- Home
- tech
- 19 Tips You'll Need To Master In Apple's iOS 7
- 19 Tips You'll Need To Master In Apple's iOS 7
19 Tips You'll Need To Master In Apple's iOS 7
You can see exactly what time someone sent you a text message by swiping from right to left on your screen.
The compass app doubles as a level tool. Just swipe over one screen.
Search, which Apple calls Spotlight, has changed. You now access it by swiping down in the middle of your home screen. You can search for anything like texts, emails, apps, songs, and contacts.
You can tell iOS 7 to automatically update your apps without opening the App Store. Go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh to adjust the settings. You can also choose whether or not you want individual apps to automatically update.
If you open up the App Store and tap the Updates tab, you get a quick snapshot of recently updated apps on your phone.
iOS 7 has a new parallax effect. That means the icons on your home screen move around as you move your phone. If this bothers you, switch it off by going to Settings > General > Accessibility > Reduce Motion. Flip the switch to green.
Swipe up from the bottom of your screen to access the control panel. This gives you access to basic settings like airplane mode, WiFi, Bluetooth, screen brightness, etc.
AirDrop is a feature that lets you beam photos and other information to other iPhones/iPads with iOS 7. You turn it on in the same control panel we just showed you.
iOS tracks your browsing history by default so it's easier for ad companies to track you. You can switch this off by going to Settings > Privacy > Advertising and flipping the switch to green.
Swipe down from the top of your screen to view the new notifications center. Tap the Today tab to get a quick snapshot of today's weather and events in your calendar.
Siri can now search Twitter.
You can also switch Siri's voice to male if you want. Go to Settings > General > Siri > Voice Gender.
You can block certain phone numbers from calling or texting you. Go to Settings > Phone > Blocked to add numbers or people already in your contacts to your blocked list.
Double tap your iPhone's home button to quickly switch between apps. You can close an app for good by swiping it up and "flicking" it out of the way.
You can link iOS 7 directly to Twitter, Facebook, Vimeo (a video service similar to YouTube), and Flickr. This makes it easier to share stuff you find on the Web or your camera roll. You can sign into each service under Settings.
iOS 7 has a bunch of new ringtones and alert sounds. Change them up in Settings > Sounds.
There are a bunch of new backgrounds in iOS 7, including a few that are animated and move when you jiggle your phone. You can test them out under Settings > Wallpapers & Brightness.
The Music app has a free Pandora-like streaming music service. Type in an artist, song, or genre and iTunes will create a customized radio station for you. It's free, but you'll have to listen to some commercials.
iOS 7 has skinnier fonts. If that bothers you, adjust the size under Settings > General > Accessibility > Larger Type. Drag the slider at the bottom of your screen to adjust the font size.
Get your weekly dose of essential news delivered right to you, plus explore a world of insights with our diverse newsletter subscription options.
- Weekly newsletter
- Uncover the latest in Tech, Finance, Business, and more
- Handpicked web stories, in-depth articles, and expert analyses
Advertisement