Hallei is a 2018 graduate of Maharishi University of Management with a BFA in Creative & Professional Writing. She's currently working on a novel about people using witchcraft to clean their houses.
By Hallei Halter
Want to know how to get in touch with your favorite people even faster? On iPhone, you can favorite contacts so that you can reach them easier. You can set a default contact method and then just tap their name and get instantly connected by whichever option you choose. So text, call, and FaceTime with just a tap by adding contacts to Favorites on iPhone!
By Hallei Halter
Feel like you need to leave the house or want to squeeze in a small outing on your business trip? If you're wondering how to meet people or find local events, the Meetup app is your answer. With its array of groups and events created by people local to the area, Meetup could show you something you've never seen before, even in your own hometown.
By Hallei Halter
Know you have a birthday party to go to this month but can't remember the date? Need to see when your last haircut appointment was? Here's how to search the Calendar app on your iPhone or iPad to find events and their dates. You'll have to have the events already saved to your Calendar, but most holidays (like Easter or Ramadan) are automatically entered in the Calendar app by default.
By Hallei Halter
I habitually autoplay hours of Netflix or Youtube because I like the sound of people talking while I'm puttering around my apartment. Podcasts naturally fill that need with the bonus that I'm not missing any context since there's nothing to watch, only listen to. But even when I'm only listening, I still want to personalize my choices. Overcast is a podcast player app that gives me as many choices as I want when it comes to selecting content and how I want to hear it.
There's something soothing about grouping related things together, and that goes for contacts too! Contacts are listed alphabetically in the Contacts app and Apple doesn't offer a way to group them by any other criteria (although you can use the search function to filter contacts by things like company name or notes you may have added to a contact card). But these contacts won't otherwise be grouped all together in your list of contacts. You can work around this by editing your contacts' names to include initials or words so they appear grouped together according to criteria determined by you. Use this tip to group your contacts by how you know them—work, a hobby, family, etc.—so you can quickly browse to message a specific person or see everyone in that group at once.
By Hallei Halter
It's easy (and annoying) to be distracted by your phone's alerts and incoming calls. Follow this tip on turning on your iPhone's silent mode if you need some peace and quiet but don't want to enable a Focus mode like Do Not Disturb. Here's how to put your iPhone's ringer on silent while the baby is napping, you're watching a show, or if you just find the sound of a phone ringing unpleasant.
By Hallei Halter
Are you using your iPhone as a speaker while you listen to music, and wishing there was a little more oomph to the the audio? Here's a quick trick to get an audio boost for your iPhone's music when just turning up the volume isn't cutting it. Essentially, this tip for the Apple Music app works by suppressing the bass tones of the audio, so you'll hear softer sounds more clearly.
By Hallei Halter
While you may think of Spotify or Apple Music when it comes to streaming music, if you're wanting to stay up to date with new music or browse your tried and true favorite albums, Amazon Music just about has it all. And you already have access to it if you are an Amazon Prime member. With the ability to find and listen to thousands of hours of music, you won't have to search for long to settle on something you enjoy.
By Hallei Halter
Want to see what any given week has in store for you in your iPhone's Calendar app? Just turn your iPhone on its side and you'll see your week in more detail. The Calendar app is one of a handful of iOS apps that shows you a different view if you hold your iPhone horizontally instead of upright. (You can see the Week view in both landscape and portrait oritentation on the iPad.) Looking at events in the week view allows you to see at a glance what you have planned over the next few days and makes it easy to reschedule events by dragging them from one time slot or day to another. Here's how to see the week view in Calendar.
By Hallei Halter
Having a timer with you that you can use at a moment's notice is incredibly handy. Setting a timer on your iPhone can prevent a cooking mishap or get you motivated if you're trying a time management style like the Pomodoro Technique. I often use my iPhone Timer when I have about 30 minutes before I need to leave the house, so I can catch up on dishes without being late. Here's how to set a timer on your iPhone.
