Leanne Hays has over a dozen years of experience writing for online publications. As a Feature Writer for iPhone Life, she has authored hundreds of how-to, Apple news, and gear review articles, as well as a comprehensive Photos App guide. Leanne holds degrees in education and science and loves troubleshooting and repair. This combination makes her a perfect fit as manager of our Ask an Expert service, which helps iPhone Life Insiders with Apple hardware and software issues.
In off-work hours, Leanne is a mother of two, homesteader, audiobook fanatic, musician, and learning enthusiast.
Bluetooth keyboards and iPad keyboard cases are super convenient, but you'll want to change from the external keyboard back to your Apple iPad on-screen keyboard from time to time. Here's how to switch keyboards from the touchscreen to the external keyboard and back on your iPad.
By Leanne Hays
We've been hearing rumors about 5G iPhones for well over a year, so when the latest Apple event was announced, we were excited to see the title, "Hi, Speed." A title like that could only mean one thing; Apple was finally going to reveal its 5G iPhone line. Today, it finally happened; Apple has brought 5G to the entire iPhone 12 line. Let's go over what 5G means in terms of iPhone capabilities and whether 5G network rollouts will happen quickly enough for you to use this feature any time soon. Also, let's not forget battery function! Will 5G be a major battery drain, and, if so, what can we do about it? Read on to find out.
Apple introduced MagSafe accessories for its new iPhone 12 lineup today at its October 13 iPhone event. MagSafe will make charging your iPhone 12 easier and faster than previous wireless generations; the frustration of placing your iPhone "just so" for wireless charging will also soon be a thing of the past. The line of MagSafe accessories includes cases, chargers, and wallets that connect to your iPhone with magnets. Read on to learn about MagSafe improvements to the iPhone 12, how MagSafe accessories work, what kind of gear you'll be able to purchase, and what MagSafe means for the iPhone accessory market. If you enjoy learning about wireless charging, fast charging, and charging myths, we can also give you the 411 on how to safely charge your device, MagSafe or otherwise.
The official Apple announcement has arrived! The second fall 2020 Apple event will take place on Tuesday, October 13. We can confidently assume that Apple will finally announce their new iPhones, the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro. We'll find out if talk of four different new iPhone models (one 5.4-inch, two 6.1-inch, and one 6.7-inch model) is accurate, if Apple will offer a more affordable version of the HomePod, and Tile-like Bluetooth trackers, called AirTags. We'll be offering commentary during the event in our Facebook group, and in the special podcast episode we'll be recording right after. Here’s how you can watch Apple's iPhone reveal too.
Some iPad and iPhone apps require mic and camera access to function properly, and some don't. Apple has introduced new app privacy settings with iOS 14, which allow users to customize access to personal data like photos and videos, app by app, choosing to allow full access, partial access, or no access at all. There's also a way to check microphone and camera access in your Settings app. This way, you can change camera and microphone settings for any app, all in the same place, so apps that don't need to listen to you or see you can't. Let's learn how to allow camera access on your iPhone and iPad or turn it off, and how to allow microphone access, or turn off access to your iPhone or iPad microphone.
The new Siri Suggestions widget for iOS 14 groups your frequently used apps together in one place on your iPhone Home Screen. At first, having your most-used apps in one place seems great. But if you're trying to cut back on using social media or playing games on your iPhone, or don't want everyone to know that you've downloaded Tinder, having those apps front and center becomes a problem. We've gone over how to add widgets, including the Siri Suggestions widget, to your Home Screen in a previous article. Now we'll show you how to stop individual apps from being included in the Siri Suggestions widget. There are two ways to remove an app from the Siri Suggestions widget; using your iPhone Settings, or via the widget itself. Let's get started.
Announce Messages with Siri allows Siri to announce and read text messages to you when you are wearing AirPods and Beats. This is handy while you're working out or your hands are occupied, but you'll also want to know how to stop Siri reading texts to you for those times when you don't need this feature.
By Leanne Hays
The latest Apple Watch update brings exciting new features to your watch and helps improve existing software and fix known bugs. If you've been wondering how to update your Apple Watch, we’ll cover which Apple Watches are compatible with watchOS 11 and how to get the watchOS 11 download so you can take advantage of the new Apple Watch update!
By Leanne Hays
iPadOS 18 is finally here! We’ll cover how to update your iPad so you can begin to take advantage of the new iPad software features right away. We'll also cover whether or not you should update to iPadOS 18, which models are compatible with the new operating system, and reasons why your iPad won't update to iPadOS 18.
By Leanne Hays
Emojis are a great way to add a little flair to messages and other text you type. Finding emojis has never been easier with a convenient emoji search bar built right into the default iOS keyboard. Let's learn how to use this emoji finder to quickly locate the emoji you want on your emoji keyboard.
