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.
The Worldwide Developers Conference 2019 keynote event has come and gone, leaving us with an array of updates, reorganizations, additions, and hardware to assimilate into our mental map of Apple products and services. Rumors were flying about the death of iTunes, new iOS, watchOS, and Mac features; now let’s go over what really happened, and what it means for both Apple developers and customers.
By Leanne Hays
All of us have had to plow through at least one difficult day of school or work after a less-than-optimal night of sleep. But what happens when a rough night becomes the norm? The Centers for Disease Control collects data about the sleep habits of Americans and reports that one in three of us are getting fewer than the recommended seven hours of sleep per night. Whether you can’t fall asleep, can’t stay asleep, or both, insomnia is not only miserable but bad for your health. I’m one of those insomniacs who wakes up more nights than not after about four hours of shut-eye, and who’s unable to drift off again for at least an hour or two. If you’re like me and have spent many wakeful hours wishing you could just relax and sleep, it’s time to find some help. I’ve been researching why insomnia occurs, as well as testing iPhone gear and apps meant to deliver a good night’s sleep. Here, I’ll share the tips, apps, and gear that have been most effective so far in my quest to cure my insomnia.
Ever since I got my iPhone X last year, I’ve been intrigued by the possibility of creating a wireless charging station for it. Sure, there’s a burgeoning supply of furniture with Qi chargers already built in, but they’re more expensive than I’m willing to spring for. Beyond that, I enjoy repurposing all sorts of items around the house, from pallets, to fabric, to old box springs, and thought this project would be a great way to reuse a less-than-gorgeous piece of furniture while improving my less-than-stellar carpentry skills. My goal was to combine the old and worn with cutting-edge technology to create a piece of furniture no one would suspect had the ability to wirelessly charge your iPhone.
One of my favorite uses for my iPhone is taking and sharing pictures, but with so many different methods and platforms, it can get a little tricky. Let's cover everything about saved images and photos, including how to save and share pictures from text and iMessage, from email, with AirDrop and iCloud, from Shared Albums, and even social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
By Leanne Hays
This article will tell you how to flip an image on an iPhone using the Apple Photos app. Before iOS 13, flipping photos required a third-party app. Now the flip tool is included in the Photos app so that you can create a mirror image without all the extra steps.
Apple finally announced its rumored TV streaming service at the March 25 event in Cupertino. The tech giant is branching out in a big way and bringing other streaming and cable subscriptions under the umbrella of a completely redesigned Apple TV app. As well, Apple will offer original content through its premium Apple TV Plus service. Let’s go over everything we know so far about the updates to the Apple TV app and Apple TV Plus streaming service.
By Leanne Hays
Right on the heels of the iPad Air and iPad mini 5 announcement comes another release we've been wishing for; Apple's second-generation AirPods are finally here! The new AirPods are faster and more efficient, offer extended battery time, improved sound quality, and even the option of wireless charging. Let's go over the features, pricing, and availability of the latest AirPods so you can decide if you'd like to invest in a pair of the Bluetooth earbuds.
By Leanne Hays
An unexpected Apple announcement just dropped in advance of the March 25 event, and you're going to love it! Two new iPads are available for pre-order now and will be in Apple Stores by next week, a 10.5-inch iPad Air and the long-awaited iPad mini 5. I'm going to be the first to say I was wrong; in my iPad mini 5 rumors article I wrote that Apple was probably finished with the mini line since it's been so long since one was released and iPhone screens are getting almost as large as those on Apple's smallest tablet. Let's go over everything you'll want to know about the newest iPads including features, dimensions, finishes, and price so you can decide which of these tablets you'd like to buy.
By Leanne Hays
Here's how to find and use your iPad and iPhone emoji keyboard. Apple offers happy, cute, smiley, and holiday emojis, and thousands more free iOS emoji! Let's learn how to find and use the emoji keyboard on your iPhone for text messages, social media posts, and more. This way, you won't have to copy and paste emoji; just click to add them to your text.
By Leanne Hays
Have you had the issue where your Apple Watch becomes zoomed in and won't zoom out? If your Apple Watch is seemingly zooming in by itself, it's probably because the Zoom accessibility feature became enabled. Thankfully, you can still navigate your Apple Watch while zoomed by using two fingers to scroll instead of one, but this can make it more difficult to use your watch. Here's how to zoom out on Apple Watch.
