Apple just dropped iOS 18.6, and while it’s mainly labeled as a security and bug-fix patch, there’s way more under the hood than meets the eye. This update could be the last major tweak before iOS 19 arrives in the fall—and with it, all the shiny new toys Apple teased earlier this year. But instead of waiting for the next big thing, this version gives users the chance to seriously level up their iPhone experience right now.
If you’ve updated already, great. If not, now’s the time. Because these ten settings can make your iPhone smoother, smarter, and just flat-out better.
Hidden Traps in the Mail App—And How to Escape Them
Email is chaos. Apple tried to fix that with categories like Promotions, Updates, and Transactions.
But if you’re someone who prefers to keep things old school and just see all your emails in a single stream, you’re probably not loving this change. Luckily, there’s a workaround.
You can swipe all the way to the right of the categories and tap All Mail to get back to that familiar chronological view. But if even that’s too much, you can ditch categories altogether by tapping the three-dot menu (…), hitting List View, and reclaiming your inbox sanity.
New Lock Screen Buttons?
The flashlight’s great—until it turns on in your pocket for the hundredth time.
With iOS 18, those once-unchangeable lock screen buttons are now totally customizable. You can swap them out, remove them, or replace them with features you’ll actually use.
Want quick access to Shazam, Airplane Mode, or Tap to Cash? Here’s the trick:
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Touch and hold the lock screen
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Tap Customize, then Lock Screen
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Hit the minus (–) to remove an icon
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Tap the empty space (with the +) to choose a new action
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Repeat for the other corner
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Tap Done and exit
Boom. Your lock screen just became a power tool.
Notifications That Actually Matter
If you’re drowning in pings, banners, and badges—join the club.
The new Prioritize Notifications feature, powered by Apple Intelligence, lets your iPhone decide which alerts deserve your attention. And it’s smarter than you’d think.
Texts from real humans get bumped up. Random spam or app noise gets buried. You can even fine-tune this by app. Just go to Settings > Notifications > Prioritize Notifications and start curating your peace of mind.
Turn the Action Button Into a Swiss Army Knife
The Action button is no longer just for silencing your phone.
On models like the iPhone 15 Pro and beyond, you can reprogram this button to do a whole lot more. Camera shortcut? Done. Launch a shortcut for your morning routine? Easy. Use Visual Intelligence to scan something and take action? Now possible.
Go to Settings > Action Button. Swipe through the choices and pick what makes the most sense for your day-to-day life. And yeah, ordering coffee with one press is totally in the cards.
Your Home Screen, Your Rules
Apple has finally stopped treating your app icons like furniture glued to the floor.
You can now move apps just about anywhere on the screen, instead of having them snap into place like you’re solving a puzzle. It still obeys the grid—but loosely enough to let your wallpaper breathe.
Want more flair? Try this:
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Touch and hold the home screen
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Tap Edit, then Customize
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Choose Dark, Light, Automatic, or Tinted mode
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Use the eyedropper to match icon tints to your wallpaper
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Tap Large to increase icon size and remove labels
It feels like your iPhone just learned how to dress itself better.
Turn Apps Into Widgets Without the Clutter
Widgets used to be bulky and awkward. Now, they’re sleek and flexible.
Want your Maps app to show a real-time map instead of just an icon? Touch and hold the app icon, tap the resize buttons, and drag the bottom-right corner to the size you want.
Here’s the cool part: You can easily shrink it back to icon-size by holding it again and picking the single-icon button. It’s like app origami.
Finally, Dark Mode Hits Everything
Dark mode used to be halfway done. It skipped the home screen entirely—until now.
With iOS 18, Dark Mode goes full throttle. Icons get black backgrounds, the dock dims, and folders match the vibe. You can even tone down background images for late-night use without frying your eyes.
Choose Customize from the home screen, and toggle between Dark and Light for the background independently. Apple’s default wallpapers even change with the time of day.
For extra aesthetic control, select Tinted, adjust Hue and Luminosity sliders, and boom—your phone has a color palette.
Dialogue Too Quiet? This Setting Fixes It
Sick of mumbling actors and cranked-up explosions?
Inside the TV app, there’s a new audio setting that can make voices actually intelligible. While watching a video, tap the More (…) button, head to Audio, and select Enhance Dialogue.
Then choose between Enhance or Boost. These will soften background noise while amplifying what people are saying. It’s like giving your iPhone a hearing aid—but just for drama scenes.
