Hidden iOS Tips: 10 Tricks You Should Know

I’ll be honest, my iPhone is always with me. It’s where I work, connect, and manage everything. For a long time, I hardly scraped the surface of its powers.

I thought I understood my phone and all its functions. But the most beneficial shortcuts aren’t in Apple’s major announcements.

The reality is, Apple’s greatest strength—its clean, intuitive design—is precisely what conceals its finest features. iOS is replete with hidden iOS features, silently waiting to be uncovered. These features are typically hidden deep in settings, tackling the precise everyday annoyances that anger us.

After years of searching, I’ve produced the list that Apple should have provided in the box. This isn’t about the main news. It’s about the modest, practical improvements that will radically transform how you use your phone.

Here are the top 10 hidden IOS tricks are :

1. The Spacebar Trackpad: Stop Fighting the Text Cursor

Here’s what it does: skip the hassle of tapping at the screen just to position your text pointer. Turn your keyboard into a fine-control surface so you can slide the cursor right where needed – no more guessing or missing spots due to clumsy fingers.

How to do it: Next time you’re in any text field, simply press and hold the spacebar.  

Don’t lift a finger. You’ll see the letters on all the other keys instantly vanish, and the keyboard area becomes a blank slate. It has just transformed into a trackpad.

While still pushing down, glide your finger in any direction—up, down, left, or right. The text cursor will glide properly and smoothly over your text, enabling you to put it with surgical precision exactly where you want it.  

2. The ‘Copy and Delete’ Screenshot: Clear Your Camera Roll Clutter

What this trick is for: To use or share a screenshot (like a receipt, QR code, or confirmation number) one time without saving it to your Photos app. This prevents your camera roll from filling up with “screenshot junk”.  

How to do it:

1. The Quick-Share (For Speed):
   • Take a screenshot as normal (quickly press the side button and volume up button at the same time).  
   • The thumbnail preview will appear in the bottom-left corner. Do not tap it.
   • Instead, long-press (tap and hold) the thumbnail.  
   • The share menu will immediately pop up, bypassing the edit screen entirely. You can AirDrop it, text it, or send it to Slack, and then just swipe the thumbnail away.  
2. The De-Clutter (The Real Magic):
   • Take a screenshot and tap the thumbnail as usual.
   • Make any edits you need (crop, markup, etc.).
   • Now, tap the ‘Done’ button in the top-left corner.
   • This is the critical step: look at the menu that appears. Instead of saving, choose the magical ‘Copy and Delete’ option.  
   • This action copies your final, edited screenshot to your clipboard (so you can immediately paste it into iMessage, WhatsApp, or an email) but it never saves the file to your Photos app.  

3. The Back Tap: Your iPhone’s Secret Button

What this trick is for: To create a secret, invisible shortcut button on the back of your iPhone. You can set a double or triple tap on the Apple logo to instantly launch the Camera, toggle the Flashlight, or run any other shortcut you want.  

How to do it: This feature is called “Back Tap,” and it’s hidden in Accessibility.

1. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch.  
2. Scroll all the way to the bottom and tap on ‘Back Tap’.  
3. You will see two options: ‘Double Tap’ and ‘Triple Tap’. You can program each one to do something different.
4. Tap ‘Double Tap’ and look at the list of actions. You can set it to launch the Camera, toggle the Flashlight, take a screenshot, open the Control Center, mute your phone, or even run a complex, custom Siri Shortcut.  

4. The ‘Print-to-PDF’ Pinch: The Hidden File Converter

What this trick is for: To instantly save any webpage, email, note, or ticket as a clean, multi-page PDF for offline use or sharing. It’s a built-in file converter that doesn’t require any third-party apps.  

How to do it: This trick works from any app that has a ‘Print’ option (like Safari, Mail, or Notes).

1. Find the content you want to save. Tap the Share icon (the little box with the arrow pointing up).
2. Scroll down the share menu and tap ‘Print’.  
3. This will open a “Print Options” screen with a preview of your document at the bottom. Ignore all the printer settings.
4. Focus on the small thumbnail previews of the pages. Using two fingers (like your thumb and forefinger), ‘pinch out’ on one of the thumbnails, just like you would to zoom in on a photo.  
5. The preview will instantly expand to fill your screen. Your iPhone has just silently converted the entire document into a perfect, multi-page PDF.  
6. You’ll see a new Share icon (now in the top-right or bottom-left corner). Tap it, and you can save this brand-new PDF directly to your Files, or send it in an email or text.  

5. The Notes App Document Scanner: Ditch Your Home Office Scanner

What this trick is for: To create professional, high-quality scans of documents, receipts, or contracts. Instead of taking a dark, skewed photo, this tool (hidden in the Notes app) automatically flattens the image, adjusts the contrast, and saves it as a clean PDF.  

How to do it:

1. Open the Notes app and create a new note.
2. In the toolbar above the keyboard, tap the Camera icon (do not open your main Camera app).
3. A small menu will pop up. Select ‘Scan Documents’.
4. Your camera will open, but in a special scanner mode. Don’t press the shutter button.
5. Just point your phone at the document. You’ll see a yellow box appear as it automatically detects the edges of the paper.
6. It will automatically snap the picture for you, correcting for any perspective skew (so even if you’re at an angle, the scan will look perfectly flat) and adjusting the contrast to make the text sharp and the background white.
7. It will then say “Ready for next scan.” You can keep scanning multiple pages, and the app will automatically bundle them into a single PDF file, right there in your note.

6. Text Replacement: The 3-Second Email

What this trick is for: To stop typing the same phrases over and over, like your email, home address, or common replies. This lets you create short shortcuts (like @@) that automatically expand into full sentences or phrases.  

How to do it:

1. Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement.  
2. Tap the plus icon (+) in the top-right corner to create a new one.
3. You’ll see two fields:
   • Phrase: Type the full thing you’re tired of typing (e.g., my-super-long-email-address@my-domain.com).
   • Shortcut: Type your trigger. This needs to be a short, unique code that you won’t type by accident (e.g., @@).
4. Tap ‘Save’.  

7. Silent Keyboard, Haptic Feel: Stop the Click-Clack

What this trick is for: To silence the annoying keyboard “click-clack” sounds when you’re in a quiet place, without losing the satisfying, tactile vibration feedback for each keypress.  

How to do it:

1. Go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Keyboard Feedback.  
2. You will see two simple toggles: ‘Sound’ and ‘Haptic’.
3. Turn ‘Sound’ OFF.
4. Turn ‘Haptic’ ON.  

8. Reduce White Point: The Real Dark Mode for Your Eyes

Here’s what it does: works great at night if your display feels too glaring, despite being turned down all the way. A secret option lets you darken the screen more – easing stress on your eyes when the lights are off.  

How to do it:

1. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size.  
2. Scroll down and toggle on ‘Reduce White Point’. An intensity slider will appear, allowing you to make your screen incredibly dim.
3. The Pro Tip: That’s a huge pain to dig for every night. We’re not going to do that. Instead, let’s add it to your secret power-user shortcut.
   • Go back to Settings > Accessibility.
   • Scroll all the way to the very bottom and tap ‘Accessibility Shortcut’.
   • Select ‘Reduce White Point’ from the list.

9. Vehicle Motion Cues: The End of Car Sickness

What this is for: To assist decrease or avoid motion sickness while you’re using your phone as a passenger in a moving car. It shows small, dynamic dots on the screen borders that adapt to the car’s motion, which may assist decrease the sensory conflict that causes nausea.

How to do it:

1. This is another gem from the power-user menu. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Motion.  
2. Tap on ‘Vehicle Motion Cues’.
3. You can set it to ‘On’ (always), but the best option is ‘Automatic’.  
4. With ‘Automatic’ selected, your iPhone will use its built-in sensors (like the accelerometer) to detect when you’re in a moving vehicle and turn on the dots for you. When you stop, they fade away.  

10. The Standalone Passwords App: Your Keychain, Unleashed

What this trick is for: To quickly find and manage all your saved passwords, passkeys, and Wi-Fi credentials in one place. Apple has moved this feature from being buried in the Settings app to being its own dedicated “Passwords” app (on iOS 18 and later).  

How to do it:

1. If you are on iOS 18 or later, just swipe down on your Home Screen to open Search.
2. Type ‘Passwords’.
3. You’ll see a new, dedicated app icon (it’s gray with a key). Open it.

You’re officially the “iPhone Friend”

You’re provided with 10 tips that will actually save you time, remove your clutter, and make your iPhone seem like the powerful, customized gadget you purchased for.

We’ve observed that the best, most valuable features aren’t necessarily the ones on the sign. They’re the little, sensible responses to those minor, daily times of anxiety. It’s about making your computer seem less like a tool you have to battle and more like a fluid extension of you.

If you’ve made it this far, you’re undoubtedly the “iPhone friend”—the one everyone passes their phone to when they can’t figure anything out.

But this list is simply a starting point. The beauty of iOS is that there are hundreds more mysteries hiding underneath. Now, I want to hear from you.

FAQs: Hidden iOS TipsFAQs: Hidden iOS Tips

Q1. Do all iPhone versions support these secret iOS tricks?

A1. Lots run on newer iOS builds – so long as your iPhone’s up to date, it’ll handle them just fine.

Q2. Is it necessary to download outside apps for these hacks?

A2. No! Your iPhone’s got these tools right inside – it just needs you to turn ‘em on.

Q3. Does enabling secret functions use up more power?

A3. Nah, not exactly – most so-called tricks here? They’re just quick fixes instead of strong tools.

Q4. Don’t know much about tech? These tips – simple to pick up?
A4. Yep. These are basic tools you use daily – zero complex actions needed.

Q5. What’s the best way to catch sneaky new stuff when updates drop?

A5. Make sure your iPhone stays up to date – take a look at the “What’s New” part every time you get a big iOS upgrade.