Keep your phone private and block personalized ads on iPhone
It’s important to know how to block personalized ads on iPhone. In 2022, user data is a modern-day currency and even companies like Apple use iPhone owners’ usage patterns to personalize the ads they see.
While it’s not quite to the same extent as the likes of Meta, who are looking to track our every eye movement in the Meta Quest Pro, personalized ads tracking our behaviour might still be scary to some. It’s natural then to want to block ads on iPhone and, thankfully, privacy is something Apple is now championing. As such there is a super quick way to block personalized ads on iPhone. Here’s how.
Note: blocking personalized ads doesn’t mean ads will be blocked altogether, so you will still receive the same amount of ads. It’s just that your behavioural data won’t be used by Apple to tailor the ads to you. To block ads altogether, you’ll need one of the best ad blockers for mobile.
How to block personalized ads on iPhone
1. Open theSettings app and tap Privacy & Security.
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3. Scroll down then tapApple Advertising.
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4. Toggle off Personalized ads.
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And that’s all you have to do to block personalized ads on iPhone. Of course, there are plenty of other things you need to do to stay private online, using a VPN is a great way to do so but you could also consider a dedicated privacy browser such as DuckDuckGo.
Andy is Tom’s Guide’s Trainee Writer, which means that he currently writes about pretty much everything we cover. He has previously worked in copywriting and content writing both freelance and for a leading business magazine. His interests include gaming, music and sports- particularly Formula One, football and badminton. Andy’s degree is in Creative Writing and he enjoys writing his own screenplays and submitting them to competitions in an attempt to justify three years of studying.
Not every iPhone app needs access to your photos and contacts. Here’s how to stop them.
When you use an iPhone app for the first time, you might be asked to give the app access to other features on your phone like your camera. If you’re like me and just want a new app to work you’ve probably tapped “Allow” without a second thought. However, you might not realize that tapping “Allow” gives the app access to other information on yourself and those closest to you.
Those apps could be sharing your data with digital marketing and ad tech companies without your knowledge. Companies like Apple and Facebook have faced lawsuits and fines for allegedly misusing customer data.
If you’ve granted a third-party iPhone app certain permissions, you can revoke them at any time. Here’s how to stop third-party apps from accessing your data.
In the Privacy menu you can select functions like Contacts, Photos and Camera to see which third-party apps have requested permission to access this information. Tapping Contacts might show that a note taking app has access to the names and numbers of people in your contacts list. You can tap the slider next to these apps to halt access.
More in the Privacy menu
In addition to revoking app permissions in the Privacy menu, you can also customize which apps can access your location data. If you tap Location Services near the top of the menu, you can turn these services on or off for all or some apps on your phone. You can also tap the Share My Location menu to enable or disable Find My iPhone, as well as with which contacts you share your location.
There’s also an option in the Privacy menu called Apple Advertising. Tap this to view Apple’s ad targeting information, and turn these personalized ads on or off. Apple said turning personalized ads off will make ads you see in the App Store, Apple News and Stocks less relevant to you, but it might not reduce the number of ads you see in those apps.
Apple’s smartphone just turned 15. Lidar and AI could play a big role in where the iPhone goes next, experts say.
For Lucy Edwards, a blind, UK-based journalist and broadcaster, maintaining a social distance in public during the height of the pandemic was challenging. That’s why she tried People Detection, a feature within the iPhone’s Magnifier app that uses the iPhone 12 Pro‘s and 13 Pro‘s lidar sensor to detect when others are nearby.
“I’m going to have to get used to it, but I’m really excited that I can be in control again,” Edwards said in a BBC video from 2020 documenting her experience.
Lidar, or light detection and ranging, is just one example of how the technology inside the iPhone has evolved in the last 15 years. When the first iPhone launched, on June 29, 2007, it had a 3.5-inch screen that would be considered minuscule by today’s standards and a single 2-megapixel camera. Now Apple’s most sophisticated phones come equipped with triple-rear cameras that are advanced enough to shoot films, sensors that help people like Edwards navigate the world, and powerful chips with billions of transistors.
The iPhone often served as a catalyst for the technologies introduced within, whether it’s digital assistant Siri, mobile payments or wireless charging, and helped drive the evolution of how we live our mobile lives. But in the future, the most important part of the iPhone might be everything around it. That’s according to analysts who’ve observed the mobile industry’s general trends and Apple’s strategy.
In the short term, we’re likely to see incremental improvements like higher quality cameras and giant displays. But over the next decade, the iPhone could evolve into a hub for smart glasses and other devices. AirPods, Apple Watches and CarPlay-enabled vehicles may be just the start. The iPhone’s core elements, like its display and charging systems, are also expected to get a significant boost.
“The next quest for the smartphone is to figure out what it will connect to next,” said Runar Bjørhovde, an analyst with market research firm Canalys. “Because the smartphone has not necessarily reached its potential yet, but as a standalone device I think the smartphone is getting closer and closer to the edge.”
Your iPhone at the centre of everything
There’s plenty of speculation about what’s next after the smartphone. The resounding consensus seems to be smart glasses, with companies like Meta, Snap and Google all working on their own version of high-tech spectacles.
Apple is no exception; reports from Bloomberg indicate that the iPhone maker could debut a mixed reality headset this year or next that supports augmented and virtual reality technologies. A pair of AR-powered smart glasses could arrive later this decade, according to the report.
So what does this have to do with the iPhone? Possibly everything. Even though Apple’s headset is expected to function as a standalone device, the apps and services it runs would likely stem from the iPhone.
Think of the Apple Watch. It doesn’t need a nearby iPhone to function, but a large part of its appeal involves its ability to sync closely with Apple’s phone. Many of the Apple Watch’s notifications are also tied to accounts and apps that were set up on the iPhone.
Whether it’s a smart headset, the Apple Watch, AirPods or HomeKit-enabled appliances, analysts expect the phone to remain at the centre.
The iPhone will likely remain at the centre of the Apple experience, serving as a hub for AirPods, the Apple Watch and possibly a pair of smart glasses one day.
Scott Stein/CNET
“The phone will be the anchor,” said Gene Munster, managing partner for tech investment firm Loup Ventures and a long time Apple analyst.
But it isn’t just about connecting to new personal tech gadgets. Apple is gradually turning the iPhone into a viable replacement for the wallet, weaving it even more tightly into the nondigital aspects of our lives.
Apple has made a lot of progress on this front over the past year by rolling out new features like digital IDs for Apple Wallet and Tap to Pay, which turns the iPhone into a contactless payment terminal for merchants without additional hardware. Apple also just announced Apple Pay Later, which lets Apple Pay users split a purchase into four equal instalments paid over the course of six weeks.
“It’s clear that there’s a lot of momentum within financial services with Apple, and I think we will see further advancements there,” said Nick Maynard, head of research for Juniper Research.
Better lidar, more advanced AI for better spatial awareness
Making educated guesses about Apple’s general direction for the iPhone is certainly easier than pinpointing specific changes that might be coming. But analysts have some ideas based on the seeds Apple has planted in current iPhones.
Lidar will likely continue to be important as the company pushes more deeply into augmented reality. Apple added lidar on the iPhone 12 Pro in 2020 to boost the performance of AR apps, enable new camera tricks and facilitate accessibility features like the aforementioned People Detection. The technology measures distance by determining how long it takes for light to reflect off an object and bounce back.
Yet the iPhone’s current lidar sensors might not be sophisticated enough to bring Apple’s augmented reality ambitions to fruition, said Munster.
“Specifically what needs to happen is the mapping of the real world needs to be more accurate,” said Munster, whose firm conducts research on topics like augmented reality, autonomous vehicles and virtual reality. “And until that happens, AR isn’t really going to happen.”
The iPhone’s People Detection feature uses lidar.
James Martin/CNET
Lidar improves the iPhone’s depth-sensing skills, but it’s still up to the phone’s processor to make sense of all that data. Apple has leaned into artificial intelligence — one of Silicon Valley’s favorite buzzwords in recent years — to give the iPhone and other products more context about users and their surroundings.
Once again, you can look to the Apple Watch to see this approach at work. Apple’s smartwatch uses artificial intelligence and data gathered from its sensors for tasks such as tracking your sleep and noticing when you’re washing your hands.
Hanish Bhatia, a senior analyst for Counterpoint Research, provided a hypothetical example of how AI improvements could one day manifest in upcoming iPhones. He envisions a future in which Apple’s smartphone can observe a person’s habits to understand whether the phone’s primary user or a family member may be using the device.
“The way you use your phone, at what angle your smartphone is tilted … Do you press with a particular pressure, or do you just tap it with your nails or something like that?” he said as an example. “All of these are different types of behaviours which are very unique to a user.”
Bhatia’s example is speculative and doesn’t reflect Apple’s actual plans. But with advancements in AI and technologies like lidar and ultra wideband giving the iPhone more spatial awareness, it’s easy to imagine a scenario like this.
Displays and charging tech could get a big change
Perhaps one of the biggest questions surrounding Apple’s future smartphone plans is whether the company will ever create a foldable iPhone. Samsung, Apple’s biggest rival in the mobile space, has already launched several generations of phones with flexible designs. Motorola, Huawei and Microsoft have all followed suit, and Google is rumoured to be working on a bendable Pixel. Shipments of foldable smartphones are said to have increased by 264.3% in 2021 compared with 2020, according to The International Data Corporation.
But experts like Munster and Maynard are sceptical about whether Apple will take a similar approach. Though the tech giant has filedpatents for mobile devices with flexible displays, those filings aren’t always indicative of Apple’s plans. Sales of foldable phones have been growing, but shipments still pale in comparison with regular smartphones. (Research firm IDC estimates that 7.1 million foldable phones were shipped in 2021 compared with 362.4 million phones shipped in just the fourth quarter of last year). And then there’s the question of whether foldable devices bring anything truly new or meaningful to the smartphone experience.
There are also challenges with creating a true glass screen that’s foldable, says Munster. Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip has a glass screen, but that glass is also combined with “a special material” to “achieve a consistent hardness,” CNET reported in 2020.
“The piece that’s missing from my perspective is how [Apple] would actually do it,” Munster said.
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 3 can fold in half.
Sarah Tew/CNET
The iPhone’s charging experience is probably due for an upgrade too. Between USB-C, Lightning and MagSafe, it isn’t an exaggeration to say that Apple’s charging options are complicated. Maynard believes pressure from the European Union and US senators could mean a switch to USB-C might be in the iPhone’s future.
But more dramatic changes could also be in the pipeline. Rumours about a completely portlessiPhone have swirled for years, and Maynard doesn’t think it’s totally out of the question.
“I suspect if any vendor was going to launch a fully portless system, then it probably would be Apple,” said Maynard, citing Apple’s decision to remove the iPhone’s headphone jack in 2016.
Wireless charging has also been a focal point for Apple in recent years, further supporting the case for a port-free iPhone. There’s Apple’s relatively new MagSafe chargers, and many CarPlay-enabled vehicles also support wireless connections. Apple has also patented wireless charging systems that would be built directly into MacBooks, enabling Apple’s laptops to charge iPhones, Apple Watches and iPads. The iPad Pro’s Smart Connector also provides a quick and easy way to attach accessories to Apple’s tablet without a port.
“The number of systems that actually 100% must have a cable are diminishing,” Maynard said.
Apple’s MagSafe battery pack wirelessly connects to the back of an iPhone.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Otherwise, analysts expect to see routine upgrades to the camera in the near term. Munster says there’s room for improvement in the iPhone’s front-facing camera, while Bhatia expects Apple to continue to use display size and camera quality to distinguish the regular iPhones from its Pro iPhones.
It’s impossible to know what’s next for the iPhone without Apple’s input. But experts seem certain on one thing: Apple is laying the groundwork for the iPhone’s future today. Current iPhone features, like Apple’s lidar-powered accessibility tools meant to help people like Edwards, could provide a clue about what’s ahead.
“Everything we can see that they’ve done over the last few years is a good hint of what’s coming up next,” said Bjørhovde. “Because a lot of what I think they do is setting themselves up for the systems they want to integrate the iPhone into in the years to come.”
As we’ve covered a number of times already, expectations for the iPhone 14 line-up are pretty clear. Apple is likely to unveil four different iPhone 14 models across two screen sizes at 6.1-inches and 6.7-inches.
While Apple (usually) does a great job at keeping marketing names under wraps until a product is announced, it’s fun to speculate ahead of time. Something I’ve been pondering recently is whether the iPhone 14 line-up could mark the return of the “Plus” branding…
The iPhone 14 line-up is likely to consist of two 6.1-inch iPhone models, one of which will be branded as a “Pro” model and the other one being the “entry-level” model. This is unsurprising and is the exact strategy Apple used with the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13.
But where things are expected to differ is with the 6.7-inch iPhone models. At the high-end of the line-up will be the iPhone 14 Pro Max, again repeating the strategy used with the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13. For the first time, however, Apple is also expected to introduce an iPhone with a 6.7-inch display that is not branded as a “Pro” model.
What this means is that the iPhone 14 will be available in two different screen sizes across four different price points. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has suggested that the non-Pro version of the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 could be priced at around $900, making it the most affordable 6.7-inch iPhone ever released by Apple.
Loosely looking at current iPhone prices, that means the iPhone 14 line-up could look like this:
$799 iPhone 14
$899 iPhone 14 Max
$999 iPhone 14 Pro
$1099 iPhone 14 Pro Max
iPhone 14 Plus?
But my proposal and idea for Apple’s crack marketing team is this. Instead of using the “iPhone 14 Max” name, let’s bring back the “Plus” and call it the iPhone 14 Plus. How about this:
iPhone 14
iPhone 14 Plus
iPhone 14 Pro
iPhone 14 Pro Max
Having two versions of the iPhone 14 with “Max” tacked on the end could prove to be confusing for consumers. The “Plus” branding has also been very, very successful for Apple in the past. The iPhone 6 Plus, for instance, is one of the best selling iPhones of all-time.
The iPhone 14 line-up is actually looking like an extension of Apple’s iPhone 6 strategy of attempting to bring a large screen to as low of a price point as possible. If the iPhone 6 Plus success serves as any indication, the iPhone 14 Plus could be one of the most popular iPhone models in recent years.
Again, this is all just conjecture at this point and Apple does a great job at keeping iPhone branding under wraps until officially announcing the new devices. It’s also notoriously hard to predict Apple marketing names, and it could be that Apple does something unexpected this year. Drop the numbers all together? Go with the “iPhone 13S” instead? It’s anyone’s guess.
What are your thoughts on marketing names for this year’s iPhone 14 line-up? Give us your best guesses down in the comments.
Your iPhone has secret apps. Do you know how to find them?
There’s no reason to let your iPhone keep secrets from you, especially when those secrets could be so helpful in your everyday life. For instance, you may not be aware that any iPhone with a relatively modern version of iOS installed has hidden apps that you might actually want to use. Here’s how to surface the ones that aren’t so easy to find.
Code Scanner
You can scan a QR code by opening your Camera, but there’s also a Code Scanner app in iOS 14 and later that doesn’t come up when you search your iPhone apps. From Settings, tap Control Centre, scroll down to find Code Scanner and then hit the plus sign to move it into the Included Controls section. When you’re ready to use Code Scanner, just swipe down from the top right of your iPhone to open the Control Centre, then tap on the Code Scanner icon, which will bring up a camera view with the prompt, “Find a code to scan.”
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Magnifier
Likewise, Camera isn’t the only app that will allow you to get a zoomed-in view of your immediate environment. The hidden Magnifier app will not only bring you closer, but it’ll also allow you to adjust the brightness. Use the same process as with the Code Scanner to put Magnifier in your Control Centre. Tap Settings, Control Centre and the plus sign next to Magnifier, then swipe down from the top right of your iPhone to open the Control Centre. The slider adjusts zoom level (or you can pinch to zoom), and you can swipe up on it for more controls, including a shutter button, settings, flashlight, and adjustments for brightness, contrast, colour filters, etc.
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Field Test Mode
It may be Murphy’s Law that your iPhone has the weakest connectivity in the part of your house where you want to use it the most, but Field Test Mode can help you figure out the strength of your signal in numbers, not bars. In order to use Field Test Mode, you should first turn off Wi-Fi in your Control Centre or Settings. Then, open the Phone app and enter the following sequence of symbols and numbers:
*3001#12345#*
Then press the Call button, which will bring up the Field Test dashboard, where you can see which cellular bands you’re connected to, signal strength, and so much more.
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Feedback Assistant
If you’re good at identifying bugs, you should use Feedback Assistant (on iOS 12.4 and later) to report any that you find on Apple TV, Apple Watch, or HomePod. Automatic might catch a lot, but there’s no substitute for a good personal bug report. Open the Safari app and type applefeedback:// as the URL. This will open the Feedback Assistant which will prompt you to sign in using your Apple ID. If you’re using an iOS beta release, this app is likely visible in your App Library and may have been added to your home screen, but it’s secretly there even if you’re not running a beta version of iOS.
Can you schedule a text message on iPhone? You can if you know how!
Have you ever wanted to schedule a text message on your iPhone? Maybe you want to send weekly reminders of chores to your family or automatically let your spouse know when you’re heading home. Scheduling a text message makes sure your text will get to your desired person at the desired time. Let’s learn how to schedule a text on an iPhone.
How to Schedule a Text on iPhone
Learning to schedule a message on your iPhone is super handy if you want to send reminders on specific days, or even when you’re performing certain actions, like leaving the house, or going to sleep. In order to schedule a text message, you’ll have to set up a Shortcut to do it, which can be a little intimidating, but it turns out it’s pretty easy! To learn more about iPhone shortcuts, check out our Tip of the Day newsletter. Now, here’s how to schedule a text on your iPhone:
Open your Shortcutsapp.
At the bottom of the screen, tap Automation.
Tap the Add icon. If you don’t see the Add icon or have any existing automations, skip to step 4.
Tap Create Personal Automation.
In the New Automation menu, choose your text message’s prompt. In this example, I will use Time of Day, but there are lots of options to choose from.
If using Time of Day, choose from Sunrise, Sunset, or Time of Day to set a specific time to send the text message.
Under Repeat, select Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.
If Weekly or Monthly, select the day(s) of the week or month. For Weekly, all the days of the week will be automatically selected, so tap any day to deselect.
Tap Next.
Tap Send Message.
In the box that says Send “Message” to Recipient, tap “Message” to compose the automated text.
Tap Recipients to choose your recipients.
Once you’ve chosen your recipients, tap Done.
Tap Next.
Review your automation and toggle Ask Before Running on or off, depending on whether you want your iPhone to ask you before running the automation.
Tap Done.
You can now find this in your Automations tab.
To delete the automation, just swipe left and tap Delete.
Now your text messages should send right on schedule (unless you deleted the automation)!
Apple doesn’t make it easy, but with these tips and apps, recording a phone call on your iPhone is possible.
There are a bunch of reasons you might want to record a call on your iPhone. Maybe you’re interviewing someone and want to keep track of everything said. Or maybe your grandma is sharing her famous apple pie recipe, and you don’t want to miss her secret ingredient. It’s also important to know how to record a phone call on an iPhone for everything from keeping track of client negotiations to having a record of things your supervisor says that might be inappropriate.
You should know up front that it’s generally easier to record a phone conversation on an Android device (and many of the below tips will work on Android as well), because Apple makes it impossible for an iPhone to record calls. But there’s a good reason iPhones don’t let you record calls. Apple is very protective of your privacy and won’t allow third-party apps access to your microphone. So while recording a phone call on an iPhone can be done, it requires some creative workarounds.
Keep in mind: In some states (and countries), it can be illegal to record a phone conversation. Other states, including New York, only require one-party consent, so as long as one person taking part in the phone conversation consents to being recorded, it’s fine to record the conversation. In other words, a person living in New York can record a call without notifying the other person on the line. To be on the safe side, though, you might want to inform anyone on the call that you’re recording.
If you prefer your life uncomplicated, this is the best option for you, though you’ll need two devices. On the first, you’ll have your conversation (on speakerphone); an iPhone or any other speaker-enabled phone will work. On the second device, you’ll record. For this, an iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, or Mac computer would work.
Essentially, you can make the call on any phone with a speaker and record it on your iPhone. Or, make the call on your iPhone and record it on a second Apple device—all use the same Voice Memos app. It all depends on the devices you have access to.
To catch your entire phone conversation, start recording before the call. The steps below explain how to use an iPhone to record a phone call on a speakerphone. Note that the steps may be slightly different depending on your model and iOS.
1. Open the Voice Memos app on your iPhone (or whichever Apple device you’re using to record).rd.com, getty images2. To start recording, tap the red record button.rd.com, getty images
That’s it! You’re now recording.
Next, it’s time to make your phone call. You can do that from an iPhone (if you’re not recording with it) or any other phone with a speaker function. Simply dial the number and turn on the phone’s speakerphone so both sides of the conversation—not just your voice—can be heard and recorded.
If you want to do more while recording, or once you’re done, follow these tips:
Pause a recording
Here’s an iPhone trick that’ll come in handy during conversations with long pauses or when you’re put on hold: While recording, tap or swipe up on the recording field at the bottom of your screen to bring it into full-screen view. Here, you can pause your recording as needed.
End a recording
When you’re finished with your conversation, hit the stop button (or Done, if you’re in the full-screen view) to end the recording and save your file.
Delete a recording
To delete a recording, hit the stop button, then tap the trash can. Accidentally got rid of a recording? Just as you can recover deleted photos, you can recover recently deleted recordings. On the main Voice Memos screen, tap Recently Deleted to see a list of your trashed files. Select Recover to restore your recording, but bear in mind that you only have about 30 days to recover deleted files.
Rename a recording
To rename your recording, tap the default title (your current location, though you can turn off Location-based Naming in Settings by tapping the toggle). The text will become highlighted. Simply delete it, then type your new title.
If you’re feeling creative, you can edit, crop, and replace sections of your recording, as well as duplicate it and share it via text, email, AirDrop, and other apps. Play around—there are a ton of Voice Memos tricks to help you achieve your clearest recording.
Apps to record phone calls
The speakerphone method, while easy, isn’t for everyone. If you don’t have two devices, it’s probably not the best option for you. Knowing how to record a phone call on an iPhone—sans speaker—is as easy as downloading the right recording app. In no particular order, these are the apps we love for recording phone calls on an iPhone and getting the highest sound quality possible.
Google Voice
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Next to using two devices and calling on speakerphone, Google Voice is one of the easiest call-recording methods there is. The app allows you to select the phone or device you want to make and receive calls on. Then head over the Settings menu and select Calls. Scroll down to the Incoming Call option, where you can toggle to record incoming calls. Once everyone is on the call, simply press the number four on the keypad to start recording. Press the number four again at the end of the call to stop recording. After you’re done, your phone recording will show up in the Recorded menu option.
This method comes with some added perks. If you haven’t already set up your Google Voice account, you can do that and claim a free phone number at the same time. It’s like a virtual burner phone. Meanwhile, recording an iPhone conversation this way is free and super easy. One downside: It can be trickier to figure out how to record outgoing calls, although the app supports it.
Rev Voice Recorder
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What makes this app so great? Well, for one thing, it’s free to use. Rev Voice Recorder is able to record while you’re using your phone or other apps. It’s also super easy to not only record but also share and trim your files. Want to transcribe your conversation when it’s over? Rev has a transcription service that’ll turn your voice recording into text. One downside of that: Transcription with Rev is slightly pricier than other options, but that’s because the company boasts human transcriptionists, not automated ones.
TapeACall
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This iPhone call recorder app is available in over 50 countries and boasts a huge user base (4 million at press time). We love the fact that you can record incoming and outgoing calls (that’s not always the case!) and store them on TapeACall’s server. It’s also easy to label a conversation before it’s converted to MP3 format. Before you pay for the service, use the free trial option to see if this is the right recording app for you. I paid for the full version of TapeACall and found it a bit confusing. You start each call by either calling into the TapeACall recording line or placing your phone call and merging it to ensure it’s recorded, a process I found myself forgetting. For some, that step may be a big enough turn-off to prompt them to permanently delete the app. For others, it may just be an early stumbling block.
Otter
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Best known for its transcription services, Otter offers an easy-to-configure hack for recording calls on an iPhone. The process is almost identical to recording a phone conversation on speakerphone. The difference is that with Otter you can also transcribe the call, which is invaluable if you plan to pull quotes or share notes later on. The app isn’t for those needing immediate gratification, however. It can take a bit of time for the file to be processed before it’s available for you to listen to. Pro tip: Read through your transcription while the conversation is fresh in your mind to correct any glaring errors.
Does your iPhone stop charging at 80%? We’ll explain why it does that and how to fix it.
Aside from broken screens, charging issues are the most common problems that iPhone users face with their devices. This is understandable because the battery in your iPhone—or any smartphone, for that matter—is one of the few components that degrades naturally over time. Time does its thing, and iPhone batteries aren’t exempt from that.
Although, if you’ve noticed that your iPhone won’t charge past 80%, don’t assume that it’s time to get it replaced. There are a few reasons why that happens, and most of them have easy fixes. Keep reading to find out why your iPhone stops charging at 80%, and what you can do to fix it.
If your iPhone only stops charging at 80% sometimes, it’s most likely due to a feature Apple implemented to extend the life of your iPhone battery. Apple introduced a battery optimization feature in iOS 13 that slows down how your iPhone charging, and even holds it at 80% to prevent over stressing the battery.
That’s why your phone sometimes charges, but then stops at 80%.
Most of us try to keep our phones as charged as possible, but as it turns out, this can be detrimental to your iPhone’s battery.
For starters, charging to and maintaining a full charge is more demanding on lithium batteries in smartphones, shortening their lifespan. Not to mention that over charging your phone overnight causes the battery to heat up, which reduces its overall lifespan.
How to Turn Off Optimized Charging on Your iPhone
If you’re running iOS 13, the Optimized Battery Charging feature on your iPhone will be enabled by default. If you’d rather have your phone charge to 100%, you can easily disable this feature in the battery settings.
To turn off Optimized Battery Charging, go to Settings > Battery > Battery Health and toggle off Optimized Battery Charging. You’ll see two options: Turn Off Until Tomorrow or Turn Off (permanently). Choose whichever one you prefer.
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Maximize Your Battery Power
Understanding what affects the lifespan of your iPhone battery is the first step towards making it last longer! By keeping the charging tips from this article in mind and using high-quality iPhone chargers, you’ll give your battery the longest life possible.
Your phone can help stop the billions of malicious spam calls being placed
Phone scams caused a total loss of around $19.7 billion in 2020 alone, according to recent findings by analytics company The Harris Poll (via Statista). This number is expected to increase, but iPhone and Android phones can help stop malicious spam calls.
As spotted by ExpressVPN, call protection app service YouMail estimates that 22 billion annoying robocalls were placed in the United States so far in 2021. This averages out to 67 calls per person, and seeing how unsuspecting victims can be fooled into forking over private and financial information, spam calls are becoming an even bigger threat.
While there are multiple methods to prevent unknown callers from harassing you, including third-party apps on the App Store and Google Play Store, smartphones already have a way to protect your privacy by silencing any potentially malicious phone scams.
How to block spam calls on an iPhone
By simply blocking calls from unknown callers, Apple iPhone users can prevent any spam call threats.
Available on iOS 13 and later (on the iPhone 6S and later), the Silence Unknown Callers feature blocks phone numbers that haven’t contacted a user before and aren’t saved in a contacts list. To turn it on, go to the Settings app and navigate to “Phone”, then scroll down, tap “Silence Unknown Callers” and switch on the feature.
(Image credit: Apple)
These calls from unknown numbers will be silenced and sent to voicemail, and will appear in the recent calls list. However, Apple states a person who shared their phone number with a user in an email will be able to call. Watch out for phishing emails.
How to block spam calls on an Android phone
Android phones vary from one another, from the Samsung S21 Ultra to the Google Pixel 5a. But each one should have a similar method to block any unknown caller.
In the “Phone” app, tap on the three dots and navigate to Settings. From here, there should be a number of options to block unfamiliar incoming calls. For example, a Vivo smartphone brings up a “Block harassing calls” option after pressing the three dots, while the Samsung S21 offers “Call blocking” allowing users to switch on “Block anonymous calls.”
While these options on both iOS and Android aren’t new, the recent surge in robocalls and spam calls over the past year shows smartphone users should seek better protection. Speaking of phones, check out how to do 2FA right.
Feature Image credit: Dimitri Karastelev on Unsplash
With iOS 14.5 released to the public earlier this year, iPhone and iPad users now have the ability to easily opt out of cross-site and cross-app tracking and targeting. New data from analytics firm Branch indicates that just 25% of users are opting in to tracking, which is causing panic in the advertising industry.
As detailed in a new report from Bloomberg, the impact is being felt in particular by Facebook advertisers. Facebook is reportedly no longer able to provide certain metrics to advertisers to help them know whether their ads are working:
Facebook advertisers, in particular, have noticed an impact in the last month. Media buyers who run Facebook ad campaigns on behalf of clients said Facebook is no longer able to reliably see how many sales its clients are making, so it’s harder to figure out which Facebook ads are working. Losing this data also impacts Facebook’s ability to show a business’s products to potential new customers. It also makes it more difficult to “re-target” people with ads that show users items they have looked at online, but may not have purchased.
While Facebook declined to respond to Bloomberg’s report, data from Branch shows that roughly 75% of iPhone users are now running iOS 14.5 or later with App Tracking transparency and that just 25% of those users have tapped on “Allow” when they see the prompt.
Facebook says that it is working on new features to help make up for the data lost due to App Tracking Transparency, including “new advertising features that require less data to measure an ad’s success.” The company is also reportedly exploring ways to deliver ads based on data stored on the user’s device.
“Apple’s policy is hurting the ability of businesses to use their advertising budgets efficiently and effectively, and the limitations being created are driven by Apple’s restrictions for their own benefit,” the spokesman added, noting that Facebook has tried to prep advertisers with notices, blogs and webinars. “We believe that personalized ads and user privacy can coexist.”
The full report at Bloombergis well worth a read and provides more details from some of the advertisers affected by the changes.
