9 More iPhone Hacks You Need To Know About

While I definitely would not consider myself to a “tech blogger” by any stretch of the imagination, I have written several blog posts about tech-centric topics over the past few years. Having a certain amount of tech literacy is all but necessary in this day and age, and not just for people like me who spend all day on their computers!

Since many people primarily use a smartphone for internet access and digital communication, many of my tech-related posts have been collections of tips for iPhone users (if only because I also have an iPhone, so that’s what I’m comfortable with). Every update bring tweaks and changes to our phones, so I started collecting and sharing useful tips about features that aren’t always obvious, intuitive, or well publicized.

I have another batch of iPhone hacks to share with you today, so let’s get right to it!

9 More iPhone Hacks You Need To Know About

1. Write On Images

A feature called Markup makes it easy to call attention to something specific on a photo, screenshot, or document. Open the photo or file, locate the pencil tip icon (in Photos you’ll find it under the ellipsis icon), tap it, then choose from writing tools, text overlay, shapes, etc. to write right over the top of it.

2. Use Spotlight For Conversions

Need a quick conversion of euros to U.S. dollars, or Canadian dollars to pounds? Swipe right on your phone to bring up the Spotlight search bar, then type in “20 euros in USD” (or whatever you need to covert) and the result will pop right up.

3. Find A Phone’s Owner

Found a misplaced phone, but don’t know who it belongs to? Hold the home button to activate Siri and ask, “Whose phone is this?” Siri will respond with the owner’s name and you’ll be that much closer to returning it to its rightful owner.

4. Tag People In Group Chats

To get a specific person’s attention in a group chat, mention them directly by typing the @ symbol and their name, then press space to complete the tagging process. Once you send the message, the person you tagged will get a notification about it and your message won’t get lost in the shuffle.

5. Autofill Domain Suffixes

To make getting to a specific website even faster, type the domain name into Safari, then hold down the period button on the keyboard to bring up a list of domain extensions (ie. “.com”). The list doesn’t have every possible extension (there are hundreds of them), but it has the basics like .com, .net, .org, and .edu.

6. Caption Photos And Videos

The latest iPhone update included a new feature: the ability to add captions to your photos and videos. To do it, swipe up on an image or video, select the caption field, and type your caption. You can also use captions to quickly find photos and videos later—just type part of the caption into the Spotlight search bar.

7. Create Message Threads

The best way to clear up confusion in a fast-paced group chat is to use the new message thread feature. Tap and hold the specific message you want to respond to, select “Reply,” then type your reply and send it. Your reply will start a new thread inside the chat, and everyone will know who’s replying to who.

8. Correct Siri’s Pronunciation

Siri is no fool, but she’s not foolproof either! If she pronounces a name or address incorrectly, you can teach her the right way to say it. Respond with “That’s not how you pronounce…” and Siri will ask for the correct pronunciation. Once you give it to her, she will repeat it back to you to confirm that she has it right.

Most people pronounce our last name Nystul as “Niss-tul” instead of “Nice-tul,” so it didn’t surprise me when that’s how Siri pronounced it as well. But once I learned that I could correct her, it was surprised by how quick and easy it was to do! (Though to be fair, “Nice-tul” technically isn’t even correct. A Norwegian would pronounce it closer to “Neu-stool,” but neither I nor Siri have the time to master Norwegian vowel sounds.)

9. Bring The Keyboard Closer

If you prefer to use your phone one-handed or are attempting to multi-task, you can bring the keyboard closer to your left or right palm by pressing down on the emoji button and selecting one of the keyboard buttons on either side. The keyboard will scoot over to one side of the screen and make all the keys easier to reach.

What’s the most useful tip or trick you’ve learned about your phone?