So you got yourself a shiny new iPhone, but it’s all…. different. Apple’s 2018 iPhones, along with iPhone X, are a huge departure from everything that came before, and we’re going to tell you how to use them.
You don’t need to have been keeping the closest of eyes on the iPhone over the last couple of years to know that Apple has been changing things up. The iPhone X ushered in a new wave of iPhones that are sans Home button, and that changes the way the iPhone works in many more ways than just how you back out of an app. The removal of Touch ID and the arrival of Face ID is one of the biggest small changes the iPhone has seen, and it impacts how iOS works from authenticating purchases to entering passwords. The loss of the Home button was huge, and that changes much of the muscle memory you built up over the years.
But boy oh boy, is having to relearn some gestures a small price to pay for what you get in return. We know that there’s a learning curve to deal with, no matter how great the new iPhones are. That’s why we’ve put together a collection of the most useful how-tos that we have, all aimed at helping you get to grips with your new phone. By the time you’ve read everything here, you’ll be an iPhone-toting ninja warrior.
With that said, let’s get started.
Tap the Screen to Wake Your Phone
With the removal of the Home button, waking your iPhone up is now a matter of just tapping its screen and watching it spring into action. Phones have been doing this for years, but it’s great to be able to do it with an iPhone. There’s some fancy tap detection going on to try and avoid accidental touches waking the screen, too.
Swipe the Bottom of the Screen to Switch Apps
The new iPhones have plenty of gestures to get around iOS, but entering the app switcher can be a little fiddly. Here’s the easy way to switch between recently used apps. This is a feature that a lot of people don’t take the best advantage of, but when you add it to your repertoire of swipes, you’ll never want to go back.
RELATED: How to Quickly Switch Apps by Swiping on the iPhone X, XR, XS, and iPhone XS Max
Learn All the Useful Gestures
There are plenty of other things you can do with a quick gesture, and we cover them all right here. Who knew that there were so many different ways to wave a finger at a screen?
RELATED: You’re Probably Swiping on Your iPhone X Wrong, Here’s How to Do It Right
Turn Your New iPhone Off
You’d be amazed at how different some very basic things are with the arrival of the new iPhones. Like, for example, just turning the thing off. You might not need to do it often, but when you do, it would be handy if you knew which buttons to press.
RELATED: How to Turn Off the iPhone X, XS, and XR
Take a Screenshot Without a Home Button
Taking a screenshot hasn’t gotten any more difficult with the refreshed, but without the Home button, it works differently. Screenshots are great ways to show people apps or how to do something, and we use them a lot!
RELATED: How to Take Screenshots on an iPhone X, XR, XS, and XS Max
Use Trackpad Mode to Select Text
Apple made a really poor job of making this feature apparent, but did you know that you can turn your iPhone’s keyboard into a trackpad? You do now. There are some bonus tips that might be of use if you own an iPad, too.
RELATED: How to Use Trackpad Mode on iPhone and iPad to Select Text
Set Up and Use Apple Pay
Apple Pay is still an unsung hero of the iPhone and the Apple ecosystem as a whole, and things changed a whole lot with the arrival of Face ID. With no Touch ID to authenticate, you now need to give your iPhone attention before it allows you to pay. It sounds clumsy, but it isn’t.
RELATED: How to Set Up and Use Apple Pay on an iPhone
Set Up and Use Siri
Siri is often the butt of jokes, but it’s more than serviceable if you work within its limitations. But how do you use it if you have no Home button? Don’t worry, we’ll give you the lowdown.
RELATED: How to Set Up and Use Siri on an iPhone