Latest Apple Tech Blogs
iOS 18 Public Beta 1: The Features That Could Land on Your iPhone This Year
Developers and beta testers can try these features now before Apple releases its next major iPhone update later this year.
Customizable home and lock screens
While you’ve been able to customize your iPhone’s home and lock screens with widgets and different backgrounds, iOS 18 apple updates will let you customize your home screen’s apps and layout, as well as your phone’s lock screen functions.
During WWDC, Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, showed how iOS 18 apple updates lets you arrange your iPhone’s apps and widgets on your home screen however you want. Previously, these icons would fill your home screen from top to bottom, sometimes obstructing backgrounds you might like. But iOS 18 should let you arrange your icons around your background or in any way you want — something Android has offered for many years.
You can also easily customize the appearance of your app’s icons. You can give your icons a dark mode filter, or tint your icons to match your wallpaper.
Federighi also said iOS 18 will let you swap out the camera and flashlight functions on your iPhone’s lock screen. That way you aren’t accidentally turning on your iPhone’s flashlight on while putting it in your pocket — but you might open another app instead.
Updated Control Center
Apple also announced that iOS 18 apple updates your iPhone’s Control Center. With the next operating system, you’ll be able to access more controls for things, like whatever music you’re listening to and specific apps. You can also change which apps you see, as well as their size, so you have quicker access to the buttons you use more often.
Messages gets an upgrade
Your iPhone’s Messages app will also get an update with iOS 18. With the next operating system, you’ll be able to schedule messages to send later, react to messages with more Tapbacks and format messages and specific words in your messages with text effects. So if you want to emphasize something in a text, you can bold it, underline or use other effects to get your point across.
The next OS will also bring Messages via satellite to many iPhones. The feature works similar to Apple’s Emergency SOS via satellite feature introduced on the iPhone 14 and 15 series. But while Emergency SOS is for making an emergency call even if you don’t have a signal, Messages via satellite will let you send a message to anyone, even without a signal. So you’ll be able to message your spouse or parents to let them know how your camping trip is going.
Apple also briefly mentioned it is bringing RCS — rich communication support — to Messages.
Lock and hide certain apps
Letting someone borrow your iPhone can be a nerve-wracking experience, especially if you don’t want them to see or access certain apps. But iOS 18 apple updates will allow you to lock and hide apps.
If you lock an app, it will then require your Face ID or passcode to unlock and access it. And if you just don’t want someone to know you have a certain app on your iPhone, you can stash it in a Hidden apps folder in your App Library. This is similar to removing apps from your home screen without deleting them from your iPhone, but it arranges all your hidden apps in one place.
Redesigned Photos app
It can be fun to look at memories in your Photos app, but navigating through the app can be challenging if you take a lot of photos. So Apple announced iOS 18 will apple updates redesign your iPhone’s Photos app.
The redesign should make it easier to find specific photos by organizing your photos in more ways, like month and year. Photos will also be organized by theme, so if you’re looking for photos from a trip, you should be able to find them faster.
The updated Photos app in iOS 18 will also let you filter out receipts and screenshots so they don’t clog up your Library.
New password manager app
Apple is turning its password keychain feature into a full-blown app called Passwords. According to Apple, Passwords safely stores all your credentials in one place. It can also sync your passwords across your Apple devices. That way if you change your Netflix password on one device but not on another, the password will follow you so you don’t forget it.
Apple Intelligence for Siri and more — on certain iPhones
Apple announced that it’s rolling out Apple Intelligence, its spin on generative AI, in iOS 18 apple updates. But on Apple’s website, the tech giant said these improvements will be available only on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max for now.