up to four additional devices, the same as when you link with...

Apple has introduced security keys as an additional step to help users protect their Apple ID accounts. Keep reading to learn why the alternative authentication method is the most secure method available and what you need to do to set it up. What Are Security Keys? With the release of iOS 16.3, iPadOS 16.3, and macOS Ventura 13.2, Apple introduced support for security keys, or physical...

Almost everyone who uses the internet will have encountered CAPTCHA challenges, where websites and app sign-in screens require you to pass a little test like having to tap on images of traffic lights or decipher squiggly text. CAPTCHA challenges are used to prove you're a human and not a robot, but they can be repetitive and annoying. Fortunately, Apple includes a feature in iOS 16 and...

In iOS 16, Apple began deploying security updates to iPhones and iPads without having to update the entire operating system. If you're experiencing issues with your device after having installed a security update, keep reading to learn how to remove it. In the past, some of Apple's most important point releases of its iOS mobile operating system have been linked to critical security updates...

In macOS Ventura, Apple can deliver security updates to Macs without having to update the entire operating system. If you're experiencing issues with your Mac after having installed a security update, keep reading to learn how to remove it. In the past, some of Apple's most important point releases of its macOS operating system have been linked to critical security updates that are designed...

In the interests of enhanced privacy, some third-party iOS apps include an option to require passcode or Face ID authentication before they can be opened, even though the iPhone is already unlocked. This puts the app's contents behind an additional layer of security, but not all apps offer the same facility. Until recently, Apple did not offer a way to individually lock sensitive apps like...

On iPhone, listening to YouTube audio in the background usually requires paying for a YouTube Premium subscription, but there is a workaround that allows you to keep listening to a video when your ‌iPhone‌ is locked. Keep reading to learn how it's done. As YouTube has grown in popularity, Google has opted to park several features of the video hosting service behind a paywall, such as ad-free...

Apple's autocorrect on iPhone and iPad always aims to help when you're typing a message, but it's by no means perfect, and some of the replacements it continually spews out can become frustrating. Fortunately, Apple's software includes a lesser-known feature called Text Replacement that allows you to specify what word or phrase replaces the specific text you type in. Even if you haven't ...

Apple has made its stock Notes app a lot more useful in recent versions of iOS and iPadOS, adding several features that rival notes apps have offered for a while. One of these features is the ability to create checklists. Here's how it works. When you create a checklist in Notes, each list item has a circular bullet next to it that can be marked as completed, which is convenient for checking ...

If you're being interrupted by phone calls coming through to your Mac from your iPhone, you can disable this continuity feature temporarily or permanently. Keep reading to learn how. If you own an iPhone and a Mac, you may find that phone calls to your iPhone also ring through to your Mac. This can be distracting or just not useful, especially if you tend to have your iPhone with you at all...

Apple's Messages app for iPhone allows you to record and send audio messages. Keep reading to learn how it works. Sometimes it can be hard to capture feeling or emotion in a text message. If you have something heartfelt to communicate to someone, you can always call them, but an audio message can be less intrusive and is much more convenient (and quicker) to send or listen to. That's why...

If your Photos library won't open or the ‌Photos‌ app is exhibiting odd behavior on your Mac, the ‌Photos‌ Repair Library tool may fix the issue. Keep reading to learn how it works. The Repair Library tool is a hidden utility in macOS that analyses your photo library's database and repairs any inconsistencies it detects. The tool isn't guaranteed to fix all problems that can arise with photo...

Thanks to Apple's Sound Recognition feature, the HomePod mini and second-generation HomePod can send you notifications when they recognize smoke or carbon monoxide alarm sounds. Keep reading to learn how it works. With Sound Recognition, ‌HomePod‌ can detect the sound of a smoke or carbon monoxide alarm in your home, and alert you by sending a notification to your iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch. ...

Apple makes it easy to track a workout with your Apple Watch using its stock Workout app. All you have to do is open the app, select the workout type, and tap to start. But what if you don't have your hands free? Fortunately Apple has thought of that too. In watchOS 8 and later, it's possible to start a workout using just your voice. And combined with audible alerts, your Apple Watch can...

In macOS Mojave and later, the Finder includes Quick Actions that make it easier to perform quick edits to files without having to open the apps associated with them. In the default set that Apple includes with every macOS install, there's a very handy Quick Action that allows you to remove the background from a selected image or photo. The feature lifts the subject out of the picture and ...

Apple's Clock app has a hidden analog display as part of its Stopwatch function. Here's how to enable it on iPhone and Mac. Apple has included a stock Clock app in iOS for as long as iPhones have existed, providing users with a handy set of world clock, alarm, stopwatch, and timer functions. In iOS 10, Apple added an analog display mode to the stopwatch, offering users a more traditional ...