iOS 16 Hidden Features You Might Not Know About

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.


  • Pinned Safari Tabs - You have been able to pin a Safari tab on Mac for some time, but pinned tabs didn't work with iOS 15 That's changed in iOS 16, and now you can have your favorite tabs pinned, including within Tab Groups.
  • Merge Duplicate Contacts - Tired of having multiple contact cards for the same person? In iOS 16 you can merge duplicate contacts together right from the Contacts app.
  • Get Rid of Duplicate Photos - The iOS 16 Photos app can let you know if you have multiple photos of the same thing, 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.
  • Copy and Paste Photo Edits - Want all of your photos to have the same aesthetic, or have improvements you want to make to an entire batch of images? That's possible with the new copy and paste feature for photo edits, which lets you copy edits from one photo and apply them to another photo with a tap.
  • AirPods Updates - It's simpler to manage AirPods settings in iOS 16 with a new dedicated section that pops up in the Settings app when AirPods are connected. iOS 16 also adds a new Personalized Spatial Audio feature that uses the TrueDepth camera to scan your ears and the area around you, 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.
  • Notes Passcodes - Rather than creating a new password for a note, you can now simply use your device passcode or Face ID/Touch ID to lock a note, which is much easier.
  • 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 pressed.
  • 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 have your device passcode.
  • 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.

More iOS 16 Coverage

For a full rundown on everything that's new in iOS 16, we have a dedicated iOS 16 roundup. Have a favorite iOS 16 feature? Let us know what it is in the comments.

Related Forum: iOS 16

Popular Stories

samsung crease less foldable display ces 2026%402x

Foldable iPhone's Crease-Free Display Tech Spotted at CES 2026

Tuesday January 6, 2026 3:04 am PST by
CES 2026 has just provided a first glimpse of the folding display technology that Apple is expected to use in its upcoming foldable iPhone. At the event, Samsung Display briefly showcased its new crease-less foldable OLED panel beside a Galaxy Z Fold 7, and according to SamMobile, which saw the test booth before it was abruptly removed, the new panel "has no crease at all" in comparison. The ...
Apple Card iPhone 16 Pro Feature

Apple Card Will Move From Goldman Sachs to JPMorgan Chase

Wednesday January 7, 2026 12:57 pm PST by
JPMorgan Chase has reached a deal to take over operation of the Apple Card, reports The Wall Street Journal. Barring any "last minute hiccups," the deal should be announced shortly after over a year of negotiations. Reports began circulating over two years ago that current Apple Card issuer Goldman Sachs was looking to end its partnership with Apple as part of an effort to scale back on...
Logitech MX Master 3S

Logitech Blames 'Inexcusable Mistake' After Certificate Expiry Breaks macOS Apps

Wednesday January 7, 2026 5:27 am PST by
Logitech users on macOS found themselves locked out of their mouse customizations yesterday after the company let a security certificate expire, breaking both its Logi Options+ and G HUB configuration apps. Logitech devices like its MX Master series mice and MX Keys keyboards stopped working properly as a result of the oversight, with users unable to access their custom scrolling setup,...
iOS 27 Mock Quick

Five New iPhone Features Rumored for iOS 27

Wednesday January 7, 2026 2:51 pm PST by
Though it's been just a few months since iOS 26 launched, we're already hearing rumors about the next-generation version of iOS, iOS 27. iOS 27 will be introduced at Apple's June WWDC 2026 event before it launches in September 2026. We don't know all of the details about iOS 27 yet, but we do have some information about what to expect. "Snow Leopard" Update iOS 27 will apparently focus...
ChatGPT Health Integration Connectors Feature

OpenAI Launches ChatGPT Health With Apple Health Integration

Wednesday January 7, 2026 11:27 am PST by
OpenAI today announced the launch of ChatGPT Health, a dedicated section of ChatGPT where users can ask health-related questions completely separated from their main ChatGPT experience. For more personalized responses, users can connect various health data services such as Apple Health, Function, MyFitnessPal, Weight Watchers, AllTrails, Instacart, and Peloton. Last month, MacRumors discovere...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

10 Reasons to Wait for This Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday January 8, 2026 2:56 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
iphone 17 models

No iPhone 18 Launch This Year, Reports Suggest

Thursday January 1, 2026 8:43 am PST by
Apple is not expected to release a standard iPhone 18 model this year, according to a growing number of reports that suggest the company is planning a significant change to its long-standing annual iPhone launch cycle. Despite the immense success of the iPhone 17 in 2025, the iPhone 18 is not expected to arrive until the spring of 2027, leaving the iPhone 17 in the lineup as the latest...
AirPods Pro 3 Year of the Horse Feature

Apple Launches Year of the Horse AirPods Pro 3 for Lunar New Year

Monday January 5, 2026 11:28 am PST by
Apple has designed a limited edition version of the AirPods Pro 3 to celebrate Lunar New Year, and customers in select countries can purchase them starting today. The Year of the Horse Special Edition AirPods Pro 3 feature a unique horse emoji character that's otherwise unavailable. Customers in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore are able to buy the AirPods, and they'll be...

Top Rated Comments

smoothride Avatar
46 months ago
Does anyone know why the Face ID in Landscape Mode has to be limited to iPhone 13 models and newer only?

This is becoming more and more annoying. Stop trolling Apple, not funny anymore.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Sebosz Avatar
46 months ago
You can add CVV of your saved credit cards in safari settings.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
simody Avatar
46 months ago
Landscape FaceID is not limited to iPhone 13. It works on my 12 Pro too.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dorv Avatar
46 months ago

Today I learned a new word: Ellipsis
...
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
YankeeSR23 Avatar
46 months ago
Just a heads up on the duplicate photo feature: it is not perfect by far and is still being worked on so definitely look at the individual pics before hitting the merge button. I was taking daily screenshots for a work thing and each image clearly said the date and the feature thought all those pics were duplicates despite each pic saying that day’s date in the image.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DanteHicks79 Avatar
46 months ago
Here, I fixed it for you:


* Face ID in Landscape Mode - iPhone 13 models and later running iOS 16 support Face ID in landscape mode ('https://www.macrumors.com/2022/06/06/ios-16-landscape-face-id/'), making it easier to unlock the iPhone when it's not held in the standard portrait orientation.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)