iOS 16 was recently released for iPhone 8 and newer models. It has been reported that some features are exclusive to certain models like the newly-launched iPhone 14 Pro and improved Cinematic Mode on iPhones 14 Pro Max. While the latest iteration is packed with new features — from privacy, security to accessibility — we’ve listed a few things that stand out. These features are available for all iPhone models that support the new iOS 16 software.
1. Lock screen
Perhaps the most talked about and most notable feature of iOS 16 is the new lock screen. You can now customize the font, color and placement of elements on the lock screen. Want to jazz up your lock screen? Change the font style from the many available color choices and customize the date format as well as the time.
Photo subjects are dynamically displayed in front of the time, and you can also select widgets like weather, calendar events, time zone, and battery level to display on the lock screen.
2. Focus mode
Introduced in iOS 15, Focus mode in iOS 16 has been improved. First, Focus Mode is also built into the lock screen with iOS 16 so you can now activate Focus Mode by swiping. You can also customize it with lock screen wallpapers and/or widgets to your liking. Along with the lock screen, Focus Mode also gets deep integration with other apps like Calendar, Mail, Messages and Safari. According to the company, this functionality will be extended to third party apps as well.
“Set boundaries in Apple apps like Calendar, Mail, Messages, and Safari for each focus you enable. Automatically turn on focus at a set time or location or when using a specific app,” Apple says,
3. Message
If you are an iPhone user, you know how important the Messages app is. Along with all the features you’ve come to love in Messages, Apple is now offering more to make the experience even better. Now you can edit a message up to 15 minutes after sending, and recipients will be able to see a record of edits made to the message.
Other features seem to have taken a lot from mail services. Sent a message to the wrong contact? Don’t worry, as you will now have 2 minutes to ‘unsend’ it. You can also mark messages as unread. This feature is probably for those who are busy and want to respond to texts later when they have time. Last but not least, you can also recover recently deleted messages (up to 30 days after they were deleted).
4. Passkeys
One of the most futuristic steps Apple has taken in the area of user privacy and security is the introduction of Passkeys. Passkeys replace passwords. You can sign in to websites or apps on other devices, including non-Apple devices, with a saved passkey by scanning a QR code with iPhone and using Face ID or Touch ID for authentication.
Passkeys are end-to-end encrypted and synced to your Apple devices via iCloud Keychain. They “never leave your device and are specific to the site you created them on”, and the private key is never placed on a web server.
5. Direct text
The Live Text in Video feature is now interactive. You can now pause the video and perform tasks like copy and paste, lookup and translate. Live Text works in Photos, Quick Look, Safari, and more. You can track flights or shipments, translate foreign languages, convert currencies and more. In addition, the Live Text gamut has now been expanded by adding support for Japanese, Korean, and Ukrainian text.
The iOS 16 update brings a lot more than what we mentioned above. Here are some other features you can look for. An iCloud shared photo library that allows users to share photos with up to five other users. The Mail app is getting a scheduling feature for emails and a new way to dictate in iOS 16 with voice and keyboard support for entering and editing text. Automatic punctuation inserts commas, periods, emojis, and question marks as you tell them.
iCloud Shared Photo Library is coming later this year, and an updated Apple CarPlay is coming in 2023.
