15 Hidden iPhone Features You Need to Know in 2025

Your iPhone is packed with features that most people never discover. After years of using iOS devices, I'm still finding hidden gems that completely change how I interact with my phone. Whether you've just upgraded to the latest iPhone or you've been using one for years, these 15 hidden features will transform your daily experience.

Let's dive into the most powerful, yet surprisingly overlooked features that Apple has quietly built into iOS over the years.

1. Back Tap: Double or Triple Tap for Quick Actions

This is hands-down my favorite hidden feature. You can program your iPhone to perform actions when you tap the back of it twice or three times.

How to enable:

• Go to Settings → Accessibility → Touch → Back Tap
• Choose Double Tap or Triple Tap
• Select an action (screenshot, flashlight, open app, etc.)

Practical use cases:

• Double tap to take screenshots without button combinations
• Triple tap to toggle flashlight
• Quick access to your most-used app
• Activate accessibility features instantly

I've set mine to take screenshots with a double tap, and it's been a game-changer for capturing content quickly. No more fumbling with buttons!

2. Hide Photos Without Deleting Them

Got photos you want to keep private but don't want cluttering your main library? iOS has a built-in hidden album feature.

How to use:

• Open Photos app
• Select the photo(s)
• Tap the share button
• Choose "Hide"
• The photos move to a Hidden album under Utilities

Pro tip: For extra security, go to Settings → Photos and toggle "Use Face ID" for the Hidden album. This adds biometric protection to your private photos.

3. Text Scanning from Camera

You can instantly extract text from any physical document, sign, or screen using your iPhone camera.

How it works:

• Open Camera app
• Point at text
• Tap the text indicator that appears
• Select, copy, translate, or share the text

This works in Photos too! Just tap and hold on text within any image to select and copy it. I use this constantly for copying wifi passwords from router labels, menu items, and business cards.

4. Customize Focus Modes

Focus modes go way beyond Do Not Disturb. You can create custom profiles that filter notifications, apps, and even Home Screen layouts based on your activity.

Setup custom Focus:

• Settings → Focus
• Tap the + button
• Choose a template or create custom
• Set allowed notifications, apps, and people
• Automate based on time, location, or app usage

My favorite setups:

• Work Focus: Only shows work apps and silences social media
• Gym Focus: Displays only music and fitness apps
• Sleep Focus: Dims display and filters all notifications except emergencies

5. Live Text in Videos

Not many people know you can pause any video and interact with the text that appears in the frame.

How to use:

• Pause any video in Photos
• Tap and hold on visible text
• Copy, translate, lookup, or share

This is incredibly useful for capturing information from video tutorials, recipes from cooking videos, or extracting data from recorded presentations.

6. Sound Recognition for Safety

Your iPhone can listen for important sounds and notify you when they're detected. This is particularly useful for hearing impaired users, but everyone can benefit.

Enable Sound Recognition:

• Settings → Accessibility → Sound Recognition
• Toggle on and select sounds to detect
• iPhone will notify you when detected

Sounds it can recognize:

• Fire alarms
• Sirens
• Doorbells
• Knocking
• Running water
• Baby crying
• Pet sounds

7. Haptic Keyboard Feedback

iOS now supports haptic feedback when typing, giving you a subtle vibration for each key press. It makes typing feel more responsive and helps reduce typos.

Enable it:

• Settings → Sounds & Haptics → Keyboard Feedback
• Toggle on "Haptic"

Fair warning: This does use slightly more battery, but I find the improved typing experience worth it.

8. Long Press on Space Bar to Move Cursor

Forget struggling to position your cursor precisely. This simple gesture makes text editing so much easier.

How to do it:

• Long press the space bar in any text field
• Drag your finger to move the cursor anywhere
• Works in any app with text input

This one simple trick has saved me countless frustrations when trying to fix typos in long messages.

9. Share WiFi Password Instantly

When friends visit and ask for your WiFi password, you don't need to dig through router settings or remember complex passwords.

Auto-share WiFi:

• Friend's iPhone must be in your contacts
• They try to connect to your network
• Bring your iPhone close to theirs
• Tap "Share Password" on your device

The password transfers automatically without you ever seeing it. It works with other Apple devices too.

10. Drag and Drop Between Apps

iOS supports powerful multitasking through drag and drop, but most people don't use it.

How it works:

• Open an app (like Photos)
• Long press an item (photo, text, link)
• With another finger, swipe up to open app switcher
• Drag the item to another app
• Drop it where you want

You can drag photos into Messages, text into Notes, links into Safari, and much more. It feels like magic once you get used to it.

11. Measure Tool for Quick Dimensions

Your iPhone has a built-in measuring tape that uses AR (Augmented Reality).

Using the Measure app:

• Open the Measure app (pre-installed)
• Point camera at object
• Tap the + button at corners
• iPhone calculates dimensions

Advanced features:

• Automatically detects rectangles (photos, screens, furniture)
• Can save measurements as photos
• Level tool for hanging pictures

I've used this for online furniture shopping, checking if items fit in my car, and even helping friends measure rooms for renovations.

12. Announce Notifications with Siri

Siri can read your notifications out loud when you're wearing AirPods or connected to CarPlay.

Enable:

• Settings → Siri & Search → Announce Notifications
• Choose which apps to announce
• Set when to announce (Always, Headphones Only, CarPlay, etc.)

This is incredibly useful when driving, working out, or cooking—times when you can't easily look at your screen. You can also use Siri to take quick notes hands-free.

13. Custom Vibration Patterns

Create unique vibration patterns for different contacts so you know who's calling without looking.

Set custom vibrations:

• Open Contacts
• Select a contact
• Tap "Edit"
• Tap "Ringtone" or "Text Tone"
• Tap "Vibration" → "Create New Vibration"
• Tap the screen to create your pattern

I have different patterns for family, work, and close friends. It's surprisingly useful in meetings or situations where you can't check your phone.

14. Offload Unused Apps Automatically

Running low on storage? Enable automatic app offloading to free up space without losing data.

How it works:

• Settings → App Store
• Toggle "Offload Unused Apps"

iOS automatically removes apps you haven't used recently but keeps their documents and data. When you need the app again, tap its icon and it reinstalls instantly with all your data intact.

This has saved me from manually managing storage countless times.

15. Magnifier with Detection Mode

The Magnifier app isn't just for making things bigger—it has AI-powered detection modes.

Features:

• People Detection: Tells you how far people are from you
• Door Detection: Identifies doors and reads signs
• Point and Speak: Reads text you point at out loud

Access Magnifier:

• Settings → Accessibility → Magnifier
• Add to Control Center for quick access
• Or triple-click side button (configure in Accessibility)

These detection modes use LiDAR and machine learning to help with navigation and accessibility, but they're useful for everyone. If you're interested in more AI-powered tools, check out our guide to the best AI apps for iPhone.

Bonus Tips for Power Users

Combine Features for Maximum Productivity

The real power comes from combining these features:

• Set a Back Tap to trigger your Work Focus mode when you arrive at the office
• Use Sound Recognition to alert you when the doorbell rings while wearing AirPods
• Create a custom vibration for your most important contacts

Keep Your iPhone Updated

Many of these features require iOS 16 or later. Make sure you're running the latest version:

• Settings → General → Software Update

Apple regularly adds new hidden features in iOS updates, so checking every few months often reveals new capabilities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Will these features drain my battery? A: Most have minimal impact. Sound Recognition and continuous camera features use more battery, but occasional use is negligible. For comprehensive battery optimization tips, check out our guide on improving iPhone battery life.

Q: Which iOS version do I need for these features? A: Most work on iOS 16 and later. Back Tap requires iPhone 8 or newer. Live Text requires iPhone XS or newer. Check your iOS version in Settings → General → About.

Q: Can I disable these features once enabled? A: Absolutely. All these features can be toggled off in Settings. There's no permanent change to your device.

Q: Will using these features affect my iPhone's warranty? A: No, these are all built-in iOS features. Using them won't void your warranty or affect Apple Support.

Q: Do these work on iPad too? A: Most do! Features like Live Text, Focus Modes, and Drag & Drop work across all iOS and iPadOS devices. Some iPhone-specific features like Back Tap don't work on iPad.

Conclusion

Your iPhone is capable of so much more than you think. These 15 hidden features are just scratching the surface of what iOS can do. The best part? They're all free, built-in, and waiting for you to discover them.

Start by implementing just 2-3 of these features that solve problems you actually have. Once they become habit, add more to your workflow. Before long, you'll be the person showing your friends iPhone tricks they never knew existed.

Which feature surprised you the most? Have you discovered other hidden iPhone capabilities? Let us know in the comments!

Your Turn: Pick one feature from this list and try it right now. I guarantee you'll wonder how you lived without it.