iPhone Life - Best Apps, Top Tips, Great Gear

Whether you're checking for software compatibility or trading in your old iMac, you need to know how to find your specific device information. In this article, we'll cover the easiest methods to identify your iMac (even if it is not working or you don't have it with you). To make the process easier, we've also included a list of all iMac versions. 

Master the Notes with This 2022 Guide Update

(Sponsored Post) By Olena Kagui on Wed, 08/10/2022

We've been busy at iPhone Life creating new guides and updating our existing ones. With all the ongoing changes to the latest iPhone operating system, we've been updating our guides with fresh steps, videos, and screenshots! The Notes app is a core app for iPhone users, and the 2022 Guide update is available to help you stay organized and experience a productivity boost. This updated in-depth guide is available exclusively to iPhone Life Subscribers later this month.

Voicemails are easy to delete in the Phone app, but deleted voicemails aren’t removed from your device completely. Deleting your first voicemail creates a folder of Deleted Messages just in case you accidentally got rid of a message or want to visit it later. Deleted Messages can be listened to, un-deleted, and permanently deleted with a Clear All. Here’s how to manage and clear your deleted voicemails.

Do you miss the days of carrying miscellaneous items and keys around your neck or at your belt with a lanyard? I remember being in middle school when that was what every self-respecting nerd carried with them. Truly though, it was the practical use of the item which made it such a hit. The Reelcase ($34.95) brings the classic lanyard idea and hides it with an iPhone case, giving you multiple ways to carry your device without using any hands.

Apple is really focused on improving the interface of the fourth-generation Apple TV, with the forthcoming tvOS 9.2 adding many great new App;e TV features. A beta version of 9.2 has been made available to developers, and they're sharing details of what we can expect. In an earlier post, I wrote about several new features that are coming: folders, support for Bluetooth keyboards, support for Live Photos, an improved app switcher, and Apple's Podcasts app. Last week a new beta version was released to developers that includes a key new feature everyone has been clamoring for: voice dictation in text fields.

Currently searching for apps entails the clumsy process of using the remote to select each letter, or using Apple's Remote app for the iPhone and iPad in conjunction with the Apple TV remote. The forthcoming software will let you dictate your search. The video below posted by 9To5Mac shows how it will work.

 

In addition, the voice dictation feature will be available to you when you enter your login credentials, according to a post on Macworld: "Voice dictation will allow you to speak your Apple ID information instead of swiping to find and tap each character." It's hard to imagine how this will work, given that login credentials are typically a mix of words and random characters, but I guess Siri will be able to recognize the difference.

By now, we’re all aware of the US court order for Apple to create a tool (which would essentially work as a Master Key) that allows the FBI to access information on the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone 5c. Apple has refused, and the company plans to make a formal appeal with top free speech lawyers in the next couple days. With the company’s refusal has come loads of support from other major tech companies, rights groups, and iPhone users while garnering criticism from Donald Trump. Meanwhile, cybersecurity legend John McAfee has said he and his team will hack the shooter’s iPhone for free, and it will only take them three weeks to do it.

When I graduated from high school, I was presented with a set of 10K gold Cross pens by my parents. This replaced a chrome set I had received in junior high school. For many, Cross was a symbol for writers. Over the years, I have collected many pens, but my Cross pens remain front-and-center, flanked by their cousins from Mont Blanc and Cartier. Today, I write on my iPad Air 2 more often than on paper. The closest pen, versus the best pen, usually suffices for the occasional check endorsement or tax note on a receipt. Like regular pens, I have collected dozens of styluses, from the passive type that drove the interfaces of the Sharp Zaurus and the Pocket PC, to the active type used to scrawl across the likes of the Microsoft Surface. 

How to Cancel Siri Commands

By Conner Carey

Apple’s AI, Siri, is constantly improving. You can use Siri to do more now than ever, including including playing albums, asking about sport scores, and turning on and off certain settings such as Low Power Mode or Bluetooth. However, sometimes you ask Siri to do something and change your mind or need to ask another question. For instance, if you ask Siri to set a reminder but realize you don’t need the reminder, it’s easy to cancel the command. Here’s how to cancel Siri commands.

What will they think of next? I saw the BLOCKS Customizable Dock Building Set for Apple Watch ($19.99) at the SwitchEasy booth at CES. This one surprised me, but I like it. SwitchEasy has basically combined a simple Apple Watch Charging cradle with Lego-compatible bricks. The idea is that you can create a truly unique stand for your Apple Watch, as long as you provide your own charger. The set includes 92 bricks (note that SwitchEasy doesn't use the word "Lego," but the company insists its bricks are compatible with the popular toy.) The BLOCKS works with both 38 mm and 42 mm Apple Watches. At under $20, the BLOCKS dock is an affordable, unique concept.

I don't know about you, but if I don't write down my appointments and activities, I'm sure to lose them in a deep, dark corner of my mind. To say I'm merely forgetful is an understatement. The Reminders app allows me to set reminders on iPhone based on the time, day, or location. For example, my iPhone can remind me to pick up some milk on the way home from work using the phone's GPS. If you use iCloud, your reminders can also be synced among all your devices. Here's how to set a reminder on iPhone X and earlier iPhones. We'll also cover how to set an alarm or due date reminder, how to add a location-based alert, and how to get reminders to pop up on your iPhone so you don't miss them.

There are certainly days where none of us like Facebook. Perhaps you’re not a fan a Twitter either, but you still want to stay in touch with friends or discover and connect with amazing people around the world. Well, as it turns out, there are a lot of alternative social networks you can try instead. If you’re sick of Facebook and planning not to go back, here’s five other social network alternatives.

Touch ID has seen some major improvements since the release of the iPhone 6s. It’s more accurate and works much more often than it used to. But now, I find Touch ID unlocks my iPhone before I have a chance to check the notification that has popped up. Or, if I’m driving and I just want to change the song from the Lock screen, sometimes Touch ID works too quickly and I end up unlocking my iPhone and having to take the extra step of opening the Music app. Well, here’s our trick to get around that.

The breakup is official and final, now it’s time to pick up the pieces, dust yourself off, and move on. But, of course, that’s easier said than done. It took me years to get over my first real heartbreak and parting ways is never fun. However, there are apps to help you make the transition. From removing traces of their existence from your Facebook and preventing drunk dial relapses to working through the emotional minefield, here’s three apps to make letting go a little bit easier.

Don't forget to enter this weekend's Giveaway Contest! 

Here's how it works: Every other weekend we raffle off tons of great apps and accessories for FREE then announce the winners through iphonelife.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. To enter, go to iPhoneLife.com/giveaways. If you win an app, we will email you the promo code. If you win an accessory, we will ask you for your mailing address.

Yesterday, I reported on the Letter to Customers Apple CEO, Tim Cook released following a US Federal Judge’s order for the company to help the FBI break into the San Bernardino Shooter’s iPhone. A fellow writer here at iPhone Life wrote an opinion piece detailing how Apple could do this for a single iPhone, but the issue extends beyond a single instance. Today multiple major Rights Groups have released statements in solidarity with Apple’s refusal. Ultimately this issue is important, because it creates a precedent for privacy moving forward.

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