The iPhone is a smartphone from Apple that runs the iOS mobile operating system. Between its apps, communication features, the camera, mobile internet access, and other functionalities, the iPhone has quickly become an integral part of many peoples tech lives.
You can delete directions that you recently viewed. There are two ways to do it: delete a single item, or delete all recent directions. Both are in Recents, in the card in the Maps app on your iPhone, and the list only keeps what you want.
In the Home app, you can create scenes that allow you to control multiple accessories at once. For example, you might define a “Reading” scene that adjusts the lights, plays soft music on HomePod, closes the drapes, and adjusts the thermostat.
The first accessory you add decides which room the scene belongs to. So if you start with your bedroom lamp, the scene is assigned to your bedroom. Each accessory can then be set to the state you want when you run the scene.
The first accessory you select determines the room the scene is assigned to. If you first select your bedroom lamp, for example, the scene is assigned to your bedroom.
For example, for a Reading scene, you could set the bedroom lights to 100 percent, choose a low volume for the HomePod, and set the thermostat to 68 degrees.
Here’s how to use your scenes once they’re set up:
If you’ve decided not to show the scene on the Home tab, tap the More button, choose the room the scene is assigned to, then tap the scene.
CarPlay works with your vehicle’s built-in controls, for example, a touchscreen, a rotary knob, or a touchpad. To learn how to operate your display, see the owner’s guide that came with your vehicle.
With those controls, you can open apps, move between CarPlay Dashboard and CarPlay Home, get back to your vehicle’s own Home Screen, and scroll quickly through long lists. You can also use Siri to control CarPlay with your voice instead.
To go to CarPlay Home, tap the Home button on the touchscreen, or turn the rotary knob to select the Home button, then press the knob.
To go to CarPlay Dashboard, tap the Dashboard button, or turn the rotary knob to select the Dashboard button, then press the knob.
Siri allows you to control CarPlay using your voice instead of your vehicle’s built-in controls.
Siri AI (Beta)* is your conversational AI assistant with entirely new capabilities that you can use in CarPlay. Use the Siri AI CarPlay app to get information, resume your prior conversations, and more.
Siri AI is available in beta on iOS 27 or later on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 model or later with Siri and device language set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not initially be available in the EU on iOS. Usage limits may apply.
Siri is designed to protect your information, and you can choose what you share.
*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions.
Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts.
Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.
When a friend shares their location with you, you can use the Find My app to locate them on a map.
When your friend can’t be located, “No location found” appears below their name, and if you aren’t following them, you see “Can see your location” instead. You can also contact a friend, get directions to them, and set a label for a location.
Here’s how to locate a friend in Find My on iPhone.
Note: Want to know how far away your friends are? Turn on Precise Location for the Find My app.
The Maps app can give you directions to a friend’s current location.
To make a friend’s current location more meaningful, you can give it a label, like Home or Work. When they’re at that location, the label appears below their name.
To add a new label, tap Add Custom Label, enter a name, then tap Done.
Favorite friends are marked with a star and appear at the top of the People list.
To remove a friend from your Favorites, swipe left and tap the star, or tap the friend, tap the More button, then tap “Remove from Favorites.”
Apple News+ subscribers can solve daily Emoji Game puzzles by completing words and phrases with emoji. The object is to complete several phrases with as few moves as possible, and each emoji can be read directly, through association, or in combination with others. Trying an answer or expanding a clue counts as a move.
Letters relating to an emoji may appear nonconsecutively in an answer, and a group of emoji is interpreted as a whole. If you reveal the answers you didn’t find, the puzzle doesn’t count in your Scoreboard stats and streaks.
Note: Apple News, Apple News+, and puzzles aren’t available in all countries or regions.
Quick tip: For a quick Emoji Game tutorial, tap the More button and tap How to Play. You can also choose More Puzzles to open the Emoji Game feed.
You can use the Freeform app to create boards for brainstorming and collaborating. For example, propose a trip with friends and let everyone take part in the planning, adding text, sticky notes, photos, videos, and other types of files as you go.
There’s no page to fill. The canvas expands as you add content, so you’re never constrained by space limits or page formatting, and your board is saved automatically as you work.
Here’s how to create a Freeform board on iPhone.
If you don’t see the New Board button, tap the Back button.
Tip: To magnify more precisely, tap the More button, tap View Options, then tap a percent.
To start a new Freeform board, you can use content from another supported app, such as Safari, Notes, Maps, Photos, Files, and more.
To share just one part of a file to a board (rather than the entire webpage or note), select what you want to share. If your selection includes text, only the text is shared.
In the board, you’ll see either the item or a link.
Note: Check the Invitations section on the Shared Boards screen for any collaborations you get invited to in the Messages app. They stay there until you accept them.
If you’re in a board, tap the Back button to browse All Boards.
Or touch and hold the thumbnail or name of the board, then tap Duplicate.
Note: If you duplicate a shared board, the copy isn’t shared.
You can use StandBy to turn your iPhone into a bedside clock, a photo frame, a display for viewing widgets or Live Activities in full screen, and more.
It starts when iPhone is charging and lying on its side, without moving. You need StandBy turned on in Settings first, and you can set display preferences for when StandBy is on.
Here’s how to use StandBy to view information at a distance while iPhone is charging.
When StandBy has Night Mode turned on, the screen adapts to low ambient light at night and shows items with a red tint, so it’s not intrusive while you’re sleeping.
With the Always-On display (on supported models), StandBy stays on to show useful information. For all other iPhone models, it’s easy to activate StandBy any time by either tapping the screen, gently nudging the table your iPhone is on, or using Siri.
Siri: Activate Siri, then tell Siri to turn StandBy on or off.
StandBy remembers your preferred view, like a clock, photos, or widgets, for each location where you charge iPhone with MagSafe. That means it can show family photos in the kitchen and an alarm clock at your bedside, for example.
While StandBy is on, you decide how long your iPhone display stays on.
Save interesting items in your Reading List so you can revisit them later. You can even save the items in your Reading List and read them when you’re not connected to the internet.
You don’t even have to open a page to save it, because you can add a linked webpage to your Reading List straight from the link. You can also automatically save all Reading List items to iCloud for offline reading.
Quick tip: You can add a linked webpage without opening it: Just touch and hold the link and tap Add to Reading List.
Quick tip: With Apple Intelligence, bookmarks and items you add to your Reading List are automatically organized into suggested topics if three or more of them are related. Tap a topic to view thumbnails, then tap a thumbnail to open it. To delete an item from your Reading List, swipe left on the item. Note: Apple Intelligence on iOS 27 or later is available on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 model or later. Apple Intelligence is not available in all languages or regions. Usage limits may apply.*
*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.
Your iPhone needs a SIM to connect to a cellular network. A physical SIM is a small card you insert into your device, and an eSIM is a digital SIM built into your device, with no card required. Not all options are available on all models or in all countries and regions, and on iPhone 14 and later, some models only use eSIM.
Contact your carrier to get a SIM and set up cellular service. You can also convert a physical SIM to an eSIM, and lock your SIM card.
Supported iPhone models can store an eSIM from your carrier digitally. If your carrier supports eSIM Carrier Activation or eSIM Quick Transfer, you can activate your eSIM during setup by turning on your iPhone and following the instructions.
Quick tip: Your carrier can tell you whether to expect a notification or a QR code, or another method entirely. So if you’re not sure which method to use, contact them.
If you already completed setup, do the following:
Note: After your phone number is transferred to your new iPhone, it stops working on your previous iPhone.
A nano-SIM card can come from a carrier, or you can move the one from your previous iPhone.
Note: Physical SIM isn’t supported on all models.
Note: The shape and orientation of the SIM tray depend on the iPhone model and your country or region.
WARNING: Never try to guess a SIM PIN. An incorrect guess can permanently lock your SIM, and you won’t be able to make phone calls or use cellular data through your carrier until you get a new SIM.
Does your carrier support it? Then, on a supported iPhone model, you can convert a physical SIM to an eSIM.
Note: Your physical SIM stops working after you convert it to an eSIM.
To prevent others from using a SIM card your device uses for phone calls or cellular data, lock it with a personal identification number (PIN). The card then locks automatically every time you restart your device or remove the SIM card. You’ll have to enter your PIN.
Important: The availability of cellular capabilities depends on the wireless network, your iPhone model, and your location.
Consider applicable data, voice, and roaming charges when managing your cellular plans, especially when you travel with iPhone.
Some carriers let you unlock iPhone for use with another carrier (additional fees may apply). Contact your carrier for authorization and setup information.
You can search all your Freeform boards for text in handwriting, sticky notes, text boxes, shapes, and filenames. You can search within a board, or search all boards from the All Boards screen, and any board that contains the text appears in the search results.
Any board that contains the text appears in the search results. (If you’re in a board, tap the Back button to access Search in All Boards.)
