Hidden iPhone and Apple Watch features no one knows about

There’s a hidden feature in Apple Watches that makes taking a selfie with a iPhone so much easier – yet no one uses it.

Personally, I love iPhones as I find them incredibly intuitive to use, however, there’s a lot of functionality built-in that many people simply miss. I’ve dug up some of the most helpful hidden iPhone hints, so grab your iPhone and follow along!

Shake to undo

It’s come to my attention that a lot of people are still missing out on, what should be known as, ‘the infamous shake to undo’ feature on iPhone.

This incredible feature comes in handy if you’re typing something out and then suddenly everything disappears. Has this happened to you before? It’s almost like a weird glitch.

Well, if anything like this ever happens then all you have to do is shake your iPhone! Alternatively, if you shake a second time you may get the option ‘shake to redo’, which can be equally as helpful.

This works in messaging apps, notes or email apps. And if this doesn’t immediately work for you then head to Settings > Accessibility > Touch > Shake to Undo > Toggle on, to set it up.

You can undo by shaking your iPhone. Picture: Elly Awesome.

Camera timer with Apple Watch

Have you ever tried to get a photo of the whole family by awkwardly taking a one-handed selfie, or setting your phone up against a household item and turning on the camera timer? My parents love a good family photo but how we take them has evolved. No longer do we get the tripod out, set it up and prop up the digital camera. Nowadays, whoever has the longest arm takes a selfie while everyone squeezes together, trying to fit into the frame. However, recently I’ve found a better way to take these photos – the only catch – it requires an Apple Watch.

If you have an Apple Watch, which would be paired with your personal iPhone, then get excited. There’s an app on Apple Watch called ‘Camera Timer’. It’s a light grey icon with a dark grey camera icon inside of it.

The ‘Camera Timer’ feature is on Apple Watches. Picture: Elly Awesome.

If you tap this, it should automatically unlock your iPhone and open the iPhone’s camera app. And then, if you look at your Apple Watches’ screen, you’ll be able to see what the iPhone camera is seeing.

Best of all there’ll be a big circular button (on the watch) that says ‘3s’ on it, indicating a 3 second timer will start when you press this button (and then your iPhone will take a photo).

You can use a timer on your Apple Watch to take a photo on your iPhone. Picture: Elly Awesome.

You can even turn the Digital Crown to zoom in or out, tap the screen and swipe to adjust exposure or tap the little icon on the bottom right, with three dots, to adjust additional settings. This live camera feed will finally enable you to get the perfect, natural, photo without having to be near your iPhone.

You can use your Apple Watch to adjust the photo. Picture: Elly Awesome.

Silence phone calls

If you like to keep your phone on loud (not silent) but occasionally find yourself interrupting a meeting by getting a surprise phone call you need to know about this.

Did you know that you can quickly silence an incoming phone call without fiddling with the silent toggle on the side of your iPhone? And you certainly don’t need to hang up on the caller to silence your phone either. The best method is to just press your ‘Volume Down’ button. This will immediately stop the ringtone playing aloud, but your iPhone will continue to ring, in complete silence. It’s one of my favourite features that’s saved me many times!

Elly Awesome is an Aussie tech and lifestyle vlogger | @ellyawesometech | YouTube