How Tos

Apple's Advanced Data Protection for iCloud feature uses end-to-end encryption to provide the highest level of cloud data security that Apple offers. Here's everything you need to know about enabling it on your devices. The encrypted security feature gives you the choice to further protect your important iCloud data, including iCloud Backup, Photos, Notes, and more. Apple's use of...

Apple this week released iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, and macOS Sequoia 15.3, software updates that enable Apple Intelligence on supported devices by default. Whether you own an iPhone, iPad, Mac – or indeed all three – regardless of what you think about Apple Intelligence, there's one reason why you may want to disable Apple's AI features at the earliest opportunity: To reclaim storage....

When Apple released iOS 18.2, it introduced a major change to the Mail app with its new Categories and priority messages features. Categories automatically sorts your emails into four distinct sections: Primary, Transactions, Updates, and Promotions. The change also adds contact photos and business logos for conversations in your inbox, but if you don't like how they look, it's easy enough to...

Anyone who looks after children knows how fascinating an illuminated display is to a baby or toddler. When it's an interactive touchscreen that's strapped to your wrist, the intrigue If your Apple Watch has proven a bit too attractive to little fingers and you're worried they'll unintentionally send a message, mess up your notification settings, or worse, here's a quick trick that you can...

In iOS 18.1 and later, Apple makes it easier than ever to share Apple Music songs to TikTok. Keep reading to learn how the app streamlines the process of making music-focused content on the social platform. TikTok has become a leading venue for music discovery, with countless songs going viral through its short-form videos and trends. Recognizing the demand for sharing music on the platform, ...

In iOS 18, iPhone apps have both Light and Dark color options, making it possible to match the color of your icons when you have Dark mode enabled. Keep reading to learn how it works. Apple's built-in apps have both Light and Dark color options in iOS 18, and now that the update is available to the public, third-party apps are in the process of providing their own Light and Dark icon...

On iPhone, listening to YouTube audio in the background usually requires paying for a YouTube Premium subscription, but there is a simple workaround that allows you to keep listening to a video when you are doing other things on your iPhone or when your device is locked. Keep reading to learn how it's done. As YouTube has grown in popularity over the years, Google has opted to park several...

With iOS 18.2, Apple introduced ChatGPT integration with Apple Intelligence to expand the range of AI capabilities accessible to users on supported iPhone models. One skill in particular that you may not be aware of is the ability to generate images in the Messages app, ready for sharing. ChatGPT leverages DALL·E to generate the images, and the results are almost invariably better than Apple's...

If you've ever opened your MacBook's lid just to clean the display and keyboard, only to have it spring to life unexpectedly, here's a simple solution. Apple silicon Macs automatically start up when you open the lid or connect them to power, but you can disable this behavior in macOS Sequoia or later. While automatic startup is convenient in most situations, you might want to disable it....

If you watch Netflix on your iPhone, the streamer has made it a lot easier for you to download your favorite shows for offline viewing, introducing a new one-tap season download feature that eliminates the tedious process of downloading episodes individually. Why Download Entire Seasons? Downloading entire seasons makes perfect sense for anyone who wants to ensure uninterrupted viewing on...

Apple occasionally releases firmware updates for its AirPods and AirPods Pro wireless earphones that can include performance improvements, feature tweaks, and bug fixes. If you're having a particular issue with your AirPods or AirPods Pro, or if you just want to make sure they're up to date with the latest software, the following steps show you how to update their firmware. You can check...

In iOS 18.2, Apple introduced a way for users to select their preferred default apps for iPhone. Apple initially promised that the feature would be coming to the European Union, but it is actually available worldwide. The Freedom to Choose – Why It Matters The freedom to choose default apps on iPhone represents a marked shift in Apple's traditionally closed ecosystem, giving you more...

For ‌iPhone 16‌ models, Apple's iOS 18.3 software update adds new Visual Intelligence features to the Camera Control button. Keep reading to learn what you can do with the new capabilities and how to use them. New Visual Intelligence Features In iOS 18.2, Apple's previous point update, the company added Visual Intelligence functionality to its latest iPhone 16 models, allowing device...

Unsolicited phone calls and messages can become a regular annoyance and even a cause of stress for many smartphone users these days. Thankfully, Apple provides features in iOS that allow you to block nuisance calls and messages from the same number coming through to your phone, and in this article we're going to show you how to set them up. Whether it's messages from a debt collector...

The native camera app on iPhone includes functionality that allows you to scan QR codes and access QR code content like URLs without having to download a third-party app. QR codes can include contact information, calendar events, website links, phone numbers, email addresses, Wi-Fi information, and more, so they can be pretty handy. Here's how to scan a QR code when you run into one: Ope...

Apple in iOS 18.2 has reinstated a Lock Screen feature that was unceremoniously nixed from its iPhone OS two years ago, leaving many users wondering why it was taken away in the first place. The feature in question is the on-screen volume control slider in the Lock Screen media player interface. Prior to 2022, the volume slider was a familiar presence on the Lock Screen whenever media was...

Instagram in August 2024 doubled its carousel post limit from 10 to 20 photos and videos, giving you more flexibility to share your favorite moments in a single post. This expanded feature is perfect for sharing vacation highlights, event recaps, or those increasingly popular "photo dumps" without splitting content across multiple posts. Why Post More Photos? The increased limit is...

In iOS 17.2 and later, Apple lets you customize the alert tone used by your iPhone for default notifications. This is good news for anyone who does not like the "Rebound" tone that Apple introduced in iOS 17. In previous versions of iOS, Apple allowed users to choose a ring tone and a text tone, as well as custom alert sounds for email, calendar, and reminder alerts. Anything else that threw ...

Whenever you browse the web in Safari, the browser stores website data so that it doesn't have to download it again each time you revisit a site. In theory this should speed up your browsing experience, but there are some scenarios where you might want to clear the cache and start anew. Keep reading to learn how it's done on Mac, iPhone, and iPad. There are a couple of situations where you...

Rich Communication Services (RCS) is a messaging standard Apple adopted in iOS 18 that is significantly enhancing the messaging experience between iPhone and Android devices. Think of it as SMS 2.0 – a major upgrade to the traditional text messaging we've been using for years. Key Features of RCS Apple's decision to embrace RCS came last year after persistent persuasion from Google, which...