In addition to writing for iPhone Life, I am a musician, DJ, and content creator. In 2024, the world of music and audio gear is brimming with cutting-edge innovations and thoughtfully designed equipment that caters to both audiophiles and creators alike. There’s been a ton of gear released recently that’s gotten me really excited to create and experience music in new ways. The boundaries of technology are always being expanded, combining superior audio quality while still being accessible to a wide range of people. Hopefully this list of my favorite music and audio gear helps elevate your creative potential and enjoyment of sound!

Design changes to frequently used apps are not always well received, and the iOS 18 Photos app updates have been heavily criticized. What many don’t realize is that you can now completely customize the Photos app. While you cannot get the old app back, you can hide any features you don’t use, highlight your favorites, and reorder everything in a way that works best for you.

Baby on the way? Read our 2024 Buyer's Guide for Baby Gear to learn about the latest, greatest smart gear for new parents! You're sure to find something for your own nursery, or the perfect baby shower gift.

Apple Intelligence has the power to summarize notifications, messages, emails, and more. This makes it easy for you to get the most important information at a glance. Find out how to enable iOS 18’s summary feature in the Mail app.

The Mail app on your iPhone is about to get a lot more useful, thanks to mail categories. Many other email apps have had features like this for a long time, but now the Mail app finally allows you to filter your emails with different categories. Find how the new Mail app in iOS 18 works.

In the fall of 2024, Apple introduced a feature that lets users easily hide apps on iPhones running iOS 18 and later. One downside is that not all apps can be hidden. Another is that all your hidden apps go to a locked Hidden folder in the App Library.

I will be the first to admit that I am not an expert linguist. I was a Russian major in college and even spent a few months in St. Petersburg (the one in Russia), but I graduated college in 2011. By 2022, I had forgotten almost everything I spent four long years learning. And back when I was learning Russian, I had the benefit of long-tenured professors teaching clueless college students all six Russian cases. I’m not a natural language learner, either! My father took five years to graduate college because he couldn’t get through his German requirement, and I inherited those skills.

The iPhone camera can take breathtaking photos. But as your digital photo storage fills up, it can be easy to forget or lose some of those captured memories. Outside of posting them on social media or printing them out for an old-school photo album, there are many surprisingly fun ways to enjoy your favorite photos on a more regular basis.