I woke up yesterday morning, grabbed my iPhone off charge, and immediately felt a wave of annoyance. I had a full day ahead, but my phone screen was sitting at a frustratingly specific 80% charge.

At first, I assumed my charging cable was loose, or on its last legs. But after purchasing a replacement and experiencing the same issue, I realized it wasn't a hardware failure — my phone was doing this on purpose.

It turns out iOS includes a battery setting designed to protect your device’s long-term health. While preventing chemical wear on lithium-ion batteries is great in theory, it’s a nightmare when you actually need full charge to get through the day.

Fortunately, if your iPhone is holding back on battery life, there is a quick fix to get back to 100%.

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Google Messages waited far too long to join the personalization party. iMessage and apps like Whatsapp have long offered custom background, while Android's primary texting app kept users locked into plain designs.

That changed recently with the arrival of dedicated chat themes. You can now abandon the default look, swap out boring backdrops for vibrant wallpapers, and give every group chat or contact its own distinct personality.

Interestingly, these changes are only visible to you, so you can go as bold as you like without affecting anyone else's view.

What you need to change your background

Custom themes are built into recent versions of Google Messages, so if your app updated recently, you may already have the feature waiting for you.

However, if you open a chat and do not see the theme settings yet, you simply need to update the app through the Google Play Store.

Open the store, tap your profile icon in the top-right corner, select Manage apps & device, and install any pending updates for Google Messages. Chat themes are available on both standard releases and beta builds.

You also need to make sure Rich Communication Services are active, as custom themes rely on RCS technology. Open Google Messages, tap your profile icon, navigate to Messages settings, and select RCS chats to confirm that the feature is toggled on.

Find the chat theme menu

Opening the theme customization menu takes only three quick taps from inside any conversation thread.

First, open Google Messages and select the specific text thread you want to design. Next, tap the three vertical dots located in the top-right corner of the screen and select Chat theme from the dropdown list to open the visual design editor.

Pick your chat colors and backgrounds

The first customization option is chat colors. By default, your color matches your system accent color, but you can choose from eight additional styles. Each color option changes your conversation background, chat bubbles, and interface elements like the voice recorder button.

Wallpapers offer even more personalization. Google provides pre-selected images organized by category — Animals, Architecture, Landscapes, Space, and others. If these don't appeal to you, tap Choose a photo to select any image from your phone or Google Photos.

What feature are you waiting for next? Now that Google has finally delivered custom chat themes, what should the next feature drop be? Drop your thoughts in the comments below.

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Your mobile carrier collects location data constantly. It's part of how cellular networks operate. But you actually have more control over what gets shared than you might realize.

Apple built simple privacy settings into iOS specifically for this reason. Most people never find them. I discovered this setting and immediately felt more in control of my personal data.

You can restrict your carrier’s location tracking in under a minute without losing calls or texts. Here's how to do the same thing on your iPhone.

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When that dreaded "Storage Almost Full" warning pops up, most of us panic-delete apps or scramble to erase our favorite memories. We assume our devices are bloated simply because we take too many photos or record too many long videos.

However, managing phone capacity is rarely as simple as wiping out your camera roll, and blindly deleting items often fails to free up the space you actually need.

A recent poll of Tom's Guide readers reveals a surprising story about how our devices actually fill up: we are almost evenly divided on what causes the issue.

While 42% of voters blame thousands of photos they refuse to delete, an almost identical 41% are losing space to hidden app cache accumulating in the background.

Meanwhile, forgotten downloads and old games quietly consume the remaining storage. You do not need a brand-new phone with extra gigabytes to solve this problem. You just need to tackle these four storage traps in order. Here's how to do it.

How to reclaim your phone's storage

Protect your iPhone

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I’ve always found creating calendar events to be a bit of a chore. Tap the plus icon, fill in the title, tap another field for time, another for location, add invitees, confirm. It's five separate actions for something that should be simple. iOS 27 changes this completely.

Smart Event Details lets you type events the way you actually think about them. You write naturally and Apple Intelligence automatically fills in title, time, location, and invitees. It sounds small, but it's genuinely transformative for how you use Calendar.

How to create smart Calendar events

Open Calendar and tap the plus icon to create a new event. Instead of filling separate fields, type naturally in whatever way makes sense to you.

'Coffee with Sarah at Starbucks downtown Thursday at 5 PM' works. So does 'Meeting with the design team tomorrow morning at 9.' Or 'Birthday dinner at Mario's Italian restaurant Saturday 7 PM with Mom and Dad.'

Apple Intelligence reads what you typed and automatically extracts the event title, date, time, location, and invitees. Everything populates correctly. Review the details and tap Save.

The same natural language feature also works in Reminders: open the app, tap the plus icon, and type your reminder. Apple Intelligence creates the reminder with the correct date and time without you needing to tap separate fields.

Turn it off if you prefer the old way

If you prefer manually filling in each field the traditional way, you can disable it. Go to Settings, Apps, Calendar and toggle off Smart Event Details.

The feature disappears and Calendar goes back to the old interface. You can re-enable it anytime. I'd be surprised if you'd want to turn this off, though. The time saving speaks for itself.

What’s the one feature Apple Calendar is still missing? Drop your wishlist in the comments below!

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Shortly after installing iOS 27, I ran into an unexpected issue with FaceTime: mid-conversation, my video feed would blur without warning, accompanied by new safety prompts.

Apple upgraded its automated content filters with this update, but the system is overzealous — frequently mistaking dim lighting, harmless shadows, or a pet on your lap for explicit material.

If you are experiencing these same disruptions on your calls, here is the exact method I used to adjust the settings and restore clear, uninterrupted video.

When a good safety feature goes wrong

Apple’s expanded safety controls represent a major leap forward for digital protection. Designed to safeguard children and shield users from unwanted exposure, the system uses on-device machine learning to flag explicit photos and videos.

In practice, however, this execution can become a frustrating drag during everyday use. Because the algorithm relies entirely on visual recognition, innocuous objects or sudden lighting shifts can frequently flag the warning.

Instead of a subtle overlay, the feature blurs the affected video behind a stark warning shield. To restore the feed, you must pause your conversation, tap through multiple confirmation prompts, and manually consent to view again.

The high rate of false positives turns a well-intentioned security safeguard into an annoying barrier that completely disrupts the flow of your calls.

How to bypass the sensitive content warning

To turn this feature off, start by opening the Settings app, scroll down and select Privacy & Security, then tap Sensitive Content Warning. If the toggle is available, you can instantly customize your preferences by turning off the main switch at the top of the screen, or by scrolling down to disable it for individual apps like FaceTime.

However, many are finding that this menu is greyed out or displays an "On" status that cannot be changed. This occurs if your device defaults to maximum safety restrictions or handles an unverified age profile.

To bypass this barrier, return to the main Settings menu, select Screen Time, and tap Content & Privacy Restrictions.

From there, you can completely toggle off All Restrictions and confirm your choice when prompted. Turning off these overarching restrictions will immediately unlock your settings and override the filter, allowing your video calls to proceed without interruption.

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If your iPhone photo library is filled with dozens of duplicate shots, screenshots you no longer need, and vacation photos you keep meaning to sort through, iOS 27 introduces a long-awaited organizational tool to help.

For the first time, Apple allows you to assign one-to-five-star ratings and custom metadata keywords directly to your images and videos, bringing sorting to the native Photos.

Because the star rating controls are hidden by default when you first update your device, you need to enable the feature in your settings before you can start rating your media.

Here's how to turn on rating controls, assign stars to your photos, and filter your library to find your best shots in seconds.

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For many people, today's solar eclipse is a once-in-a-lifetime event. The next comparable eclipse visible from the UK won't happen until 2081. Hundreds of millions across Europe will witness a partial or total eclipse as the moon passes in front of the sun. If you're in Spain or Iceland, you'll experience totality for one to three minutes.

Parts of North America will see a partial solar eclipse. It will be visible in the Northern US and Alaska and even New York City (though only at 9%).

Everyone will reach for their phones to photograph it. Then you hear the warnings: pointing your camera at the sun will permanently damage your sensor. Destroy your phone. Create dead pixels that can never be fixed. Is that actually true? The answer is yes, but it's entirely preventable if you know what you're doing.

Here's how to photograph the eclipse safely and keep your phone functional.

Yes, your phone's sensor can actually be damaged

Direct sunlight focusing through your phone's lens can burn the photodiodes inside your camera sensor. This creates permanent dead pixels that no software update can fix. The sun concentrates heat through the lens, and that concentrated energy damages the sensor's light-sensitive components.

Even a few seconds of direct exposure risks this. The damage might not be immediately obvious, but it accumulates with each moment you point your phone at the sun.

This isn't just phones. Digital cameras, binoculars, telescopes — anything with a lens can suffer the same fate. NASA specifically warns against it.

Use solar eclipse glasses to photograph safely

The simplest and most practical solution is holding your eclipse glasses directly in front of your phone's camera lens while you photograph. Eclipse glasses block 99.99% of the sun's light, filtering out the dangerous rays while letting your phone capture the eclipse safely. Position the glasses over the lens, take your photo, then remove them.

This won't give you professional results. You can't frame your shot precisely and the image quality will be imperfect. But it's safe, requires nothing but the glasses you're already wearing, and actually works. The key here is making sure your eclipse glasses are legitimate: marked with ISO 12312-2 certification.

If you don't have eclipse glasses, you can create a pinhole projector instead. Use a colander or something similar to create an indirect view — don't look at the sun through the device, but project the light onto a card or piece of paper. This lets you see the eclipse safely without ever pointing anything directly at the sun.

When is it safe to photograph directly?

There's one moment when direct sun photography becomes safe: totality. During the brief window when the moon completely blocks the sun, you can photograph the corona without any protection.

This is the only time it's safe. Before totality ends and the sun's edge reappears, put your protection back on immediately.

If you're not in the path of totality (experiencing a partial eclipse anywhere in Europe outside Spain, Iceland, and small parts of Portugal and Greenland), you cannot safely photograph withouteclipse glasses protection or solar filters at any point.

Never look through your camera viewfinder

This is critical: don't look at the eclipse through your camera's viewfinder, optical sight, or lens, even while wearing eclipse glasses. The concentrated solar rays can burn through the filter and cause permanent eye damage. Your eyes will be damaged long before your camera sensor.

Always aim your camera without looking through the viewfinder during partial eclipse phases. Point, shoot, and trust that you've captured something.

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With more than a billion active users, Apple’s Messages app is already hugely popular. But a new feature in iOS 27 makes it even more useful, and I’m already seeing the benefits.

When you’re bombarded with texts on a daily basis, t’s all too easy to forget tasks or spend ages carrying out a request. I’ve certainly had occasions when I’ve forgotten to pick up groceries, or spent longer than expected trying to find photos someone asked me to send. But with one-tap suggestions in Messages, I’m starting to get on top of these things.

This feature is super-convenient, showing just how useful AI can be when used appropriately. By using Apple Intelligence to scan a conversation, it can create reminders and even actively sift through your photos to find the right ones using keyword, location, and people recognition.

What’s more, it won’t force you to do anything. The suggestion is simply there, and you decide whether to tap it or ignore it. Here’s how it works.

1. Receive a message

When you receive a text in the Messages app in iOS 27, Apple Intelligence has a quick read and checks to see if there is anything actionable. If there is, it will make suggestions based on the context of the conversation.

For example, if someone asks you to pick something up on your way home, Messages will suggest you add that request to your Reminders. To do so, you’d simply tap Add to Reminders immediately beneath the message.

2. Check the details

In the case of a reminder, a window will appear and key details from the message will be used to fill in some of the fields. You could then add a date and time if they haven’t already been added, or even mark the reminder as urgent.

Being able to go straight to a task such as this saves a lot of time. When you’re done, tap the blue tick icon.

3. Find some photos

One-tap suggestions don't just work with Reminders. Apple Intelligence may suggest you tap Add to Notes and it may be able to make use of a third-party app, for example, to help you make a restaurant reservation.

If images are mentioned in a message, you’ll be prompted to tap Search for Photos. Apple Intelligence will then use the information in the message to help you find the best photos.

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Your lock screen has always been Apple's canvas, not yours. iOS 27 changes that. Four new customization options hand control back to you, letting you expand photos to fit perfectly, generate custom wallpapers from scratch, reposition your clock, and banish distracting widgets.

For the first time, your Lock Screen can actually look like you designed it instead of like you accepted Apple's defaults. Here's what's new and how to use it.

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Google Maps is a staple for navigation, and while most people install it and forget it, the app can occasionally consume a surprising amount of storage.

On devices with limited 64GB or 128GB capacity, heavy users who download large offline maps or experience caching glitches may find the app using several gigabytes of space.

The storage bloat comes from multiple hidden sources working together: offline maps you've downloaded, location history data stored locally on your device, and cached searches and map tiles accumulating over time.

Here's what's actually consuming your storage and how to reclaim it.

Three things are secretly consuming storage

First, offline maps. If you've downloaded maps for cities you visit frequently to avoid using cellular data, they add up quickly. While single cities are small, saving multiple large regions or entire states can easily consume several gigabytes.

Second, the Timeline feature. Google recently moved your entire location history from cloud storage directly onto your phone, meaning years of historical travel data now lives on your device. Depending on how frequently you move around, this archive can quietly grow to hundreds of megabytes or more.

And lastly, cache data. The app constantly stores searches, navigation routes, map tiles, and page content. Over time, this background cache fails to clear itself properly and balloons into a significant storage hog.

How to reclaim your storage space

Whether you are on an iPhone or an Android device, taking back your storage is really straightforward,

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With iOS 27, subtitles now pop up automatically whenever a clip starts playing in Photos or Safari.

Apple introduced live transcription to help accessibility, but pushing it on everyone by default feels like an overreach. Worse still, the system constantly mishears dialogue, filling your display with useless text errors.

You end up constantly tapping the screen just to hide the captions manually. Thankfully, disabling this unwanted feature takes under a minute.

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I'm far from a good videographer (which is one of the reasons I've remained a writer-first in this era of Reels, TikToks, and Shorts). But that doesn't mean I don't record videos on my phone. Whenever I'm at a concert, a game, or any kind of event, I still find myself pulling out my phone to capture the moment.

The problem is that I'm terrible at keeping the camera locked on my subject. Filming a performer from way out in a crowd is quite difficult, especially when you're zoomed in.

Samsung's new foldable phones come with a new Galaxy AI video tracker feature that is designed to solve exactly that problem. I spent some time trying it on my Galaxy Z Fold 8, and I can confidently say it made filming way easier — even if there's still one thing I'd like Samsung to improve.

How Samsung's My FanCam AI feature actually works

What My FanCam essentially does is take away the stress of trying to keep a moving subject perfectly framed throughout a video. Instead of manually tracking someone while you're recording, Galaxy AI can detect a person in your video after you've finished filming and automatically follow them throughout the clip.

The end result is a new video that stays focused on that one person, almost as if someone had tracked them with the camera the entire time.

Using it is fairly straightforward. First, record a video using the Camera app on your Galaxy phone as you normally would. Once you're done, open the video in the Samsung Gallery app, tap the Galaxy AI icon, and select My FanCam.

Galaxy AI will then scan the video and detect the different people in the frame. Once it's finished, you'll see touch targets appear over each detected person. Simply tap the subject you want Galaxy AI to follow.

Before exporting the video, Samsung also lets you choose the aspect ratio. For vertical videos, 9:16 is selected by default, but you can also choose options like 1:1, 3:4, and a few others.

Once you've made your selection, tap Follow, and Galaxy AI will generate a brand-new video that keeps your chosen subject in frame throughout the clip. You can then preview the result and, if you're happy with it, Save Copy to your gallery.

My FanCam worked far better than I expected during my testing

In my testing, the feature worked great and kept track of my subject impressively well. In a way, it reminded me of Apple's Center Stage, except instead of working during live video calls, My FanCam works on pre-recorded videos, and it works on multiple people in the same clip.

The AI processing itself is also fairly quick. Samsung says the processing time depends on the length of the clip, but all of the videos I tested were processed within a matter of seconds.

Another nice touch is that it works on older videos already sitting in your gallery, so you're not limited to footage you shot after you got your new phone. This means you can go back and create FanCam videos from footage you've already captured.

My biggest complaint right now is that it's exclusive to the Galaxy Z8 series phones. And the cameras, at least on the regular Galaxy Z Fold 8, aren't the sharpest. That means if you're tracking a subject that's far away, the footage can come out looking slightly pixelated once the feature crops and zooms into your subject.

I think Samsung could take this feature a step further by using Galaxy AI to enhance the final output, especially when the video has been cropped heavily. A little AI sharpening or detail enhancement can take this feature up a notch.

Even so, I still love the feature in its current form. The fact that Samsung is using AI to automatically track a subject after you've already recorded the video is incredibly useful. I also think it would make even more sense on higher-end Galaxy phones like the Galaxy S26 Ultra, where the better camera hardware would give the AI much more detail to work with.

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When I visited the beach in Malaga last year, I forgot to bring a book. No problem, I figured, I’d browse on my phone to entertain myself. I spread out my towel, applied sunscreen, and opened my email, but before long, a notice appeared saying my phone was overheating.

I flopped over onto my stomach to shade the phone with my face, but a couple minutes later, a second overheating notice appeared, and the phone turned off. So much for taking some pictures of the beach.

Now that I’ve learned my lesson and know how to keep my phone from getting overheated, I've put together these tips to prevent your phone from shutting down, too.

How to safely cool it down

It might sound ridiculous to say "don't put your phone in the freezer," but when a device shuts down in the blazing sun, panic takes over, and reaching for an ice pack suddenly feels like a stroke of genius.

Unfortunately, rushing to freeze your hot phone does far more damage than the heat ever could.

Tossing your phone into the fridge or freezer triggers rapid temperature drops that force moisture to condense inside the sealed device, causing severe water damage, battery failure, or a cracked screen.

Similarly, resting your phone directly on an ice pack thermal-shocks the lithium-ion battery, which can permanently ruin its capacity or cause the battery to swell.

Instead of subjecting your phone to extreme cold, let steady airflow do the heavy lifting. The best fix is simply placing your phone on a flat, hard surface in front of a fan or on a cooling pad. Moving air draws heat away from the body quickly and safely, without the risk of internal moisture.

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Google Maps has become one of life’s essentials thanks to a host of features that make navigation feel effortless. I use it as a matter of routine when I’m driving, even if I know where I’m going — it flags up problems, offers alternative routes, and gives an accurate ETA. But Google Maps does so much more than basic directions.

The more I use and explore the app, the more impressed I become (and I love checking out the hidden tricks uncovered by the Tom’s Guide team!). While it’s packed with tools, there’s a handful of features I rely on above all others because they’ve proven, time after time, to save my trips.

Here are five of my absolute favorites. I hope they help you out, too.

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Apple Photos now lets you extract full-resolution image stills directly from any video. Say goodbye to low-quality, cropped screenshots on iOS 27.

For years, pulling a freeze-frame photograph out of a video clip on your iPhone meant settling for a clunky workaround: pausing the clip at just the right second, hiding the playback controls, and taking a screenshot.

It worked, but the results were always second-rate. You ended up with a lower-resolution image, awkward black bars, and a cropped aspect ratio that required extra editing.

Thankfully, Apple is finally fixing this long-standing oversight. iOS 27 introduces a save-frame-as-photo feature inside the Photos app, and it is a game-changer for capturing.

How it works

Instead of fighting with your screen bounds and timing the UI overlay, extracting a clean photo from any saved video now takes just a couple of taps.

While watching a video, simply pause on the exact frame you want to keep. From there, tap the three-dot menu icon in the top-right corner of the screen and select the option to save that frame as a photo.

Your iPhone takes that exact millisecond and instantly saves it as a crisp, standalone photo right in your main library. Since it pulls straight from the original video file instead of taking a digital snap of your screen, you get the highest quality possible.

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Type your address into Google Maps, switch to Street View, and there it is: a high-resolution photo of your front door, windows, and property line.

While it’s a convenient tool for navigating, it also means your home's exterior features are visible to anyone online. If you'd prefer to keep those details private, Google provides a straightforward, free way to handle it.

You can request to permanently blur your home from Street View, removing it from public view entirely. Here is how to get it done.

How to hide your home on Google Maps

You're best off using a desktop browser for this, as the blurring feature doesn't work as well on mobile. Go to maps.google.com and search your home address. When your location appears, click the photo of your home displayed above your address. This opens Street View.

Once in Street View, look at the bottom-right corner for "Report a Problem" and click it. You'll see a red and black box overlaid on the image.

You'll see a red and black box overlaid on the image. Use your mouse to position this box so your home and anything else you want blurred is completely contained within it. The plus button zooms in, the minus button zooms out. Adjust until you've framed exactly what you want hidden.

Below the image, choose what you're requesting to blur: A face, Your home, car/license plate, or A different object.

Select "Your home." Google will ask for additional details, so be specific and thorough so they understand exactly what needs blurring.

Provide your email address, complete the captcha if prompted, and click Submit.

Google will email you confirming they received the request. They may ask follow-up questions via email. There's no official timeline for approval, but most requests process within weeks. Once approved, the blur is permanent.

What you need to know before requesting

Google cautions that once something is blurred, it stays blurred permanently. You can't undo it. Make absolutely sure you've selected exactly what you want hidden before submitting.

If your request is denied, you can't resubmit the same image immediately. If approved, your home disappears from Street View everywhere, including past and future images.

Where do you stand? Drop your thoughts in the comments below 👇

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When I first downloaded the iOS 27 developer beta, I was genuinely impressed by Siri's makeover. It's finally outgrown basic commands, morphing into a full-fledged chatbot and bringing major upgrades across the system.

Apple even gave Siri its own dedicated app, making it easy to hop back into past threads. And thanks to iCloud syncing, a conversation started on your iPhone sits waiting for you when you open your Mac.

Then I took a closer look at my history, and reality set in. There, neatly archived and synced across my devices, was a chronological list of my late-night curiosities, messy half-baked thoughts, and text drafts. Apple assumes you want to keep that paper trail forever.

So, I immediately dived into Settings to see if I could sort it out, and, thankfully, there’s an easy fix.

Why forever is a problem

Under the old rules, Siri was ephemeral: ask a question, get an answer, done. iOS 27 flips that model. By saving everything by default, Apple turns Siri from a quick tool into a permanent digital diary.

The issue isn't just about someone reading over your shoulder, it's data bloat. Because these chats sync through iCloud across your devices, an indefinite log creates an avoidable footprint. Every health symptom you look up, draft message, and rabbit hole builds into a detailed map of your personal habits sitting in the cloud.

Convenience is great, but hoarding years of unfiltered search context is an unnecessary privacy liability when an auto-delete setting exists.

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For years, my relationship with Siri boiled down to setting kitchen timers and occasionally asking for the weather. Anything more complex than that usually ended in a web search. With iOS 27, that's all changed.

If you've heard people call this update underwhelming, I get it. On the surface, it might not feel like a revolutionary leap. But spend a few days with it and you'll notice the difference: Siri is undeniably a better assistant.

Apple finally understood the assignment by adding tools that make life easier. There are seven features worth trying right away, and while many of them are great, one brilliant photo reframing trick has quickly become my absolute favorite feature.

In fact, a few of my friends who were skeptical about updating their phones took the plunge just to get their hands on this one tool. Let's jump in.

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Like millions of other people, I use Google Maps regularly. I use it to find the fastest route to the grocery store, or avoid traffic jams on my morning commute. It has mostly been a purely functional tool for me, to get from point A to point B.

Recently I stumbled into a feature that completely changed how I look at the app. There's a hidden digital time machine.

It turns out that Google has been busy archiving decades of panoramic Street View imagery. And while we've been busy navigating our daily lives, Google’s camera cars have been building a massive, visual history of our world.

When I realized I could access this archive, I didn't go looking at famous landmarks or changing city skylines. I, of course, went straight to my childhood home.

How to unlock the time machine yourself

If you want to go on your own digital nostalgia trip, the process is incredibly simple, though Google keeps the controls relatively quiet. To start your journey, open Google Maps on your computer and search for an address.

Once the location loads, look to the bottom right corner of your screen and grab the little yellow silhouette figure, known as Pegman, and drop him directly onto the blue-highlighted street in front of your destination to enter Street View.

Once you are standing on the digital street, look up at the top-left corner of your screen where the address box is located. You will spot a small clock icon accompanied by the words "See more dates."

Clicking on that icon will open a window at the bottom of your screen featuring the archived images throughout the years, depending on how often the Google car has driven down that specific road.

If you are using the Google Maps app on your phone, you can achieve the same effect by tapping anywhere on the screen while in Street View, which will bring up a menu card at the bottom. Tapping "See more dates" on that card will reveal a scrollable carousel of past years, allowing you to swipe back in time with your thumb.

Google Maps is brilliant at showing us how to get to where we are going. But if you know where to look, it is even better at reminding us of where we used to be.

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If you ever went diving into the various hidden features on offer in iOS 26, you may be aware of the handwriting option in the Messages app. Doing exactly what its name suggests, this feature lets you handwrite messages or draw pictures, and send them to contacts. Potentially very useful, even if it wasn't easy to find.

iOS 27 takes that idea and makes it a lot simpler, turning iMessage's handwriting mode into a dedicated applet within the Messages app. Or, in other words, Apple has tweaked the feature in such a way that it is easier to both find and use. Better still, a bunch of useful improvements were added in the process, making it more like the handwriting tools in Apple Notes.

Here's how to send handwritten messages and drawings over iMessage in iOS 27.

There you have it, an easy and quick way to send handwritten messages in the Apple Messages app, and without being forced to use landscape mode in the process.

It may not be an entirely new feature for iOS 27, but Apple has taken this extremely well-hidden feature and made it that little bit more accessible for iPhone users everywhere. So you might as well take advantage of it and flex your handwriting muscles once more.

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We’ve all been there: you spot a bizarre, brightly colored bug crawling on your tomato plants or a strange, furry moth hovering near your flowers, and you want to know what it is right now. But rather than typing desperate, vague descriptions into a Google search bar, there’s a much faster way to decode your backyard.

Hidden directly inside your iPhone's standard Photos app is a remarkably powerful machine learning tool that turns your camera roll into an instant nature scanner.

I’ve spent the last week or so pointing my camera at every leaf and brick wall in my yard to see just how accurate this built-in feature really is. Here is how to find the button on your phone, and the wildest garden bugs it's helped me identify so far this summer.

How the feature works

The next time you snap a crisp close-up of a creature or plant, simply open that image in your Photos and look closely at the action bar running along the bottom of the screen.

If your iPhone recognizes a subject in the frame, the standard information circle icon will automatically transform, signalling that Visual Look Up is ready. Tap that, then hold the answer to have Siri pull up more information about your snapped subject.

The best part about this is that it isn't just a dead end. Once Siri identifies the insect, you don't have to stop there. Because iOS now supports conversational continuity, you can actually get into a back-and-forth chat with Siri about the specific thing you’ve found.

You can ask follow-up questions like whether it's dangerous to your tomato plants, what its lifespan is, or how to encourage more of them to visit, allowing you to learn much more without ever leaving your photo library.

Identifying my garden neighbours

Once you know how to trigger it, your photo library essentially becomes a real-life Pokédex. I’ve spent the summer pointing my lens at the grass and garden walls to see how many 'rare spawns' I could find, and I’ve cataloged a bizarrely brilliant cast of characters that I used to walk right past.

My absolute favorite find was a frantic, hovering blur near my lavender. A quick scan unmasked it as a Hummingbird Hawk-Moth, an insect that mimics a bird so perfectly I thought I'd stumbled upon some rare phenomenon, but I was soon schooled about the day moth's lore.

Suddenly, every morning (and evening) became a game of hunting down new species. I used the tool to log a tiny, striped Zebra Spider, spot a Scarlet Tiger Moth hiding by the nettles, and a Red-veined Darter dragonfly.

By the time I had logged everything from grasshoppers to metallic beetles, my perspective on my yard had completely shifted. Thanks to this one iPhone feature, I now see my garden for what it is: a beautifully complex, thriving ecosystem.

Why don't you have a go at scanning your own backyard. Just don't blame me when your camera roll is completely taken over by bugs.

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Look, we all enjoy falling down a YouTube rabbit hole or catching up on our favorite creators. What I hate is the feeling that the app is actively trying to hijack my brain while I do it.

I miss the old YouTube: the fun, slightly chaotic playground where you discovered genuinely cool stuff instead of being force-fed algorithmic slop. Today, the default experience has become an exhausting gauntlet of noisy thumbnail previews, addictive Shorts, and frictionless autoplay timers.

Google might want you passive and scrolling forever, but a quick two-minute interface tune-up is all it takes to strip away the traps, silence the chaos, and put you back in charge.

1. Stop the mindless Shorts scroll

The Shorts shelf is a relentless pipeline designed to catch you off guard, pulling you into an addictive, endless stream of short-form videos when you only meant to watch a single clip.

Because YouTube deliberately blocks you from deleting the Shorts tab entirely, you have to use the app's internal boundaries to break the loop. Setting your daily viewing limit to absolute zero creates a hard digital speed bump that snaps you out of a mindless scroll the second you slip up.

To build this circuit breaker, open the YouTube mobile app, tap your profile icon, hit the settings cog, and select the time management menu. From there, tap on the option for shorts feed limit and dial it down to zero minutes.

To clean up the rest of your homepage, navigate back to your main feed, scroll down to the shorts shelf, tap the three-dot menu in the upper corner of that section, and select the option to show fewer shorts.

2. Freeze the noisy feed previews

Few things are more irritating than trying to read a video title while the video itself silently starts playing, flashing captions and demanding your attention before you've even chosen to click.

Google calls this "playback in feeds," but in reality, it's just a data-hogging gimmick designed to trick your brain into constant stimulation. Turning it off immediately stops the ambient chaos and stops YouTube from secretly burning through your mobile data on videos you never asked to watch.

To kill it, tap your Profile icon, open the Settings menu, scroll down to Playback and tap it. Then look for Playback in feeds and switch it entirely to Off.

If you still want a slight compromise when you're at home, you can select Wi-Fi only, but turning it off completely is the only way to make your homepage truly static again.

3. Kill the automatic play loop

Autoplay is designed to take advantage of the fact that it is always easier to do nothing. Before you can even process the video you just finished, a countdown timer appears and shoves you straight into a loosely related clip you never asked for.

Forcing a hard stop at the end of a video breaks this endless chain, giving you a second to breathe and actually decide how you want to spend your time.

Fixing this is incredibly simple. Tap your Profile icon, open the Settings menu, Playback, then toggle off Autoplay next video.

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You don’t have to wait any longer to experience the latest iPhone software because the iOS 27 public beta is finally available. Arriving a little over a month after its reveal at WWDC 2026, this release brings the new Siri and a host of fresh Apple Intelligence features into the fold.

Aside from a sleek visual makeover, iOS 27 introduces a slew of AI tools that prove Apple is serious about giving consumers features that save them time. From the powerful new capabilities of Siri AI to unique, generative AI-powered tools like Reframe, the iOS 27 public beta is set to breathe new life into your device.

Best of all, Apple has extended support for iOS 27 as far back as the iPhone 11 — though only the latest-generation models will have access to Siri AI and the most demanding Apple Intelligence features. If you’re holding onto a supported iPhone, here is how to download the iOS 27 public beta.

Once it's installed, you can dive right into the most exciting new iOS 27 features. Keep in mind that you'll likely need to sign up for a waitlist to get early access to Siri AI, as it's still technically in beta. Once you're approved, you’ll be able to try out all of its new capabilities, provided you're using a supported iPhone model.

Beyond that, you can immediately tap into other excellent iOS 27 features that don't require a waitlist. These include the ability to create custom digital passes in the Wallet app, the vastly improved Photo Clean Up tool, and much more.

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You've entered your destination into Google Maps, the route is calculated, everything looks correct. Then you tap the screen expecting to start navigation and all you see is Preview. No Start button.

It's one of the most frustrating experiences with the app and I've seen this problem come up repeatedly in comments and messages: people are stuck staring at a Preview button with no explanation for why navigation isn't showing as Start.

The frustration is justified, but the fix is quite simple. Google Maps just needs one piece of information to proceed. Here's what's going on and how to actually start your navigation.

Why Preview appears instead of Start

Google Maps shows Preview instead of Start for three specific reasons. First, you haven't set a starting point. Google Maps usually picks your current location automatically, but sometimes it doesn't.

Without a clear start point, the app won't let you begin navigation, it can only show you a preview of where you'd go.

Second, Google Maps lacks permission to access your location. The app needs to know where you are to confirm your starting point matches reality. If it can't pinpoint your location precisely, Preview is all you get.

Third, and this one might surprise you, your actual current location isn't on the route you've selected. Google Maps detects that you're not at the starting point of your route and nowhere along its path. This is intentional behavior. Google Maps prevents you from navigating a route you're not positioned to take.

Set your starting point and grant permission

Open Google Maps and enter your destination. After selecting where you want to go, look for "Choose starting point" and tap it.

From the menu that appears, select "Your location" at the top. This confirms to Google Maps that your current position is where navigation should begin.

This single step resolves the Preview issue for most people. By explicitly setting your starting point to your current location, you're giving Google Maps the confirmation it needs.

On iPhone, open Settings and tap Apps. Find Google Maps and select it. Then tap Location and choose either "While Using the App" or "Always." Just as with Android, enable the toggle for "Precise Location" below.

Once these permissions are active, Google Maps can accurately identify where you are and match that to your route. Navigation should work immediately.

Granting location permission on Android

If Preview persists after setting your starting point, Google Maps lacks location access. On Android, open Settings and navigate to Apps. Find Google Maps in the list and tap it. Now select Permissions, then tap Location.

Choose either "Allow all the time" or "Allow only while using the app." Then scroll down and make sure the toggle for "Use precise location" is enabled.

Precise location is critical because Google Maps needs exact coordinates, not just approximate area data. Enable this, then try navigation again.

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Meta just launched "Muse Image", a new generative AI model built by Meta Superintelligence Labs, with a troubling default setting: adult public Instagram profiles are automatically opted in to have their photos used in AI-generated images.

Anyone can tag your username with an @-mention in a prompt, and Meta AI will remix your public photos into whatever image they're creating. You won't be notified when this happens. The generated images won't be deleted even if you change your settings later.

While Meta has blocked the tool from automatically targeting users under 18 or those with private profiles, every adult with a public account has been drafted by default. Here's how to protect your account.

Why this is problematic

Meta's approach flips the standard permission model on its head. Instead of asking permission to use your content for AI training and generation, it's made it opt-out by default. Your content is being used unless you actively say no, meaning s anyone scrolling Instagram can turn your photos into whatever image they imagine without your knowledge or consent.

The lack of notification is particularly concerning. You have no way of knowing your content has been used, no opportunity to object before generation happens, and no recourse if you don't like how your likeness appears in AI images. So it's worth taking minutes to disable this, and I wouldn't wait to do so.

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I’m pleasantly surprised that Siri AI focuses on fixing the tedious tasks that slow you down. Instead of gimmicks you use once and forget, these updates give Apple's assistant the ability to see your screen and search your files using normal language.

They strip the tiny friction points out of your normal daily routine, changing how you handle everything from scrolling to scheduling. Here are the three practical features you will actually use every day.

Before diving in

You will want to make sure your device can actually run the new assistant. The new Siri AI requires you to be running iOS 27 and requires an iPhone with specialized Apple Intelligence hardware.

The compatible iPhones are the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and the iPhone 16 and iPhone 17 lineups. If you have one of these supported devices in your pocket, you can start using these tools now via the iOS 27 beta, or as soon as the public update hits your phone.

3 new Siri features you’ll actually use

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If you use Apple's Shortcuts app for a lot of things, you may have come across a bug that seems to delete specific shortcuts from your phone without warning — even if you have iCloud sync switched on. The good news is that those Shortcuts aren't gone for ever, and the better news is that iOS 27 beta 3 just made it easier to restore them.

The latest iOS 27 developer beta comes with a Restore button hidden in the settings for the Shortcuts app. As spotted by iBanks3 over on Reddit, the new beta lets Shortcuts warn you if it detects any shortcuts that aren't present in your library.

Better still, instead of making you jump through various steps to restore old backups or remake those missing shortcuts, you're able to bring them back with the push of a button. Here's what you need to do.

The problem itself is likely caused by some sort of syncing issue with iCloud, though why the shortcuts are backed up and later erased from your device isn't entirely clear. In fact some people have reported either finding duplicates of existing shortcuts, or failing to notice that any had actually disappeared. Which is a very curious state of affairs.

Still, the fact that they can now be restored can only be a good thing. So if you've been wondering what's been going on in the Shortcuts app, and could swear that you had a shortcut that has since vanished, be sure to check in the settings. Some of them may just be hiding on iCloud.

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One of the more annoying aspects of CarPlay is how any and all compatible apps are automatically displayed on your vehicle’s screen — whether you like it or not. For example, ChatGPT recently added CarPlay support to its iPhone app, and now I have the AI giant’s icon on my screen. I’ll never want to talk to AI while driving down the road, especially when I barely like talking to Siri to send a text message.

Adding to the frustration, there’s really no rhyme or reason to the order the apps are put in. It's annoying. If you're like me and despise the unorganized look of your CarPlay dashboard, I’ll guide you through on how to add, remove, and rearrange apps in Apple CarPlay.

How to rearrange CarPlay apps

Once you have all of the apps you want or don’t want in the right spot, take an extra moment to rearrange the order of how the apps are displayed in CarPlay by using the three-line handle to drag-and-drop them to the right spot.

If you edited apps while sitting in your car and you could watch them disappear in real time, but if you made the changes on your iPhone before your next drive, you’ll instantly see the apps arranged on your new home screen the next time you connect your phone to your car.

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The desire to disconnect is growing, but finding the right balance can be difficult. Parents face a classic modern dilemma when trying to give their children a safe way to stay in touch without handing over a dopamine-fueled playground.

At the same time, many adults (myself included) are desperately seeking an escape from screen addiction but find that traditional "dumb phones" lack essential modern tools like reliable GPS tracking or banking apps.

You might think the only solution is buying a specialized device or paying for a third-party app. It turns out, the perfect distraction-free solution is probably sitting in your desk drawer right now with an older iPhone.

The eco-system advantage

Apple actually built the ultimate distraction-free phone inside iOS 17, they just didn't advertise it. A feature called Assistive Access, originally designed as an accessibility tool for cognitive disabilities, completely strips away the complex ecosystem of iOS and replaces it with massive, simplified blocks.

The real genius here is how it handles temptation and security. In standard iOS, it is entirely too easy to bypass your own app limits or click web links sent via text message. Under this mode, web links are rendered completely dead text, entirely shutting down that internet loophole.

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Weak passwords are responsible for the majority of account breaches. Reused passwords across multiple sites multiply the damage when one account gets compromised.

Most people know they should fix these vulnerabilities but never get around to it. iOS 27 eliminates that excuse. Apple Intelligence can now autonomously handle password security for you. It logs into websites, generates strong passwords, updates your credentials, and confirms the changes, all automatically.

You just approve it once and watch the process happen in real time. Here's how to let Apple handle your password security.

Make sure your iPhone's running iOS 27

If you haven't updated your iPhone yet, you'll need to do that before you can try out this feature. Before you download anything, back up your iPhone first by going to Settings, Your Name, iCloud, iCloud Backup and tapping Back Up Now.

If you’ve never used an Apple beta before, you will need to register for a free developer account to get started. Once you’re signed up and off the Apple Intelligence waitlist, you can update your phone.

However, if you’ve used any Apple beta in the past, you can skip the registration entirely and download the software. Just open Settings, go to General, Software Update, Beta Updates, and select the iOS 27 Developer Beta to begin the installation.

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Your phone can do a surprising amount of things, and not just the stuff that gets mentioned in the marketing. There are countless features hidden behind layers of settings menus, to the point where it's pretty difficult to stumble upon them by accident. But this doesn't mean that they're any less useful than the features that are constantly in your face.

One of those features is the Accessibility Button, which activates a menu containing a bunch of key phone features. We're talking about things like controlling volume and brightness, taking screenshots, checking notifications, and so on. The idea is that, if you have accessibility issues that prevent you accessing those core features the "normal" way, you can instead utilize a dedicated on-screen menu.

The best part is that the accessibility button isn't just for a select group of people. It's available to everyone, and it could prove useful in certain cases — like driving, when you can't afford to be messing about with your phone for more than half a second.

There you have it, the accessibility menu is all set up for you to use as you like. There's no option to customize the features on offer, but if you ever find yourself needing to access any of these settings quickly, and without using both of your hands, this button could be invaluable.

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With smartphone prices creeping higher thanks to rising component costs — a trend now commonly known as "RAMageddon", the best phone upgrade you can make right now might be the one you already own.

You don’t need to drop $1,000 on a new device just because your current one is feeling a little sluggish or losing battery quickly. By building a few simple, regular disciplines into your routine, you can claw back storage, speed up performance, and protect your hardware from degradation.

Here are 8 easy habits to keep your phone running like new for years to come.

Reclaim your storage and memory

A maxed-out hard drive and cluttered RAM are the primary reasons older phones start to lag. Clean them up with these three habits.

Protect your battery from degradation

Lithium-ion batteries naturally degrade over time, but excessive heat speeds up the process drastically. Avoid the heat with these three rules.

Manage your hardware and software

The final line of defense is ensuring your phone can physically survive a drop and that your software isn't outgrowing your hardware.

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In iOS 27, Apple has rebuilt its virtual assistant around cutting-edge generative audio models designed to replicate the natural rhythms of human speech.

If you own an iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, or iPhone Air, your everyday exchanges with Siri are about to feel less like issuing commands and more like a genuine back-and-forth. The result is a warmer, more lifelike voice every time your assistant responds.

Here's how to switch on the new Siri and make it your own.

Make sure your iPhone's running iOS 27 Beta 2

If you haven't updated your iPhone yet, you'll need to do that before you can try out the new Siri. Before you download anything, back up your iPhone first by going to Settings, Your Name, iCloud, iCloud Backup and tapping Back Up Now.

If you’ve never used an Apple beta before, you will need to register for a free developer account to get started. Once you’re signed up and off the Apple Intelligence waitlist, you can update your phone.

However, if you’ve used any Apple beta in the past, you can skip the registration entirely and download the software. Just open Settings, go to General, Software Update, Beta Updates, and select the iOS 27 Developer Beta to begin the installation.

How to customize your Siri voice in iOS 27

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You probably have an old phone sitting in a drawer somewhere. Instead of letting it collect dust, you can repurpose it as a dashcam. The setup takes minutes, costs nothing if you already have a mount and charger, and creates a functional recording system that rivals budget dashcams.

You'll get loop recording, GPS timestamps, and footage that works perfectly for insurance claims or backing up your memories from the road. Here's how to do it.

Before you get started

You'll need an old phone, a free dashcam app like Droid Dashcam or Smart Dash Cam, a charging cable, a car charger, and a windshield or dashboard phone mount. If you already have these accessories, the entire setup is completely free.

The phone should have at least 32GB of storage to hold enough video footage. Wipe the phone completely to remove everything you don't need.

On Android, simply use the search bar at the top of your Settings app and type "Factory Reset." On iPhone, go to Settings, General, Reset, and Erase All Content and Settings.

Mount the phone and keep it powered

Position your phone mount high on the windshield near the rearview mirror for a centered view of the road. Angle the camera slightly downward so it captures the hood, road, traffic lights, and lanes ahead. Then simply press the camera button to start recording.

To keep the battery alive, keep your phone connected to a charger as video recording, GPS, and screen activity drain phones fast.

You can test the setup by recording a short clip in your driveway. Check that the horizon is level, windshield glare isn't terrible, and the mount doesn't vibrate. Once you're satisfied, you're ready to drive.

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Google Maps recently changed its routing algorithm to favor fuel-efficient paths over the fastest paths. If you're regularly arriving later than expected, this hidden default setting is likely why.

The change sounds environmental and sensible, but it means Google is making time-vs-fuel trade-offs on your behalf by default. If your priority is reaching your destination as quickly as possible, you need to disable this setting. Here's how to take back control of your route choices.

Why Google Maps prioritizes fuel over speed

Google's fuel-efficient routing analyzes driving patterns and terrain to minimize gas consumption. The algorithm favors routes with steady acceleration, consistent speeds, and minimal braking. In theory, this helps your engine run efficiently and saves money on gas.

The problem emerges in real-world driving. A route that avoids highway on-ramps to reduce acceleration might add 10 minutes to your commute. A path that circles around congestion to maintain steady speed could cost you 15 minutes versus powering through traffic.

Google assumes that if you save fuel on a route, time savings are less important. But for commuters, delivery drivers, or anyone with time-sensitive travel, this assumption backfires.

Here's how to get the fastest routes back on Google Maps

Choose routes individually if you want flexibility

If you don't want to turn the feature off completely, you can keep fuel-efficient routing enabled and simply override it on a case-by-case basis.

Before hitting start, take a moment to examine all the available routes and compare their arrival times. While a fuel-efficient path might only add three to five minutes to a standard 20-minute workday commute, those lost minutes quickly multiply on a 90-minute road trip.

By checking your options first, you can choose what matters most for that specific drive.

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If you've ever felt like Android's autocorrect just wasn't good enough, then you should know that you don't have to suffer in silence. You may not have been aware, but Gboard features something called a "Personal Dictionary," and its hidden feature can be exploited to make your typing experience way better than it currently is.

Provided you know where to go, and what to do, it's actually possible to customize your Personal Dictionary to better suit the way you use your phone. Whether that includes adding words Google is unfamiliar with, fixing all the misplaced autocorrections to keep them from happening, or creating your own custom text shortcuts to make typing things like emails and phone numbers a whole lot easier.

Here's how to access Personal Dictionary on Android phones, and customize the entries to make your life easier.

There you have it, your own personal dictionary complete with words and shortcuts that Google and its keyboard wouldn't otherwise know.

That means the next time you decide you want to type out whatever obscure words or phrases you've picked up, the autocorrect shouldn't automatically change them to something completely different and incomprehensible in the context of your sentence.

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For a long time, my iPhone's Shortcuts app sat completely untouched. Every time I opened it, I was staring down an overwhelming maze of workflows, actions, and conditional logic — concepts that felt way too close to coding for my liking. So, I did what a lot of us do: I gave up on it entirely.

But iOS 27 completely changed how I use my phone, thanks to a new Apple Intelligence feature called Describe a Shortcut. Instead of forcing you to manually construct complex workflows, the AI lets you prompt exactly what you want your iPhone to do, and it builds the shortcut for you in seconds.

If you want to try it out yourself, you'll just need the iOS 27 beta running on an iPhone 15 Pro or newer to get started.

Download iOS 27 beta to access Apple Intelligence shortcuts

First, back up your iPhone by going to Settings, Your Name, iCloud, iCloud Backup and tapping Back Up Now.

If you’ve never used an Apple beta before, you'll need to register for a free developer account to get started. Once you’ve done that and are off the Apple Intelligence waitlist, you can update your phone.

If you’ve used any Apple beta in the past, you can skip the registration entirely and download iOS 27 straight away. Just open Settings, go to General, Software Update, Beta Updates, and select the iOS 27 Developer Beta.

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Apple’s Liquid Glass design gave the iPhone a sleek, frosted aesthetic in iOS 26, but the rigid preset options left many users wanting more control. Fortunately, iOS 27 addresses this by replacing those old presets with a continuous customization slider.

This new tool gives you granular control over the transparency and tint of blurred interface elements across the entire operating system. Whether you want a completely clear view of your wallpaper or a heavy, high-contrast tint that improves text readability, you can now dial in your exact preference.

Here is how to find and use the new feature.

You'll need to be running iOS 27

Because iOS 27 is currently in its early testing phase, you will need the developer beta installed to access this feature. If you aren't enrolled yet, you can sign up for free via the Apple Developer Program.

Otherwise, if you've downloaded a beta in the past, simply head to Settings, General, Software Update, and Beta Updates on your iPhone to toggle it on.

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I've taken thousands of photos, and, because I'm not a photographer, almost all of them have one small problem. The horizon tilts slightly left. My subject is too far away. Someone's elbow creeps into the frame at the last second. Normally I'd either accept the imperfect shot or spend time in a editing app trying to fix it. iOS 27 changes that entirely.

Apple's built three editing tools directly into Photos that solve these exact problems. Of course, as this is Apple Intelligence, it won't always fix everything perfectly — but they handle the most common photo mistakes remarkably well.

You'll need the iOS 27 beta running on your iPhone to access them right now. Here's what's new in your Photos app.

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Emojis and standard text are fine, but sometimes a conversation calls for a personal touch. With iOS 27, Apple is turning your text threads into a digital canvas.

The Messages app now features built-in drawing tools that let you sketch, scribble, and send handwritten notes directly inside your chats. Whether you're sending a quick, goofy doodle to a friend or using an iPad and Apple Pencil to sketch a mini-masterpiece, the process is seamless.

Ready to ditch the keyboard? Here’s exactly how to use it.

Download iOS 27 beta to access the drawing feature

Since iOS 27 is currently in its early beta phase, you’ll need to be on the developer track to test this out. If you haven't joined yet, you can enroll for free through the official Apple Developer Program website.

If you're already a beta veteran, you should be able to jump into your iPhone's Settings: followed by General, Software Update, tap Beta Updates, and toggle on the iOS 27 Developer Beta to get drawing.

If you're running into issues with it not showing up even though you've updated to a beta before, make sure you're running the latest Beta available.

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It's been a long time coming, but iOS 27 finally gives AirPods users control over their sound profile. The new AirPods custom EQ feature lets you adjust bass, midrange, and treble to match your listening preferences.

Whether you want to dial down heavy bass, boost vocals, or brighten the highs, the simple three-band EQ works for both audiophiles seeking precise control and casual listeners wanting better sound.

Here's exactly how to change your AirPods equalizer settings on compatible models.

Which AirPods models support custom EQ?

Custom EQ is available on AirPods Pro 3, AirPods Pro 2, and AirPods 4. The original AirPods Max and earlier models don't support this iOS 27 AirPods feature. You'll need iOS 27 running on your iPhone to access the AirPods custom EQ settings.

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There's a trick most World Cup viewers don't know about: you can sync the entire tournament schedule to your phone's calendar in less than a minute.

The World Cup spans weeks across multiple time zones, which makes remembering match times nearly impossible without a system. FotMob, a free platform, automates this completely for you. Once synced, every single match appears on your calendar with automatic reminders.

You'll never have to check schedules again or scramble to remember when your team plays. Set it up once and you're covered for the entire tournament.

Here's how to do it.

Why this beats manually checking the schedule

The World Cup doesn't care about your time zone — matches kick off at odd hours, on weekdays, across a month-long stretch, and the schedule shifts constantly as the knockout rounds take shape.

Keeping that in your head is a losing game. No schedule-checking, no time zone conversions, no last-minute panics. The tournament lives in your calendar like any other appointment. Four weeks of football, and your phone handles the rest.

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Carrying around a fat stack of plastic loyalty cards is officially a thing of the past thanks to a brilliant new feature in iOS 27.

You can now scan any physical card — whether that's loyalty cards, membership cards, gift cards, etc — and save it directly to your iPhone. The feature uses the Camera app's Siri mode and Visual Intelligence to recognize barcodes and QR codes instantly.

Once added to Wallet, you can present the pass as a barcode or QR code without carrying the physical card.

If you want to test it now, the iOS 27 developer beta is available to download for users now, as long as you've registered. Here's how to do it.

What else is coming to Apple Wallet?

Beyond custom passes, Apple Wallet is getting a few other notable upgrades that make the app much more useful.

All passes now feature a cleaner, enhanced design with better background images and detailed information tiles. Hotel digital keys are also more functional, displaying your trip details and activity access right on the pass.

To make the app more versatile, Apple also added support for four new barcode types (EAN-13, Code 39, Codabar, and ITF), while also expanding its built-in order tracking to Australia and Canada.

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I kept seeing this trick pop up online: people projecting 3D holograms from their phones using nothing but a glass dish and plastic. I thought it had to be fake, edited in post, the kind of internet hack that looks great but doesn't actually work in real life.

I decided to try it myself just to see. Five minutes later, I had a working 3D hologram that actually looked magical with the lights turned off. It's genuinely impressive how well this works. It's not a true hologram. It's technically an optical illusion, but it looks close enough that it's immediately satisfying.

Better yet, it takes minutes to set up and costs almost nothing. As silly as it might be, this is easily the most fun you can have with your phone and some household items. Here's how it's done.

What you'll need

• Your smartphone: The brighter, the better. Any phone will do, but a device with high peak brightness will make the hologram pop.
• A clear glass dish: Snag a square or rectangular container roughly the size of your phone. Skip the round bowls — flat edges are the secret to a crisp reflection.
• Clear plastic film: You don't need anything fancy here. An old overhead transparency sheet, a clear plastic product packaging lid, or even a plastic screen protector works perfectly.
• Tape and scissors: Just standard household tape to lock your DIY rig together.

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Apple's new Siri AI is the headline feature of iOS 27, but most users downloading the developer beta are hitting a wall: a waiting list. Instead of immediate access to the revamped assistant, you get a message saying Siri AI isn't available yet.

Apple is rolling out the feature in phases, which means some people get access while others wait.

If you're running iOS 27 and eager to test the new Siri right now, there's a workaround that's spreading among beta testers. And according to a clever tip shared by a user on X, there might be a quick way to skip the queue entirely.

If you're keen to get started immediately instead of waiting for Apple's rollout, here's how.

Download the iOS 27 developer beta first

You need iOS 27 to access the new Siri AI, whether through the waiting list or the workaround. If you haven't installed the developer beta yet, you'll need to register as an Apple developer first.

Then open Settings, go to General, Software Update, Beta Updates, and select iOS 27 Developer Beta. As this is a developer beta and not public yet, it's a good idea to back up your iPhone first.

Did this hack get you off the iOS 27 developer beta waiting list? Let us know in the comments!

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FaceTime is getting a powerful upgrade with iOS 27: Dual Capture support. You can now show both your front-facing camera and rear camera at the same time during FaceTime calls.

Say goodbye to "one sec, let me flip my camera." This upgrade lets you share your surroundings and stay on screen simultaneously. The feature works on compatible iPhones with iOS 27.

If you want to test it now, the iOS 27 developer beta is available to download for users now, as long as you've registered.

Which iPhones support Dual Capture on FaceTime?

For now, this is strictly an iPhone 17+ exclusive. While older iPhones can view your dual-camera stream, only Apple's latest lineup has the hardware muscle to actually broadcast one.

These are the exact models you'll need:

• iPhone 17
• iPhone 17 Pro
• iPhone 17 Pro Max
• iPhone Air

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iOS 27 finally delivers a feature iPhone users have requested for years: independent volume control. Under the new settings, your alarms, timers, and notifications no longer share a single slider.

It never made sense to treat high-priority alerts and background notifications the same way. Because everything was tied to a single slider, making a minor adjustment to your daytime audio levels meant risking a missed wake-up call later.

Now, Apple is separating these sounds instead of bundling them together. It's a simple, long-overdue quality-of-life improvement that finally makes managing your iPhone audio practical.

Download the iOS 27 beta if you haven't yet

This feature is currently available only in the iOS 27 developer beta. If you haven't installed it yet, you can get it now.

Register as an Apple developer if you don't already have an account; it's free. Then open Settings, go to General, Software Update, Beta Updates, and select iOS 27 Developer Beta. Your iPhone automatically downloads and installs the beta.

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WWDC 2026 focused pretty much on one thing: the new Siri. Apple's revamped assistant is powered by Google's Gemini and represents the most significant Siri update since 2011. The new Siri understands context from your personal data, sees what's on your screen, and can handle complex tasks. It's the biggest bet Apple has made on AI.

You can test iOS 27 and the new Siri immediately by installing the developer beta on your iPhone. Anyone with an Apple developer account can download it for free.

If you prefer a more stable version, wait until the public beta arrives. But if you're itching to get started testing out some of the new features Apple unveiled, here's how to get the developer beta up and running on your iPhone.

As with any beta software, you're likely to run into some bugs and issues along the way. It could also drain your battery more quickly than usual. If possible, we'd always recommend installing it on a separate device, given the amount of sensitive data likely stored on your main iPhone. The more stable public beta will launch next month.

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There are a lot of hidden features in the far reaches of Android, and Android Auto is no exception to that. One of my favorite hidden settings lets you utilize side-loaded apps that Google may not fully approve of, but there are a bunch more ways to truly personalize and make Android Auto your own. The best part is they're pretty easy to set up, too.

There is a way to create your own custom shortcuts for Android Auto, which live on your home screen and look just like a regular app icon. The difference is that it's a custom command for Google Assistant that initiates as soon as you tap the bubble, and saves you the hassle of actually having to summon the assistant yourself.

Yes, it's still running as part of Google Assistant rather than Gemini, which does mean there are limits to what it will understand. But you still get all the freedom associated with Google Assistant commands in button form, and without running the risk of the virtual assistant acting like it can't understand what you're saying.

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