10 actually useful iPhone tips in 2020

iPhone tips in 2020

In January of last year, we shared a well-received video walkthrough which covered more than two dozen iPhone tips that the iDownloadBlog editors deemed actually useful. Following that post, our video editor Harris Craycraft has been dutifully curating and editing these tips to better reflect the new iPhone features that arrived last fall with the iOS 13 update.

Video: 10 useful iPhone tips in 2020

With our further ado, here are ten new tips for your iPhone and iOS 13 in 2020.

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Didn’t have time to sit through Harris’ six-minute video? If so, then be sure to check out the following laundry list of all the iPhone tips the video covers.

And here are the actual tips

  1. Calendar 1-minute increments: When creating an event, double-tap the spinning time selector to switch between the default 5-minute granularity and the hidden 1-minute increment.
  2. 123 key gliding: If you tap and hold the 123 button on the stock iOS keyboard, don’t let go immediately: instead, slide the finger across the keyboard to the key that you want, then let go. The selected key is entered and the keyboard goes back to its normal layout, saving you taps.
  3. Two-finger selection: In list-based apps like Messages, Mail, Notes and Files, you can enter multi-item selection mode (Edit mode) by tapping with two fingers (or pinching out, as Harris puts it), then invoke a two-finger slide gesture in order to select multiple lines at once.
  4. Tapback: In Messages, tap and hold or double-tap a bubble to access quick reactions, like a heart, thumbs up and down symbols, laughter, exclamation point and question mark.
  5. Moving Home screen apps faster: Instead of dragging a Home screen icon to the side of the screen to advance to the next page, simply hold it with one finger and swipe between the Home screens with another finger to move the selected app where you want faster.
  6. Moving apps in bulk: Upon entering icon jiggling mode, tap and hold a Home screen icon, then tap other icons to collect them into a bundle. This lets you move multiple icons in bulk.
  7. Multi-touch app switcher: You can force-close multiple apps in the iOS app switcher by swiping up on their thumbnails with multiple fingers.
  8. Swipe-to-indent in Notes: If you’re in a numbered list in Notes, swipe with a finger left or right to decrease or increase the indent. This is a great way to turn a line into a toggle.
  9. Rearranging Wallet cards: Tap and hold a card in Wallet, then drag it where you want it to be: i.e. move that Apple Cash Card to the top of the list to make it your default.
  10. Timer auto-stop audio: In the Timer section of the Clock app, tap the option When Timer Ends and then select the Stop Playing action from the popup menu to have the alarm stop playing audio (such as your favorite playlist) when the timer goes off (without playing the loud alarm sound). This is especially useful as a way to limit your device usage: set a desired alarm time with the Stop Playing option and the device will automatically lock when your run time has expired, requiring you to enter your passcode before you can use it again.

Harris was putting together this video when Apple was still testing iOS and iPadOS 13.4 with developers and beta testers so that’s why it doesn’t cover any specific iOS 13.4 tips.

For that, you may want to check out our dedicated tutorial outlining all the new iPhone and iPad features in the iOS 13.4 and iPadOS 13.4 updates, and explaining how to use them.

Your favorite picks

How do you like our selection of new iPhone tips in 2020?

Do you have any favorites, and which ones would they be? Be sure to let us know about any tips that are new for you in the commenting section down below.