Technologies
11 Hidden iOS 16 Features You Should Be Using on Your iPhone
These lesser-known iOS features and settings will quickly make you an iPhone expert.

It’s been half a year since Apple release iOS 16, and yet there are still new features and settings to discover on the iPhone’s latest software update. These lesser-known features are definitely not as popular as the main features, like the customizable lock screen or ability to unsend text messages, but they’re still worth exploring because they can unlock a whole new experience for you on your iPhone.


I’m going to walk you through everything you need to know about the best hidden gems in iOS 16, like password-protected photo albums, easily accessible Wi-Fi passwords and more.
Read more: All the New Features in iOS 16.3
And while you’re here, make sure you also brush up on the major new iOS 16 features you’ll love, and a few that you might just hate (luckily, there’s a fix).
View and share saved Wi-Fi passwords
Apple has allowed iOS users to share Wi-Fi passwords for a while now, but only by placing two Apple devices near each other. And if that feature didn’t automatically work, you couldn’t just dig out the password from your settings. Plus if you wanted to share a saved Wi-Fi password with someone else, like an Android user or someone on a computer, you had to remember the password. Until now.
In Settings, go to Wi-Fi and tap the tiny information icon to the right of the network you want the password for. To view the network password, tap the Password section and then use Face ID or enter your passcode to view it. You can then tap Copy to copy the password into your clipboard and share it.


You can view the password for any Wi-Fi network you’ve ever connected to, as long as you’re currently connected to it or near enough that it appears under My Networks.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNETFind and remove duplicate photos and videos
Maybe you’ve saved the same photo multiple times or downloaded a video more than once, resulting in duplicates littering up your photo album. It may not be a problem if you’ve got storage to spare, but you’re running out of space, you can now remove every single duplicate easily with iOS 16.
In Photos > Albums, you should see a new Duplicates album under Utilities. Apple scans through all of your photos and shows you any photo or video you’ve saved more than once in that album. From there, you can either delete any duplicates, or simply press Merge, which will keep the photo with the highest quality (and relevant data) and then move the others to the trash.


Merging will keep the highest quality photo and delete the rest.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNETAlthough you’ll probably want to go through each set of duplicates, to ensure that they’re actually exact copies and not similar photos, you can also hit Select > Select All > Merge to remove every single photo and video that Apple thinks is a duplicate, all at once.
Hang up a phone or FaceTime call with Siri
Siri does a lot of things. You can use the virtual assistant to send a text message, get directions or play music — but one thing she’s never been able to do is hang up a phone call. Weird right? Now that’s finally a possibility with iOS 16.
In Settings, go to Siri & Search and first make sure Listen for «Hey Siri» is toggled on. If it is, you should see a new option underneath — Call Hang Up. Go into that option and toggle on Call Hang Up. When you’re on a phone call or FaceTime video chat, simply say, «Hey, Siri,» and ask her to hang up your current call.


For this to work, Listen for «Hey Siri» must be toggled on first.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET Pair Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons with your iPhone
Apple has long allowed you to pair third-party controllers, like the PS5 Sony DualSense and Xbox Core Controller, to your iPhone and iPad, in order to more comfortably play mobile video games like the Apple Arcade library, Minecraft and Call of Duty. Now you can add another console controller to that list.
If you own a Nintendo Switch, you can now pair your Joy-Con controllers to your iPhone or iPad running iOS 16. To start, hold down the little black pairing button on the Joy-Con, until the green lights start running back and forth. This means the device is in pairing mode. Next, open your iPhone and go to Settings > Bluetooth and select the Joy-Con from the list. Repeat this step with the other Joy-Con.
Hidden and Recently Deleted albums are now password protected
The Hidden album in the Photos app is clearly not hidden, seeing as anyone can easily find it. That makes it impractical for adequately hiding private photos and videos. While Apple does have an option to make the Hidden album «invisible,» anyone with access to your phone could make it visible again and view everything inside.
Thanks to iOS 16, you can now lock the Hidden album. You don’t actually need to do anything to toggle this feature on. If you want to check it out, launch the Photos app and go to the Albums tab at the bottom of the screen. If you scroll down, you’ll see a tiny lock next to the Hidden and Recently Deleted albums. To view the contents of those albums, you’ll need to use Face ID or your passcode.


The Hidden and Recently Deleted albums now require Face ID to be accessed.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET Copy and paste photo and video edits
If you use the editor tool in the Photos app, you’ll be happy to learn that you can now copy and paste edits, including saturation, contrast and brightness, between photos. If you edit one photo or video and are happy with the look, you can paste those same exact edits to any other photo or video in your camera roll.
To do this, launch the Photos app and open a photo that’s been edited in full-screen. Next, tap on the three-dot menu in the top-right corner and then hit Copy Edits. This option will only appear if the photo has been edited within Photos, not any third-party photo editor. Finally, go to the photo you want to copy these edits over to, tap on the three-dot menu and then hit Paste Edits. After a second or so, you should see the photo edits appear.


This feature works between photos and videos.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNETBring haptic feedback to your keyboard
The iPhone has long had haptic feedback. It’s what you feel underneath your fingertips whenever you attempt to delete an app from your home screen or enter the incorrect password on your lock screen. Strangely enough, haptic feedback has never been available for the stock iOS keyboard — until now.
If you want to enable a slight vibration for every single key you type in, go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Keyboard Feedback and toggle on Haptic. The sound option you see is the loud and annoying clacking sound you might hear when you type in something and your phone isn’t on silent mode, so you can keep that disabled.


Every single time you type, you’ll feel a slight vibration for each key you hit.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNETPin your favorite tabs in Safari
Safari caps your open tabs at 500, and if you’re nearing that limit, it might be pretty darn hard to find the exact tab you’re looking for. You could scroll endlessly, but there’s now an easier way to find the exact tab you’re looking for.
In Safari, if you press down on an open tab, you now have the option to hit Pin Tab. This will move that tab to the top of Safari, where it will exist as a tiny tab preview, permanently pinned there, which you can then tap to view. If you press down and unpin a tab, it will move to first in your grid of open tabs.


All your pinned tabs appear at the top of Safari.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNETUse Face ID while you’re lying down
If you’ve ever tried to unlock your iPhone while it’s vertical, like when you’re lying on your side, you might have noticed that it doesn’t work. You have to place your iPhone in portrait orientation, or upright, for Face ID to work. With iOS 16, you can finally use Face ID to unlock your iPhone when it’s in landscape orientation. However, for this to work, you must have an iPhone 13 or 14 running iOS 16.
Copy your screenshots to your clipboard without saving them
You don’t need to save a screenshot to your photo album to share it with someone else. A new iOS 16 feature allows you to take a screenshot, copy it to your clipboard, delete it from your phone and paste it where you see fit. After you take a screenshot, tap the screenshot preview that appears, hit Done on the top-right and then tap Copy and Delete to copy the screenshot to your clipboard.


If you take a lot of screenshots, this feature can help you save storage.
Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNETRemove more preinstalled Apple apps
Since iOS 10, you’ve been able to remove some preinstalled iOS applications like Stocks, Maps and Calculator — but not all of them. With the release of iOS 16, you can add three more apps to this list of ones you can remove: Find My, Clock and Health. However, deleting these apps can negatively affect and break support with other apps and connected devices, like your Apple Watch.
For more on iOS 16 and the iPhone, check out our iOS 16 cheat sheet.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Thursday, Aug. 14
Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Aug. 14

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.
Today’s Mini Crossword isn’t too tough, and it has some fun movie and TV references. Just remember that «poster» can mean a couple of different things — it’s not always that photo of Def Leppard hanging on the wall. Want help with today’s NYT Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.
The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword
Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.
Mini across clues and answers
1A clue: Animals holding «Eat Mor Chikin» signs, in a classic ad campaign
Answer: COWS
5A clue: Suffix with Beatle or Wrestle
Answer: MANIA
6A clue: «Au revoir!»
Answer: ADIEU
7A clue: Ugly poster?
Answer: TROLL
8A clue: Be likely (to)
Answer: TEND
Mini down clues and answers
1D clue: Core group
Answer: CADRE
2D clue: Vegetable combined with celery and carrot to form «mirepoix»
Answer: ONION
3D clue: Handle, as a sword
Answer: WIELD
4D clue: «Better Call ___» («Breaking Bad» spinoff)
Answer: SAUL
5D clue: Damon of «Oppenheimer»
Answer: MATT
Technologies
The iPhone 17 Hasn’t Been Announced Yet, but There’s Already a Case for It
The new case makes a bold style statement, but there’s no official confirmation that it correctly reflects Apple’s upcoming phone.

One of the first cases for the iPhone 17 has made its appearance. Canadian tech accessory company Dbrand announced its Tank Case for the iPhone 17 is set to go on sale in September, the same month we’re expecting Apple to announce the eagerly awaited iPhone 17.
While we don’t know the price of the Tank Case yet, Dbrand has certainly made some striking design choices in the hard black shell case, including plenty of number codes, the Freemason Eye of Providence in what looks like a center designed for MagSafe connections and what appears to be Braille. Dbrand is light on details for now, but you can sign up with your email address to get notifications about the case.
A representative for Dbrand did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Patrick Holland, CNET managing editor and mobile guru, cautions that these early-announced phone designs don’t always end up making it to the release date. Holland saw that happen just last year, when some manufacturers were forced to push quick redesigns to make room for the iPhone 16’s surprise camera control button.
«It’s become a yearly tradition,» Holland said. «We see companies try to be the first out with a new case design for the latest iPhone, even though the phone hasn’t been announced by Apple.»
«For Dbrand, it’s unclear whether the Tank case is designed based on rumors, or if the company got an early look at the iPhone 17 series, or were given a dummy model,» Holland said. «The case does feature a full body width camera bump that has been heavily leaked for the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max. There’s one thing that’s for certain: Dbrand’s Tank case looks chunky and busy, especially for a sleek new iPhone.»
That’s why we’re also keeping a close eye on all the latest reports of iPhone 17 features, including rumors of a redesigned camera bump and a movable lens that could throw a curveball for third-party cases like this.
Social media buzz
Commenters on X shared a variety of opinions about the case. While one person wrote, «that case looks fire,» another wrote, «that case looks hideous.»
Commenters also wondered if the case design was revealing some previously unknown details about the iPhone 17.
«So the second button is basically confirmed?» one X commenter wrote. «Why would the case sport an area that looks pressable or ‘slideable’ otherwise?»
Another wrote, «Am I seeing that correctly? Three cameras on a base iPhone model finally.»
Others zeroed in on the idea that Apple likely does not want case manufacturers to reveal details about a phone before the company announces it, noting that Dbrand also unveiled a case for the Nintendo Switch 2 before that console came out.
«First the Switch 2, now the iPhone 17,» the one commenter wrote. «Yeahh, they’re never getting shit early to make cases anymore.»
Technologies
Apple Reportedly Planning AI Comeback, Complete With a Tabletop Robot
Home security cameras and a standalone smart display are also coming, the report says.

Apple wants a bigger place in your home, according to a report posted Wednesday from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. While you might think of Apple primarily because it provides your iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, MacBook, AirPods and more, the tech giant reportedly hopes to use artificial intelligence to sell you a number of new smart home devices. Those devices may include a tabletop robot, home security cameras and a smart speaker with a screen.
A representative for Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tabletop robot
According to Bloomberg, it’s the tabletop robot, reportedly coming in 2027, that is the center of the plan. Bloomberg — and CNET — have reported on this plan before. At that time, the company reportedly had two concepts in mind: a robot that can move around the home, and a tabletop robotic device.
Now, Bloomberg says the robot «will feature a lifelike version of Siri and the ability to engage with users throughout the day.» It reportedly resembles an iPad mounted on a movable limb that can reposition itself to face you.
Former CNET senior editor Lisa Eadicicco wrote in 2024 that «perhaps the biggest challenge when it comes to a home robot is that the market is unproven.» We’ve all seen the robot maid Rosie on the old Jetsons cartoon, but do we really need or want a robotic helper in our homes?
Standalone smart display
Another item Apple is reportedly working on is essentially a smart speaker with a screen. Bloomberg calls this a «stripped-down version of the robot.»
It won’t have a robotic arm or conversational Siri, but it should be able to do such things as music playback, note taking, control home devices and video conferencing. Bloomberg says it will run a new operating system called Charismatic.
Home security cameras
Home security cameras are becoming more and more popular, and Apple wants to move into that realm as well. The company will make cameras that will anchor an Apple security system, the report says.
-
Technologies3 года ago
Tech Companies Need to Be Held Accountable for Security, Experts Say
-
Technologies2 года ago
Best Handheld Game Console in 2023
-
Technologies2 года ago
Tighten Up Your VR Game With the Best Head Straps for Quest 2
-
Technologies4 года ago
Verum, Wickr and Threema: next generation secured messengers
-
Technologies4 года ago
Google to require vaccinations as Silicon Valley rethinks return-to-office policies
-
Technologies4 года ago
Black Friday 2021: The best deals on TVs, headphones, kitchenware, and more
-
Technologies4 года ago
Olivia Harlan Dekker for Verum Messenger
-
Technologies4 года ago
iPhone 13 event: How to watch Apple’s big announcement tomorrow