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18 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.1

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Apple is expected to release iOS 18.1 on Monday, October 28, bringing the first set of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update marks the first significant step forward in Apple's AI integration, offering a new Siri contextually-aware experience and a range of additional capabilities powered by on-device machine learning and large language models. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls coming, too.

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While not all Apple Intelligence features will be available immediately, iOS 18.1 introduces several enhancements that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've listed 18 new things your iPhone will be able to do when the update rolls out later this month.

Reset Your Control Center

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With iOS 18, Apple made the Control Center thoroughly customizable, but there's no way to roll back your changes if things get messy. Fortunately, iOS 18.1 introduces a simple way to start fresh. In Settings ➝ Control Center, you'll find a new option to reset your Control Center to its default layout. This feature is perfect if you've made too many customizations and want to return to a clean slate without manually rearranging everything.

More Control Center Buttons

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Apple has introduced new individual toggles for Satellite and AirDrop in the Control Center, allowing users to add them as separate buttons to their Control Center configurations for the first time. Previously, both features were only available through the combined Connectivity control.

Take Selfies With Camera Control

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Camera Control gets a selfie upgrade in iOS 18.1. Now, you can switch to the front-facing camera without touching your screen. Simply open the Camera app with a press of the Camera Control button, then swipe on the button to cycle through lens options. Look for the person icon at the top to activate the selfie camera, making it easier to capture that perfect self-portrait.

Share ‌Apple Music‌ Songs on TikTok

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Apple Music now has an option to share ‌Apple Music‌ songs directly on TikTok. To do so, tap on Share Song and then choose TikTok from the list of apps.

Sleep Apnea Detection

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iOS 18.1 adds support for sleep apnea detection and breathing disturbances readings on Apple Watch Series 10 and Apple Watch Ultra 2. After updating to iOS 18.1, you can enable sleep apnea alerts in the Health app by searching for Breathing Disturbances. Notifications won't be sent until the Apple Watch has gathered at least 10 days of data, with analysis occurring every 30 days. Note that data collection for sleep apnea and breathing disturbances only begins after the update is installed and alerts are activated.

Proofread Your Text

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Embarrassing typos could be a thing of the past. iOS 18.1's new Writing Tools feature includes a powerful proofreading function. It not only checks for spelling and grammar errors but also suggests improvements in word choice and sentence structure. You can accept all suggestions with a single tap or review them one by one, complete with explanations.

Rewrite Your Text

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Need to change the tone of your message? The new Rewrite tool is capable of doing just that. Whether you want your text to sound more friendly, professional, or concise, this feature can adjust your writing style without altering the core content. It's like having a personal editor at your fingertips, helping you communicate more effectively in any situation.

Summarize Long Emails

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If you frequently suffer from inbox overload, this should be a welcome feature. When you receive a lengthy email, you'll now see a "Summarize" button that lets Apple Intelligence create a concise overview. Choose from options like a brief paragraph, key points, or even a bulleted list. This tool makes it easier to quickly grasp the essence of important messages without reading every word. Plus, your inbox now displays a brief AI-generated summary instead of the first few lines of each email, helping you prioritize your responses more efficiently.

Answer Apple Product Questions

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Your iPhone becomes a knowledgeable Apple expert with iOS 18.1. Siri can now tap into a vast database of product information, helping you understand device features, locate settings, and even provide tutorials on how to complete tasks. It's like having Apple Support built right into your device, available whenever you need it.

Offer Smart Replies to Emails and Messages

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Communication gets a boost with Smart Reply in iOS 18.1. When you receive an email or message, your iPhone will analyze the content and suggest contextually relevant responses. These quick-tap options make it easy to reply promptly and appropriately, saving you time and effort in your daily correspondence.

Summarize Multiple Message Notifications

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Catching up on group chats is set to get a lot easier. iOS 18.1 can summarize multiple message notifications on your Lock Screen, giving you a quick overview without the need to open the app. Thi... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: 18 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.1
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2024/10/21/18-new-things-your-iphone-can-do-ios-18-1/
Misunderstanding on my side.. I thought the camera BUTTON selfie option would have meant some kind of shortcut you could configure in the settings. So that you could press it and instantly take a selfie. I don’t understand what‘s the advantage the new „selfie upgrade“. Sounds like a lot of fiddling around… Or do I get it wrong?
 
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But will you disable unwanted Apple notifications such as new releases or your cellular is turned off?
 
-tb- said:
What about Writing Tools / Summarize e-mails and notifications.
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Meh,..I have Office, not interested in summarising emails or notifications. I'm used to a quick scroll and check.

I have actual AI in chat gpt button assigned in case I need it.
 
The question I have always had about the "proofreading" feature on the iPhone is this. Who writes large bodies of text on a small device like a phone to where proofreading would be useful? I see that more of a feature useful on an iPad or a laptop. If I had a new iPhone that supported Apple Intelligence features, the first thing I would try to find out is how I could go into settings and turn off many or most of these "features". I really am not all that interested in AI, but that is just me.
 
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RoadWarrior56 said:
The question I have always had about the "proofreading" feature on the iPhone is this. Who writes large bodies of text on a small device like a phone to where proofreading would be useful? I see that more of a feature useful on an iPad or a laptop. If I had a new iPhone that supported Apple Intelligence features, the first thing I would try to find out is how I could go into settings and turn off many or most of these "features". I really am not all that interested in AI, but that is just me.
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I surprised myself for wanting it. I run the 15.1 beta on my MacBook Pro, and have found the proofreading feature useful enough that I've found I have reflexively gone to reach for it on my phone. I'm sticking with my iPhone 14 for a few years longer, though, so I'll just have to get used to it.
 
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The only so-called AI feature that I might find useful on an iPhone would be a "smarter" SIRI, that could do a better job answering questions or even better dictation based on voice recognition. The least likely feature I would ever use is email summaries. I want to see the emails as they are written. I would not trust artificial summaries of emails generated from a computer. And as I stated before, if I ever wanted proofreading, it would most likely be on a device where I was actually writing large amounts of text. In my case, I am an engineer, and I write technical reports on my laptop or my work desktop. Once and awhile, I will write on an iPad.
 
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"Siri, please submit feedback to Apple.... please tell them to bring back date and caption searches in Photos with iOS 18."

Seriously am I wrong that specific date and caption searches no longer work in iOS 18? I still haven't upgraded but hav been reading comments on various forums. Like I've spent YEARS adding captions to my images in Photos to find specific car photos etc. that I post in social media. I also go into my photos daily and type in 10.21 to see all the pics I took on Oct 21st. I know they broke this functionality with indexing issues in iOS 17 point something but it was then fixed only to be removed with iOS 18? I just do not understand and I guess I'm finally getting to the point others have been at with other things... where I'm frustrated basic functionality was removed. I have 132,606 and 9,834 photos/videos in my Photos app so I really want it to work the way it has been (hence I am still on iOS 17).
 
rotlex said:
So basically absolutely nothing of any worth or value.
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The ability to record calls natively is awesome. I record my calls during investigations and having an easy way to do that on my cell is great.

I'm using the 18.1 beta and the feature works great. Plus you can get a transcript.
 
iFunk said:
"Siri, please submit feedback to Apple.... please tell them to bring back date and caption searches in Photos with iOS 18."

Seriously am I wrong that specific date and caption searches no longer work in iOS 18? I still haven't upgraded but hav been reading comments on various forums. Like I've spent YEARS adding captions to my images in Photos to find specific car photos etc. that I post in social media. I also go into my photos daily and type in 10.21 to see all the pics I took on Oct 21st. I know they broke this functionality with indexing issues in iOS 17 point something but it was then fixed only to be removed with iOS 18? I just do not understand and I guess I'm finally getting to the point others have been at with other things... where I'm frustrated basic functionality was removed. I have 132,606 and 9,834 photos/videos in my Photos app so I really want it to work the way it has been (hence I am still on iOS 17).
Click to expand...
136k photos? How do you find anything?
 
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This is embarrassing really. Apple has a few things going for it still, including good design, a good Mac platform (long may it not drift into the iOS world). The "ecosystem" bit, I see as more of a disadvantage as a long-time Mac user and never-iphone user. Annoying inconvenience. Leaving aside the inability to use many Airpods features on anything but an iOS device, which is just needlessly irritating.

Of the 18 new iOS 18.1 features, at least 13 have been available in Android for some time, particularly in areas like customisation, smart replies, phone call recording, and object removal from photos. Some of the more advanced AI-driven features, like text rewriting or detailed summarisations, are relatively newer and less developed on Android natively, but ChatGPT has this handled well and other third party apps like Grammarly do it too.

Passing these off as new features with fanfare feels like an overstep.
 
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