12 cool little iOS 16 features you probably missed but really should know
The WWDC keynote was nearly two hours packed with awesome new features for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, new Mac hardware, and even a very early sneak peek at next-generation CarPlay.
Despite the marathon keynote presentation that brought dozens of new features, there are so many changes in iOS 16 that quite a lot had to be left out. Some were covered in the iPadOS and macOS presentations–improvements to apps like Mail are coming to all devices–but here are 10 smaller iOS 16 details we think are worth pointing out.
Support for Switch controllers (and others)
iOS 16 officially includes support for multiple new Bluetooth game controllers, including Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons and Pro Controllers so you’ll have even more options when you play games. This support extends to tvOS and iPadOS, too.
Locked folders in Photos
As an extra privacy measure, the Hidden and Recently Deleted folders in Photos are locked by default now so someone won’t accidentally stumble upon them. You use your iPhone login credentials (Face ID, Touch ID, or passcode) to access them.
Photos duplicate detection
In the Photos app’s Albums view you’ll find a new Duplicates option in Utilities. It automatically finds identical images and lets you merge them, combining captions, keywords, and favorites into whichever duplicate image is of the highest quality. So now you can keep your photo library a little cleaner.
The notifications that come in on the iOS 16 lock screen can be customized.
Apple
Lock screen notification layouts
When Apple showed off its fancy new lock screen, it only demonstrated notifications arriving in a stack, but that isn’t the only option. You can set it to list view if you want to see them all covering up your fancy lock screen like before, or a single banner with a counter if you want to keep everything super tidy.
Web push notifications
During the keynote, Apple noted that Safari in macOS Ventura will support web push notifications. That’s coming to iOS and iPadOS as well, but not right away–Apple lists the feature as “coming in 2023” for its mobile OSes—which is probably a good thing to be honest.
More offline Siri functions
Speaking of Siri, if you have an iPhone 12 or later it will do even more offline than before. Most Home control functions, Intercom, and Voicemail functions will operate without sending anything to Apple. You obviously need a network connection to communicate with your HomeKit hub, for instance, but all processing stays on your iPhone and nothing goes beyond your local network.
Hang up with Siri
Speaking of Siri, you can finally hang up a phone call or FaceTime call with Siri. It’s kind of weird that it took this long. Sure, the other person will hear you say it, but so what?
You’ll be able to take better photos in iOS 16 without needing to upgrade your iPhone.
Better blurring on iPhone 13
If you have an iPhone 13 or iPhone 13 Pro, you’ll get better bokeh in a couple of noticeable ways. In Portrait shots, objects in the foreground–in front of the subject–will get a blurring effect. And in Cinematic mode videos, the depth-of-field effect has better accuracy around things like hair and glasses. And we’re still amazed at the on-demand cutouts it’s doing with lock screen photos.
Remove more Apple apps
Apple has allowed us to remove some of its pre-installed apps since iOS 10, and it’s adding three more in iOS 16: Find My, Clock, and Health. However, Apple notes that some built-in Find My features will still work and some Apple Watch features might be affected.
Haptic keyboard support
The built-in iOS 16 keyboard will now have an option for haptic feedback as you type, so it’ll feel a little more natural tapping the glass. Though sadly, it doesn’t appear to be coming to the iPad just yet.
iCloud+ improvements
The Hide My Email and custom email domain features of iCloud+ are getting a little more useful in iOS 16. Hide My Email is integrated directly into QuickType keyboard suggestions, so it should always be available in third‑party apps. And your custom domain can be shared with people outside your Family Sharing group. From the iCloud Mail settings you can purchase a new domain or enable catch‑all aliases right from iCloud Mail settings.
Memoji improvements
What can we say, we like Memoji. And they’re getting a number of meaningful improvements in iOS 16 (and iPadOS 16 and macOS 13). There are more sticker poses, and all the sticker poses can be used for your contact image. There are 17 new and updated hairstyles, more headwear, more noses, and more neutral lip colors. It should be easier than ever to make your Memoji match your look and your style.
