Ok, there’s a new iPhone, but there’s also a new iOS!
iOS 10 is here for about three weeks now, and it’s a huge update. It was already the number one mobile operating system, but now it’s even better than ever before. And that is because iOS 10 is packed with new features. And they are so well designed that after a few days you already have the feeling that they were always there. Apple understands thinking from the user’s perspective.
In this week’s episode, I won’t talk about all the new features. Apple already did an excellent job in explaining the most important ones. I will talk about the features that are not so obvious, the hidden features that I think you should know.
The Home Button and Slide to Unlock
Apple got rid of the ‘Slide to Unlock’. You have to press the Home Button to unlock now. I don’t like pressing the Home Button all that much, because I’ve become used to just touching the Home Button to unlock. And it seems unnecessary, because they also introduced ‘Lift to Wake’. Luckily you can turn this back on in the settings.
Go to ‘Settings>General>Accessibility>Home Button’ and Choose ‘Rest Finger to Open.’
Swiping on the Lock Screen
iOS 10 is the first version of iOS that allows you to swipe in all directions from the lock screen. Without opening your phone you can access:
- The Camera
- Your Widgets
- Your Notifications
- The Control Center
Interaction with notifications
You can interact with your notifications directly from any screen. To do this you use 3D touch on the incoming notifications. This gives you the opportunity to reply to messages and emails, and instantly return to where you were.
It is possible now to clear all your notifications at once. You go to the top of your notification list and force touch the X in the upper right corner. Then you can clear all notifications.
3D touch in the control center
You can use 3D touch within the control center now. It works with the flashlight, the clock, and the camera.
Magnifying Glass
For all of you who have trouble reading the fine print, there’s a solution now. Apple has introduced the Magnifier. You can use your iPhone as a Magnifying Glass now. Go to ‘Settings>General>Accessibility>Magnifier’ to switch it on.
Show Parked Location
Your iPhone now remembers where you parked your car. You do need to connect your iPhone using Bluetooth when you’re in your car. You also need to have ‘Location Services’ turned on. Then you can just ask Siri where your car is, and to give you instructions how to get there.
Announce Calls
When you have your headphones on, and a call comes in, your iPhone can announce who’s calling.
Go to ‘Settings>Phone>Announce Calls’. And you can choose one of the options.
This also comes in handy when you’re in your car.
Bedtime
To make sure that you have a regular sleeping scheme you can use the new Bedtime feature in the clock app. It allows you to set your regular bedtime. The app will gently remind you to go to bed, and it will wake you up with a nice relaxing alarm.
You can choose which days to include or exclude, and you can choose between several relaxing alarms.
Handwritten messages
The messages app is packed with new features. Especially the new option to use third party apps within the messages app will offer tons of new features in the future. The hidden feature that I demonstrate in the video is: handwritten messages. When you turn the screen in landscape mode, within the messages app, you can write handwritten messages.
Speech Recognition API
Last, but not least, Apple has decided to open iOS up for third-party apps. This means that Apple now offers several API’s (Application programming interfaces) that allow third-party apps to use features that before only Apple could use.
A nice example is the ‘Speech Recognition API’. I like using the ‘Drafts App’ very much, and it now can open up the ‘Speech Recognition API’ which allows you to dictate texts continuously. Before iOS 10 you could press the microphone on the keyboard. Unfortunately, that feature could only handle a certain amount of words. This new feature works even better!
That’s all Folks!
Those are the hidden features that I want to share with you. Let me know if you found any hidden features that are also worth mentioning. Please share in the comments.
If you haven’t already, you should definitely take a look at the video below, because in the video, I demonstrate all the features mentioned above. I hope you love it.
See you next week!
