10 Hidden iOS 18 Features You Probably Missed
From RCS messaging to the redesigned Control Center — the most useful features Apple buried in the launch demo.
iOS 18 shipped with one giant marketing feature (Apple Intelligence) and dozens of small ones that didn't make the keynote. The small ones are the better story. Here are ten worth knowing about.
1. RCS messaging
Settings → Apps → Messages → RCS Messaging. Toggle on. Texting Android users now supports typing indicators, read receipts, and full-res photos. Bubbles stay green, but the experience is finally not painful.
2. Customisable Control Center
Long-press the Control Center, then hit the + in the corner. You can finally remove toggles you never use and add ones for specific apps.
3. Tinted home screen icons
Long-press the home screen → Edit → Customise → Tinted. Picks a single accent color and applies it to every icon. Looks much better than it sounds.
4. Photo album hiding (properly)
Hidden albums are now locked behind Face ID by default. Settings → Photos → Use Face ID. Long overdue.
5. Math Notes
Open Notes, write an equation by hand or type it, finish it with an "=". Notes solves it. Works for percentages, currency conversion, and longer expressions.
6. Schedule Send for Mail
Hold the send button. Pick a time. That's it. No more "ugh, it's 11pm" hesitation on emails.
7. Trip-based passes in Wallet
Boarding passes, hotel reservations, and rental car bookings auto-group into a trip card. Cleaner than the previous list view.
8. Battery health: detailed history
Settings → Battery → Battery Health. Now shows a graph of capacity over time, not just a single percentage.
9. Per-app accent colors
Settings → Display & Brightness → App Appearance. Lets you override system theme for individual apps. Useful if you want Notes in dark mode but Maps in light.
10. Live activities for shortcut runs
Shortcuts that take longer than a few seconds now show progress in the Dynamic Island. Set-it-and-forget-it for long-running automations.
