How-To

In the 86th episode, the iPhone Life team tells you everything you need to know about Apple's iOS 12 Public Beta program and whether or not you should join it. Listen is as Donna walks you through the process of preparing your device and signing up, and learn the reasons why David is waiting for the official release and and why Sarah says the Beta is worth going for.

One of my very favorite iPhone features is a simple one, the camera! It's convenient and fun to have a camera in my pocket all the time, and to be able edit my photos right on my iPhone for the best results. Recently I learned that it's possible to use compatible third-party camera and photo-editing apps as an extension, right from my Photos app. And while many of the best photo-editing apps cost money, there are lots of free photo-editor apps with Photos extensions to choose from as well. Let's get started learning how to enable a third-part photo-editor app extension, so you can have as much fun with iPhone photography as I am. 

If you've ever wondered how to download videos or music from YouTube and been frustrated that you can't, there's a fix for that. Better yet, it's a legal one, and it doesn't violate the YouTube terms of service. I'm talking of course about YouTube Premium (formerly called YouTube Red), a paid membership that allows you unlimited access to commercial-free videos, background play to keep your tunes going even when you're using other apps or your screen is off, and the ability to download songs and videos to watch on your iPhone even when you're offline. Let's go over the details of YouTube's premium service, so you can decide if this is the way to save YouTube videos you've been looking for. 

Did you know that you can customize how you'd like your AirPod's settings to work? Using the iPhone paired with your AirPods, you can decide which functions you'd like to engage when you double tap your right or left AirPod. Let's get started learning how to adjust your AirPod's features with your iPhone! 

I appreciate a good podcast though I have never cared for the built-in Podcast app on my iPhone. Yet it wasn’t until very recently that I decided to finally look for a solid replacement. There are various options in the App Store; you can certainly try out your fair share of podcast apps and see which you like the best. But my choice was surprisingly easy to make: iCatcher Podcast Player is a highly customizable podcast app that makes discovering new podcasts fun and listening to those you already love easy. Learn more on what it does and why we love it below.

I love using GIFs and stickers in my messages to friends and family. A picture says a thousand words, after all, and a GIF can succinctly and humorously summarize an entire mood or event. Lately, though, I've noticed that the app switcher at the bottom of my messages is getting cluttered with icons that I never added. This overabundance has made me want to pare down my selection, so I'm not forever scrolling back and forth searching for my favorites. Let's get started learning how to add and remove apps from Messages on the iPhone, so we can have just the ones we need and want available for our texts. 

One aspect of iOS 12 that I can't wait to try out when the new operating system is released in September, is a fun new feature called Memojis. Memojis allow you to create your own Animoji, but not just any Animoji, an Animoji of yourself or any character you can dream up. Once you've created your Memoji, you can use it in FaceTime or Messages. You can create as many custom Animojis as you want, some for family, some for friends, and you can customize their features, hairstyles, accessories, and much more. Of existing iPhone models, Memojis can only be created on the iPhone X running iOS 12 since this is the only version of the iPhone to incorporate the TruDepth camera; but the new crop of iPhones, and possibly also the new iPads coming this fall will also be able to create and use Memoji. If you don't have an iPhone X and won't be purchasing one of the new iPads or iPhones, you'll still be able to receive Animoji and Memoji messages, although you won't be able to create them. If you still want some of the fun of custom Memojis, check out this article about a free emoji app. Let's go over how Memojis work, so you can be ready to make your own avatars once you update your iPhone to iOS 12.  

The Tour de France, a summer tradition since 1903 (except for the years during WWI and WWII,) is almost upon us again. The 2018 Tour de France runs from Saturday, July 7, through Sunday, July 29, and will cover 3,351 kilometers broken up into 21 stages. Le Tour fans are preparing to watch the annual bike race, and many are wondering how they can watch their favorite teams live, without cable, on their Apple TVs. To catch all the coverage we're hoping for, we'll need to know the Tour de France schedule, who's providing Tour de France TV coverage, and which streaming providers offer that network. Let's get started collecting all the information we need so we're ready for Tour de France 2018! 

Using two-factor authentication helps ensure that the accounts associated with your Apple ID are safe. Even if someone has your login name and password, they won't be able to access your accounts without a verification code from a trusted phone number or one of your trusted devices. Once you verify a new device, you won't need to use two-factor authentication again unless you sign out of it completely, erase your device, or change your password. Similarly, when signing in on the web, you can choose to trust that browser so that you don't have to go through the verification process each time you sign into your account on your computer. Let's go over the steps of signing in to a new device or iCloud account with two-factor authentication.

With so many websites requiring usernames and passwords, and most of us using more than one device to accomplish tasks throughout the day, it can be difficult to keep track of all our accounts and login information. And while there are plenty of apps that can do this for you, your iPhone comes with this service built in. iCloud Keychain encrypts, stores, and keeps up to date credit card information, WiFi network information, and usernames and passwords for internet accounts as well as your iOS Mail, Messages, Contacts, and Calendar apps across all your Apple devices on which you've turned on iCloud Keychain. Enabling your iCloud Keychain is a great way to keep yourself organized, so let’s get started learning how to enable it on your iPhone. 

When you have thousands of photos, there’s no way you’re going to look through them to try and spot the duplicates. There’s also the matter of exact versus similar duplicates—it would be a pain in the ass to try and sort that out manually. Well, a question in the iPhone Life Facebook group about this very topic sent me on a search for the best app for easily removing duplicate photos. And I do believe I’ve found it: Remo Duplicate Photos Remover on the iPhone is a free app that scans all of your photos, presenting you with a quick look at all of the duplicates. Then the app makes it easy for you to quickly remove the photos you don’t want to keep. Learn more on what this app does and why we love it below.

Instagram account holders have been hit with a wave of spam lately, and from a different source than many have previously experienced. I'm talking about the auto-like or auto-follow phenomenon, where Instagrammers suddenly notice they're following unfamiliar accounts. How does this happen? Insta-following seems to happen when Instagram apps are granted more access to our accounts than they should have. Let's learn how to revoke permissions from spammy apps so we can reclaim our iPhone's Instagram feeds.

You can't effectively use an iPhone without an Apple ID. It used to be, in the pre-family sharing days, that family members sometimes shared an Apple ID; this created all kinds of complications. If you want to buy apps in the App Store, sign up for Apple Music or an iTunes account, or use iCloud, iMessage, or FaceTime, you'll need your own Apple ID first. Once you've created your Apple ID, you can use it for all of the purchases, services, and accounts I mentioned before; it's really nice not to have multiple login names and passwords to remember. Signing up for an Apple ID is free and easy to do; let's get started learning how to sign up for a new Apple ID on your iPhone. 

Facebook recently announced a new facial recognition feature that informs account holders when their image appears in other people's photos and videos, then allows them to tag themselves. In addition, the feature warns Facebook users when their picture is used to open another account. While some Facebook users find the facial recognition feature innocuous, or even helpful, others prefer to steer clear of what they perceive as an invasion of privacy. For those of you who would like to turn off facial recognition on Facebook, read on to learn how to do so on your iPhone.  

iOS 11.4 is here, and one of the most long-awaited features included is the ability to store photos and other message attachments in iCloud and sync them across devices. This means, of course, that when you delete a message or attachment it will now be deleted on every iPhone, iPad, or Mac you own (previously, you had to delete the message individually on each device); and when you purchase a new device, all your messages will be there as soon as you sign in to the device. This new capability will offer not only convenience, but also save space on your iPhone and iPad while preserving your privacy with end-to-end encryption. Let's learn more about how messages in iCloud works and what you need to do to use this feature, and how to turn on messages in iCloud, as well. 

Here's a time-saving feature to boost your productivity; you can open the Notes app directly from the Lock Screen of your iPhone. Lock Screen Notes are helpful for quickly marking down all the notes, checklists, links, and sketches that you want to have close at hand, without having to unlock your device. Let's get started learning how to add Lock-Screen notes to your iPhone so you can master this new feature. 

Big Apple news, everyone!  iOS 11.4 was just released, and it's bringing some exciting, audio-based features, including AirPlay 2. This version of AirPlay makes it possible to wirelessly send content from any Apple device that's compatible with iOS 11.4 to an Apple TV or HomePod or other AirPlay 2-enabled speaker. This capability makes multi-room streaming possible at last, with the ability to sync and control multiple speakers throughout the home. AirPlay 2 features can be operated from your iPhone or iPad's Control Center, Lock Screen, or AirPlay controls within apps. Siri can also adjust and control AirPlay-enabled speakers for you, all you have to do is ask her using your HomePod, iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV. In addition to multi-speaker syncing and streaming, AirPlay 2 offers the opportunity for Apple Music subscribers to ask Siri for one song or playlist in one room, a different one in another, and so on with all the synced speakers in the house. Let's learn more about iOS 11.4, AirPlay 2, and how to use Apple's latest software update with your iPhone, HomePod, and more. 

Touch ID and Face ID are great iPhone security features, but if you want the best protection for your device, you need an iPhone passcode. Not too long ago, Apple changed from having a four-digit code as the default an even harder to crack, six-digit code as the default. Better yet, you can set an alphanumeric code that's six digits or longer as your iPhone passcode. If you're looking for the best Lock Screen security code possible, an alphanumeric code is your best bet. Let's get started learning how to set a new passcode on your iPhone now. 

How much data does Snapchat use on an iPhone is an important question to answer if you have a limited data plan. If you often enjoy using Snapchat filters, posting stories, and sharing snaps with friends, you may find yourself wondering, "Does Snapchat use data? And if it does, how much data does Snapchat use?" Remember, if you’re sending photos, videos, and text messages or sharing your location over Wi-Fi, there’s no reason to be concerned over Snapchat data usage. But if you are doing these things using cellular data, you may be wondering how to limit Snapchat data usage. Let’s jump in: Here’s how to find out the answer to the question how much data does Snapchat use on your iPhone and what to do about it.