iOS 18, Apple’s highly anticipated mobile operating system, has finally arrived. First unveiled at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2024, it is now available to the public as of September 16, 2024.
So, how do you upgrade to iOS 18? If you own a second-generation iPhone SE, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, or any model from iPhone 11 through iPhone 16 —you can run iOS 18. If automatic updates are enabled, your device will notify you when the new iOS is ready for installation.
This article discusses what’s new in iOS 18.
iOS 18 Features: Elevate your home screen with deeper customization
If you are an old iPhone user, you must have wondered when you can fully personalize your home screen. The wait is over. The iOS 18 update brings the next level of personalization to your home screens. Harness the customization tools to ensure your app icons match the wallpaper of your home screen with a tint. Your icons can also be set in dark mode or adjust automatically from morning to night or vice versa. To customize the Home Screen, long press and tap the edit button you see in the upper-left corner when Apps jingle. Edit the app’s size and even the background’s brightness levels.
Other available customizations in the iOS 18 features list:
- Transition from grid pattern placement of apps to a freer app placement across the Home Screen; if you have a picture on the home screen, you can place apps around the picture or place just a few apps on the home screen.
- Change the apps available on the lock screen; customize the lock screen with apps that you think are useful for you and not just the same old flashlight or camera shortcuts.
iOS 18 Features Bring Next-Level Upgrades to Messaging
With iOS 18 comes much-needed support for the Rich Communication Services (RCS) standard. This means when you share messages with friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances on Android phones, they will get a higher resolution image or video, rather than those old low-resolution messages. Also, now you will get ‘read receipts’ for messages, so you can be sure that your Android friends have got and read your messages.
iOS 19 feature list for messaging app:
- Apart from Apple’s default stickers and emojis, custom-made stickers or emojis can be used to react to text.
- Add effects to texts, such as exploding words.
- Schedule sending of text with send-later options; this feature is excellent if you want to reply to a text, but it is late in the day, so you can schedule it to be sent the next morning.
- Receive text messages even if you don’t have Wi-Fi or cellular coverage courtesy of much-improved satellite communications support. Available for iPhone 14 or newer phones.
- Messages sent from one iPhone to another are encrypted.
Photos App Gets an Upgrade with the iOS 18
What’s new in iOS 18 from the ‘Photos’ app perspective? Plenty! New features include groups of pictures generated automatically. For example, under People and Pets, you can see pictures of people and pets in your ‘Photos’ app. At the onset, it might look odd, as you might not be very comfortable with these automatically generated groups, but no fear—you have the option of either completely removing these groups or rearranging them as per your liking, e.g., Pinning the essential groups right at the front.
iOS 18 New Features – Tap to Send Cash
If you are using Apple Wallet, this feature is for you. You can now send money to anyone by touching the recipient’s iPhone with your iPhone. The only caveat is that you need money stored in Apple Cash, and both iPhone owners should be running iOS 18. All you need to do is enable it by going to Wallet – Apple Cash – Send or request – Tap to Cash.
Apple Maps Gets iOS 18 New Features.
We are so used to using maps to reach a destination within a city that we tend to feel disoriented when we cannot access them, e.g., while hiking. But that’s not a problem anymore. Apple Maps provides trail maps for all US national parks. But what if you don’t hike across National Parks but closer to home? You can now create trail routes with ‘Custom Route’.
More Synergy Between Reminders and Calendars
Create a to-do list in Reminders. With iOS 18, this list will auto-populate in the ‘Calendar’ app. But that’s not all. You can directly create reminders in ‘Calendar.’ You will also find design tweaks in the ‘Calendar’ app. In the month view, you will find that the current month is displayed in bold to make it more prominent. A new button lets users switch between four view options: Stacked, Compact, Details, and List. This means the usability of the ‘Calendar’ app has gone up a notch.
A More Streamlined Password Security
The iOS 18 features list also includes a standalone ‘Passwords’ app, which repackages Apple’s ‘Keychain’ features into a more enhanced avatar. Searching for websites and Wi-Fi network passwords is now easier than before. Passwords will also sync across all your devices, including iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Windows, with the iCloud for Windows app.
Lock that App Down: Keep Sensitive Apps Safe
If thieves ever steal your iPhone, you have the assurance that they cannot open specific apps because they are locked. With iOS 18, you can lock apps that require a Touch ID, Face ID, or even a password to open them. Lock your banking apps or any other app that contains your personal and sensitive information. For even more safety, move apps to a hidden folder that can only be opened upon authentication.
The Journal App Gets a Transformation
The ‘Journal’ app, released with iOS 17, now gets even better with the ‘State of Mind’ option. It allows you to log your emotions using mood shapes, and this information can then be shared with the ‘Health app. This way, you can track your mood swings over time. You can also use the writing-prompt widgets, check stats to know how much you have written, harness rich text formatting, and more to make your journal entries more meaningful.
Control Center Customization – It’s Here!
iOS 18 introduces an enhancement to the Control Center, allowing much-awaited customization. This feature enables users to arrange controls—including those from third-party apps—with complete freedom. You can now resize and position individual controls across multiple pages, tailoring the Control Center to your preferences and workflow. Access this customization feature by simply swiping down from the top right corner of your screen and long-pressing to enter edit mode. You can now create a Control Center that’s uniquely yours.
Experience Distraction-Free Browsing with Safari’s New Features
Known as one of the world’s fastest browsers, Safari packs a feature punch with iOS 18. After a web page loads, the browser surfaces key information on the web page, including summary, location address, and more. You also benefit from a much-improved Reader design that offers a streamlined view that makes articles more readable, an article summary, and TOC for lengthy articles. An interesting new feature in the browser is the ‘Distraction Control,’ which helps users hide information like sign-in banners and content overlays in a website that can potentially disrupt their browsing experience.
Number Crunching Unlocked in Notes
This is another excellent feature in the iOS 18 features list. If you have a math problem, the ‘Notes’ app can help you. You only need to type a problem; the results will be shown on the screen. You can also draw diagrams, assign variables, and plot graphs. Also, enjoy the design tweaks in the ‘Notes’ app, which include collapsible headings, rich text, colorful text, and highlighting, among others. Notes can now automatically transcribe your audio attachments.
Apple Intelligence iOS 18 Features on the Way
It is important to note that while you are excited about Apple Intelligence features being rolled out with iOS 18, these will only be available on the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPhone 16 phones. Also, the first batch of iOS 18 features list for Apple Intelligence will be rolled out in October when the iOS 18.1 makes its way to your phones.
What can you expect from Apple Intelligence:
- Remove those pesky people and objects that unintentionally photo-bomb your pictures, and do this directly from your Photos app. Also, search for the images you want to see in a more natural language and do fun stuff like generating a slide show with a prompt.
- In the Mail app, Apple Intelligence enables you to create replies based on the context of the message and will also summarize the message in the notification.
- Your “favorite” assistant, Siri, is set to get smarter as it will get a contextual understanding of your questions, and it might not be necessary to ask questions in a complete sentence.
- With Apple Intelligence, you can now transcribe a conversation from a recorded call through your ‘Phone’ app.
- When you enter a text in any app, you are presented with a Writing Tools option. This tool helps you summarize long notes, tweak your written tone, edit texts, and generate email replies.
Other iOS 18 New Features List
- The gaming experience receives a boost with Game Mode, with accessories becoming even more responsive
- With the ‘Home’ App, you can easily grant guests access to your home, and granting access to locks, security systems, and more.
- There are also enhanced accessibility features such as ‘Eye Tracking’ that help navigate the iPhone with eyes, and with Music Haptic, deaf users or those who are hard of hearing can enjoy music with the Taptic engine iPhone.
Conclusion
I hope this article answers your question about ‘What’s New in iOS 18’. It has covered all the significant features that this release brings to Apple devices, and as newer versions of iOS 18 are released, more features will be made available to users. This is just the beginning, and it is excellent!!
FAQs
- Is iOS 18 compatible with my iPhone
iOS 18 is compatible with the following iPhone modes: iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro Max, iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone SE (2nd generation), iPhone SE (3rd generation)
- How do I upgrade to iOS 18?
You can upgrade to iOS 18 by navigating to Settings > General > Software Update and following the on-screen instructions for downloading and installing the latest update.
- Are iOS 18 features better than the Android 15 features?
Both operating systems deliver features that provide users with good value, so choosing one over the other is difficult.
- I am using an iPhone incompatible with iOS 18. Should I upgrade to a newer iPhone?
The choice is yours. Before you upgrade, review the complete list of iOS 18 new features and check whether they meet your expectations. Make an informed decision.
- What was the release date for iOS 18?
The iOS 18 was officially released on 16th September 2024.
