iOS 18 is available now. Here are some of the finest new features.
Apple’s iOS 18 is now available, with numerous new features and changes meant to improve the user experience.
As expected, iOS 18 builds on Apple’s philosophy of refining the mobile operating system while introducing innovative features that cater to a wide range of users.
Whether you’re interested in better personalization, improved privacy, or more brilliant functionality, iOS 18 has something for everyone.
Let’s explore some of the most notable new features that set this update apart.
Enhanced Customization with Widgets and Lock Screen of iOS 18
One of the most anticipated changes in iOS 18 is the increased ability to customize widgets and the lock screen.
Building on the enhancements introduced in iOS 16 and 17, Apple has taken customization to the next level by allowing users to personalize every aspect of their lock screen.
Now, you can add interactive widgets directly to the lock screen, offering real-time updates from apps like weather, calendar, and more, without unlocking your phone.
In addition, widgets are now fully customizable in design and functionality. Users can change the shape and colour and add animations to their widgets for a more interactive experience.
Whether you want quick access to your health stats or control over your smart home devices, widgets are now more functional than ever.
Completely modify your home screen (and more).
Creating a distinctive iPhone home screen has been challenging. Yes, you can make (or purchase) themed app icon packs and use Shortcuts to modify the appearance completely.
If you need more desire or time to accomplish that, iOS 18’s new home-screen personalization tools allow you to tint your app icons to match your phone’s backdrop.
Additionally, you may set your icons to dark mode or change them automatically from day to night.
To change your home screen, Long-press the screen, then tap the Edit button in the top-left corner while the apps jiggle. You can also alter the background’s brightness and the app’s size.
Secure sensitive apps.
Although Apple has made it harder for thieves to take over your life by stealing your phone, the issue still exists: if your phone is unlocked, anyone with it can access almost all your apps. iOS 18 allows you to lock particular apps, requiring Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode to access them.
This is ideal for medical and banking apps and anything else you want customers to avoid making mistakes with.
Customize the Control Center.
The Control Center improvements are a power user’s paradise, but the most noticeable updates to iOS 18 are custom colours and home screen layouts.
With iOS 18, you may choose and arrange your controls from a far more extensive list of options—which now includes controls from third-party apps—instead of being presented with a single page of preselected controls.
To customize the Control Center, long-press the screen and swipe from the upper-right corner.
Controls with rounded edges can be resized and rearranged on any page. Add a control to the bottom of the screen to view all possibilities.
Siri Gets Smarter and More Intuitive
Apple has significantly improved Siri in iOS 18, making the voice assistant more intelligent and intuitive. One of its most notable features is Siri’s ability to manage multi-step instructions.
For example, you can ask Siri to “Book a table at a restaurant and set a reminder for tomorrow,” it will complete both tasks seamlessly. Siri is also more conversational, making follow-up questions and answers more natural.
Another notable feature is offline Siri processing. Siri can handle many requests even when you’re not connected to the internet, significantly speeding up tasks like opening apps, setting alarms, or checking system settings.
Redesigned Control Center
In iOS 18, the Control Center has undergone a comprehensive overhaul for more straightforward navigation and functionality.
You can customize the layout more freely, rearranging and resizing icons to prioritize your most-used features. The improved Control Center also integrates more deeply with HomeKit, allowing for better control over smart devices.
A new “Quick Access Shortcuts” feature lets users assign specific actions to certain controls.
For example, you can set a double-tap on the brightness slider to activate Night Shift or configure a long press on the music control to skip songs.
AI-Powered Health App Updates
Apple continues to expand its focus on health and wellness with iOS 18. The Health app now includes AI-driven insights that provide a more comprehensive analysis of your health data.
Using machine learning, the app can identify patterns in your health habits and offer personalized recommendations to improve your well-being.
The app also includes a new feature called “Sleep Coaching,” which uses data from your Apple Watch to suggest improvements to your sleep patterns.
Additionally, iOS 18 introduces “Mental Wellness Tracking,” which allows users to log their moods, monitor mental health trends, and gain insights into managing stress and anxiety.
Send enhanced SMS to everyone, including those who utilize Android.
The good news is that Android and iPhone text messaging is improving. (Unfortunately, green bubbles are currently the only option for Android users.) Photos and videos will be delivered at a higher resolution because iOS 18 now supports the RCS communications standard.
This means you can see the adorable footage of your nieces and nephews instead of a low-resolution clip taken with a camera from the 1990s.
You’ll also receive read receipts, which allow you to validate whether your Android-owning friends are seeing your texts (even if they don’t respond). RCS functionality is available for every iPhone that runs iOS 18.
Live Translation Across Multiple Apps
Building on the success of Apple’s Translate app, iOS 18 introduces system-wide live translation.
This feature allows users to translate text in real-time across different apps, from Messages and Safari to Notes and Mail. You can now select text in any language and translate it instantly without switching between apps.
The keyboard’s ability to communicate in different languages is even more impressive. If you’re chatting with someone in a foreign language, your typed text will automatically be translated into their language as you type, making communication smoother.
Improved Privacy Features of iOS 18
Apple is still a leader in security and privacy, and iOS 18 adds several new measures to safeguard user information.
The “Privacy Dashboards,” which provide consumers with a thorough picture of how apps utilize their data, are among the most important upgrades.
The dashboard gives users more control over their privacy by clearly displaying the data that each app is accessing, such as location, contacts, camera, and microphone usage.
Apple has also added an “App Activity Report” feature that provides information on which apps have accessed sensitive data and how frequently. Users can now choose which apps to limit and which to trust.
Proactive Notifications
With iOS 18, notifications have become more innovative and less intrusive. Apple has introduced “Proactive Notifications, “prioritizing alerts based on activity, location, and habits. For example, if you check your messages in the morning, iOS 18 will prioritize new notifications.
Similarly, notifications from apps you rarely use will be minimized or grouped, reducing clutter and distraction.
This intelligent notification system ensures you’re only alerted to what’s important when it’s essential. Additionally, iOS 18 allows for deeper customization of notification styles, letting you decide how notifications from specific apps appear and when.
iMessage Innovations
With iOS 18, iMessage receives several exciting enhancements that make it more vibrant and interactive. One of the significant new features is the ability to work together in real time on papers, spreadsheets, and other files within a discussion.
For instance, several people can work on the same project or document simultaneously, and modifications will be immediately visible in the chat.
Users may now share brief video clips using iMessage’s in-app video message recording feature instead of transferring to the Camera app.
Additionally, Apple has expanded Memoji customizations, allowing users greater control over their virtual personas.
CarPlay and Navigation Enhancements
With the significant enhancements to iOS 18, CarPlay is now a more potent driver tool. Thanks to Apple’s increased customization possibilities, users can select from various dashboard layouts and widget integrations.
More thorough maps, real-time traffic updates, and proactive route recommendations based on scheduled appointments and frequently visited locations have also been added to enhance navigation.
More third-party apps are now supported by CarPlay, extending its functionality beyond entertainment and navigation.
CarPlay is increasingly integrating into the driving experience through communication apps, productivity tools, or health-related capabilities.
Journal more deliberately.
With iOS 17, Apple debuted a lightweight journaling app, and we thrilled by its well-considered feature set and simple design.
In iOS 18, the Journal app now has a State of Mind option, which lets you quickly record your emotions using mood shapes and link that data to the Health app to monitor your mood over time.
New writing prompt widgets, data to display the amount of writing you’re doing, rich text formatting (bold, italics, etc.), and the option to add a transcription to attached audio—which turns your voice logs into text—are also added to the Journal app.
Conclusion
Apple’s dedication to improving the iPhone user experience demonstrated by iOS 18. With its emphasis on privacy, customization, and more creative functionality, this version provides a comprehensive feature set that meets various user requirements.
iOS 18 is a valuable and exciting upgrade, regardless of whether you’re interested in the updated Health app insights, enhanced Siri, or redesigned widgets.
Apple has raised the standard for mobile operating systems once more as customers take advantage of everything iOS 18 offers.