Our 6 Favorite iOS 14 Features and How to Use Them on Your iPhone Now

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After install iOS 14 on your iPhone ($ 699 at Amazon)You may ask yourself, now what? Well, a present awaits you. Apple’s update is packed with new features that will change the way you use your phone, for the better. From an Android-like app drawer to iMessage enhancements and widgets for your home screen, there is much that I like.

If it hasn’t been updated yet, take some time to prepare your iPhone before you install the iOS update. Here are six of my favorite features and how to use them in iOS 14.

Read more: Apple One, new iPad Air and Apple Watch 6 and SE: everything Apple just announced

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First take: iOS 14 and all its new features

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1. Tag someone in a text conversation

Apple’s updates to its Messages app focused primarily on group iMessage conversations.

Than: You can now tag someone in a conversation when you want to get their attention (useful for large groups) and reply directly to a message, creating a thread within your conversation. That should give you a timely reply.

How: Tagging someone in a group conversation should be as simple as typing the @ symbol followed by their name in the chat. An online reply is made by long-pressing a message and selecting Reply.

2. Pin a conversation to the top of messages

Than: Pinning a conversation to the top of the Messages app means you don’t have to scroll through the long list of contacts and group conversations to find your favorite contacts. This is especially helpful if you have a group to go to, such as a family chat or friend chat where you talk every day, or if you are planning a long-term event like a group watching party.

How: You can pin a contact or conversation to the top of your conversation list by sliding your finger to the right on any thread.

3. Apple now has its own translation app

ThanInstead of having to use the Google Translate app on your iPhone, iOS 14 has a built-in Translator app that will allow you to convert text and even have conversations with someone who only speaks a different language. It can translate English, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Portuguese, and Russian.

How: You have two options once you open the app. You can type the word or phrase you want to translate or touch a microphone icon at the bottom of the screen to use speech-to-text conversion. Once you’re done, the app will translate what you said into the language of your choice. This is especially useful if you are asking someone a quick question or want to hear the pronunciation as well.

To have an ongoing conversation, place the phone in landscape mode and tap the same microphone icon; you don’t have to hold down.

4. A more organized home screen with the application library

Ever wished that your iPhone had an app drawer like Android? Well now it does. It’s called the Application Library.

Than: App Library is a new screen to the right of the last home screen. Automatically organize all the applications on your phone into folders according to the category of the application. The purpose of this feature is to make it easy for you to find all the apps installed on your iPhone. It goes hand in hand with another new home screen feature that allows you to hide pages of apps that you use infrequently.

How: Use the Application Library when you want to open an application that is not displayed on one of your home screens. To access it, swipe from right to left to go past the final home screen. Use the auto-organized folders to find the icon for the application you want, or use the search bar at the top of the screen to search for the application by name if you’re not sure where it is located. Alternatively, at the top of the app library screen, you will find two folders: Suggestions and Recently Added. Both will automatically update and adjust which apps are in which folder based on how often you use an app and what you’ve recently installed.

Here is more information on how hide home screen pages for easy access to app library.

5. Widgets have a new look and a new home

You no longer have to be envious of your friends who use Android: the iPhone can now have widgets on the home screen. So is.

Than: Instead of widgets being limited to the Today view that lives on the left side of the home screen, you can now add widgets directly to your screen, with various sizes as an option. There’s even a Smart Stack widget that will show you information from multiple apps when you think you need it. For example, you can show you the weather widget followed by your calendar widget when you wake up in the morning.

How: You can see your widgets in Today view as you always have, on the left side of the main home screen, or you can drag and drop a widget from Today view to the home screen. Alternatively, when editing your app layout, you can tap the plus log in at the top left corner of the screen, open the widget gallery and see what widgets you can add to your device.

6. Picture in Picture is a practical tool that you will love

IPad ($ 285 at Back Market) you have been able to play a video in picture-in-picture mode for a few years, and Picture in Picture finally comes to the iPhone.

Than: Picture in Picture creates a thumbnail image of a video that continues to play even when you are in another application or screen. It will appear when you want to shift gears to use a different part of the phone, but don’t want to stop the video.

How: As long as you are watching a video in a supported app, like Twitch, and swipe back to the home screen, the video will continue to play, only in a smaller window. You can drag PiP across the screen, adjust its size by pinching and zooming, and even temporarily hide it from the edge of the screen. When you’re done, tap the X to close the video. Oh, and let’s not forget: Picture in Picture also works with FaceTime video calling and these other applications. Hurrah!