Apps

iOS 18 lets you customize your Home Screen even more

Move app icons anywhere

Published

June 11, 2024

Luigi Leonardo

As with every year, the annual WWDC is all about software. Everyone is finally getting their first look at what’s coming to the iPhone later this year. It’s time to get excited about iOS 18.

All the customization at your fingertips

This year, Apple will bring more customization into the hands of its users. Starting with the new update, users can move icons and widgets to any open space on the Home Screen. The new options will allow for more creative placements to frame a wallpaper. Users can also adjust their sizes and their colors manually.

Users can also customize the Control Centre. They can ensure that only their most used tools are on the page. Plus, they can create their own groups.

Finally, users can also change the controls at the bottom of the Lock Screen. Instead of just the flashlight and the camera, any app and setting can take its position right at the user’s fingertips.

Apps getting glow-ups

A new Photos app is making its way to iOS 18. The update will automatically make collections to organize images faster. It can arrange content according to theme, subjects, and events.

Messages is also getting a glow-up. Users can now express themselves better with the ability to format text into bold, italics, underlines, and strikethroughs. They can even apply animated text effects to words. Oh, and the app will now allow you to schedule messages in advance.

Besides adding to the main app, Apple will now support RCS, a development it announced last year. The company’s devices can now support richer media when messaging others without Apple devices. Finally, using the same network as Emergency SOS, users can now send and receive messages in the app with satellite connectivity.

Content prioritization

While the above apps are getting a ton of new features, one specific improvement is coming to Mail and Safari: content prioritization. For one, Mail can now sift through your incoming emails and bring the most important messages to the top. It can also collate all messages from a business and arrange them in a helpful feed. Finally, the app will come with new on-device categorization options to better sort mail.

Safari, on the other hand, will better organize information from a webpage. Users can more quickly see the most important parts of a page without going through a ton of filler. It can also summarize long reads into condensed digests.

A more private iPhone

Apple is getting a new Passwords app. Building on the foundation of Keychain, the app can collate all your passwords. It will also alert you if a password is easy to guess, used multiple times, or was involved in a known breach.

iOS 18 is also allowing users to lock and hide any app they want to keep private. When locked, users will need a password or Face ID to access them. When hidden, the app (and its notifications) will no longer appear anywhere on the system.

Launching in the fall

iOS 18 is set to launch later this year, presumably debuting with the upcoming iPhone 16 series. Besides the biggest changes here, it will also come with the new Apple Intelligence.

Apps

Disney+ launches a TikTok-coded vertical feed called Verts

Published

March 13, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

TikTok has changed how we consume media. Everything is now vertical. Even the most established streaming services, often a bastion for traditionally horizontal content, is adopting the different format. Now, Disney+ is getting a vertical feed called Verts.

Like its contemporaries, Verts presents a continuous feed of content but tailored to show the plethora of titles from the Disney+ library. This might include the first scenes of shows or notable highlights. The hope, of course, is to direct users to the longform content.

Directly from the Verts feed, users can easily add the respective title to their watchlist or go straight to the title’s page. In turn, the feed is accessible from the homepage since it has its own tab.

According to Disney, early experiments with the feature have driven engagement to available content. Right now, the feed is mostly for clipping enticing content from shows. However, the platform will experiment further with the format for new ways to tell stories.

Though Verts surely stands for “verticals” in this case, “adverts” might fit better as its full government name. Still, it might be a useful tool if you’re figuring out what to watch for the night.

Currently, Verts is available for Disney+ subscribers in the United States. Disney also has plans to expand the feature to ESPN for sports-related content.

Apps

Google Maps is finally getting a 3D mode

The app will also have a Gemini chatbot baked inside.

Published

March 13, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Some of today’s navigation apps are living in the future. Instead of a two-dimensional map, these apps render the user’s surroundings in 3D. It’s a nifty upgrade that helps drivers more accurately visualize directions on the fly. Finally, Google Maps is getting a much-needed upgrade and will take navigation to the third dimension.

In a new update rolling out today, the new Immersive Navigation feature will bring your surroundings to life. The 3D view creates a render of the surrounding buildings, overpasses, and terrain around the car. It takes the guesswork out of navigation by showing precisely where to turn and what landmarks to look out for.

In the same vein, you can now use Street View to preview your destination before you arrive. Google Maps will also highlight your destination’s entrance, side of the street, and nearby parking.

Outside of how the map is visualized, Google Maps is also infusing its service with Gemini. The new Ask Maps feature will let you engage with the app in a conversational manner. For example, if you’re in the middle of a long drive, you can now ask Maps where the best place is to stop over and have a coffee break. Ask Maps will provide directions, a potential itinerary, and even helpful links to book a reservation ahead of time.

Now, availability for both of these features is still a bit limited. Immersive View is rolling out today to compatible devices and vehicles in the United States. Further, availability will expand over the coming months.

Meanwhile, Ask Maps is available now in the United States and India for Android and iOS. A desktop version is coming soon.

Apps

Apple Music, TikTok launch Play Full Song, a new music discovery experience

Rolling out worldwide exclusively through Apple Music

Published

March 12, 2026

GadgetMatch

Ever came across a viral 15 or 30-second music snippet on TikTok that instantly became your jam on repeat?

For years, TikTok has been a regular source of songs that have become part of our playlists. And together with Apple Music, listening to the music you discover has just gotten even easier.

That’s through Play Full Song, a new music discovery experience, which launches exclusively though Apple Music.

With the new feature, Apple Music subscribers can now enjoy full-length tracks that they discover on TikTok. That’s without ever leaving that popular streaming app.

Fans who discover a song that they love on their For You or Sound Detail page can simply tap the Play Full Song button to open up an Apple Music player and enjoy the song in its entirety.

From there, subscribers can continue listening to a personalized stream of recommended songs. That means no more need to switch apps and search separately.

The new Play Full Song experience helps music fans move seamlessly from the moment of discovery to deeper listening. It’s also designed to be instant and all within the same environment.

Moreover, users can also save their favorite songs to Your Music and add them directly to their Apple Music playlists.

Built using Apple’s MusicKit, full-length song playback takes place on Apple Music. This way, streams are paid within the Apple Music service, supporting artists and rights holders while giving fans a smooth, uninterrupted experience.

Listening Party also launched

The feature builds on the success of TikTok’s Add to Music App. This was previously launched to help artists and fans convert discovery on TikTok to a playlist save in Apple Music and other streaming services.

To cap the announcement, TikTok and Apple Music are also introducing Listening Party. This new feature is designed to bring artists and fans together around music.

It creates a shared environment where fans can listen to songs from their favorite artists in real time, interact with each her, and engage directly with the artist during the session.