Apple introduced the next-generation iOS 17 at WWDC 2023. The latest iOS 17 update brings some worthy improvements and new features, including Contacts Poster, NameDrop, StandBy, and more. Right from the exciting additions to helpful tools, the latest iOS update is loaded with some fantastic features to level up the user experience. If you’re also curious to know what’s new in iOS 17, we’ve got you covered. After using iOS 17 for quite a time now, we’ve rounded off the best iOS 17 features that you should check out. Let’s jump to the list right away!
Top iOS 17 features
1. NameDrop
If I have to choose the best iOS 17 feature that I absolutely love, it has to be NameDrop. It’s a new AirDrop feature in iOS 17 that offers a shortcut to share contact information with new people you meet at conferences or parties. When you bring two iPhones close to each other, you can quickly exchange numbers, email addresses, and posters. It means, there’s no need to input the details manually. The lightning-fast speed and oh-so-gorgeous visuals instantly grabbed our attention. It’s super easy and fun to use NameDrop on an iPhone so make sure to try it right now!
The iOS 17 NameDrop feature also works between an iPhone and Apple Watch. Two users can also bring their iPhones closer to share content or start SharePlay to watch a movie or play a game together. Moving on, if you move out of range during an AirDrop exchange, iOS 17 will use the internet to complete the transfer.
2. Contact Posters
Another exciting and super-cool feature of iOS 17 is the Contacts Poster which lets you add emojis or images to your contact card to express yourself better to specific contacts. Your personalized contact posters will appear full screen on the recipient’s iPhone when you call them. This iOS 17 feature follows the same design language as the iOS 16 Lock Screen, so you can customize contacts posters with colors, fonts, and more. The Contacts Poster feature will also work with third-party VoIP apps.
You can make Contact Posters for yourself as well as your saved contacts. Here’s how to create Contact Posters on iPhone in iOS 17.
3. StandBy Mode
Next on our best iOS 17 features list is Standby, a new mode for charging that turns your iPhone into a smart display. You get a full-screen experience with glanceable information like date & time, incoming calls, and notifications. Basically, it adds more functionality to your iPhones when they are charging, and not in use.
You can use and personalize the iOS 17 StandBy mode to display your favorite photos, widgets, Live Activities, Smart Stack, and more. It means you can check match scores, get weather updates, and much more even when your iPhone is at a distance. This makes Standby, a fantastic mode for your nightstand, kitchen counter, or desk.
4. Revamped Messages App
The Messages app also gets several updates with iOS 17. The app is now sleeker with an expandable menu that can display iMessage apps with a simple tap. For better organization, you can rearrange or delete iMessage apps as per your requirements. Next is Search Filters, which lets you search anything from a contact in an easier and faster way. Simply type the contact name followed by your query and the Messages app will help you find exactly what you’re seeking.
Another new iMessage feature in iOS 17 is Catch Up, which shows the latest unread messages in a specific conversation. When you open an unread conversation, you will see a new arrow that indicates the last unread message.
5. Live Stickers
If you use iMessage, you’re going to love this new iOS 17 feature. The existing stickers feature in the Messages app gets an amazing overhaul with Live Stickers. You can add any emoji or photo cutout as stickers to make your iMessage conversations more fun. That’s not all. You have all the freedom to turn Live Photos into stickers and personalize them with some cool effects. So, it’s time to ditch the regular stickers and create personalized live stickers on your iPhone.
6. iMessage Check In
The slew of the must-try iOS 17 features doesn’t end there. Apple also added a much useful iMessage feature called Check-In to help you share live location and status with your family & friends. It can automatically notify your family when you’ve reached your destination safely, cutting all the stress down. Also, it can share your cell service status and phone’s battery level to let your loved ones know if you’re in a dead zone. So, next time you’re traveling early morning or late at night, you can use the iMessage check-in feature on your iPhone to notify your loved ones.
7. Live VoiceMail
iOS 17 brings a Live Voicemail feature that shows the real-time transcription of the voicemail message. The translation is handled on the device and is end-to-end encrypted, so you don’t have to worry about privacy. This iOS 17 feature will be particularly useful in situations when you’re in an important meeting. You can choose whether to take the call or not depending on the contents of the voicemail. The calls identified as spam by your network carrier won’t appear as Live Voicemail. Rather, they will be automatically declined.
8. FaceTime Audio and Video Messages
Until now, if someone missed your FaceTime call, they could only see a notification of the missed call. Interestingly, iOS 17 has something new to offer. You can record and leave a custom audio/ video message if someone doesn’t pick up your FaceTime call. It will be supremely handy in situations where you don’t want to let go of a precious moment.
You can also make your FaceTime calls more expressive with hearts, balloons, fireworks, and other reactions. One of the major FaceTime upgrades is Apple 4K TV compatibility. Yes, iOS 17 extends FaceTime to your home’s biggest screen. So, you can now start FaceTime calls directly from Apple TV 4K or make a call from your iPhone and then hand it off to your big screen.
9. Faster Siri Experience
In iOS 17, you’re bound to get a simplified and faster Siri experience. iOS 17 drops “Hey” from “Hey Siri” to give a much-needed boost to Apple’s virtual assistant. Now you can invoke Siri by simply saying “Siri” instead of saying “Hey Siri”. So, activating Siri on iOS 17 will be much faster than previous iOS versions. Moreover, with iOS 17, Siri can recognize back-to-back commands.
10. Shared AirTags
Let’s not get started on why this one took so long, shared AirTags are finally for real now. With iOS 17, you can share the location of AirTags with family and friends (up to 5 people). So, if you’ve attached an AirTag to your home keys, you can share its location with your family members, and they can track the item in the Find My app. Of course, you can choose to remove the access whenever you want.
11. Screen Distance
Screen Distance is a new health-focused feature in iOS 17 that uses the TrueDepth camera system aka Face ID to determine the distance between your eyes and the iPhone’s screen. If you’re too close to the screen, it will remind you to hold your iPhone at a safe distance. This iOS 17 feature is designed especially for users who use their iPhones while holding them extremely close to their eyes. Here’s how to enable and use Screen Distance on an iPhone.
12. Auto-delete 2FA Codes
Here’s another handy iOS 17 feature that automatically deletes the 2FA codes and OTPs for you. Once you’ve inserted the received code in a website/ app via the autofill feature, iOS 17 can automatically delete the code from the Messages and the Mail app. Users who often have to deal with a Messages app that’s cluttered with OTPs will surely appreciate this brand-new iOS 17 addition. Want to try this new iOS 17 feature? Here’s a quick guide to help you automatically delete OTPs on your iPhone.
13. Personal Voice
Over the years, Apple has consistently introduced accessibility features for people with cognitive and speech disabilities. Now, iOS 17 brings another useful feature that’s geared towards people who are experiencing early stages of voice impairments. Personal Voice lets you train and use your voice to communicate with your friends and family. Rather than the generic robotic voice, your iPhone will read out sentences in your “personal” voice. Unarguably, this has to be an impressive iOS 17 feature that allows a user to bank his voice in case they might lose it in the future.
14. Ping your Apple Watch with iPhone
Another thing that’s new in iOS 17 is the option to ping an Apple Watch with an iPhone without using the Find My app. Yes, you’ve heard it right. Earlier, you could only ping your Apple Watch from your iPhone using the Find My app. The newest iOS version brings a “Ping My Watch” option to the iPhone’s Control Center that helps your Apple Watch emit an audible tone. It helps you quickly find your watch if it’s misplaced nearby.
15. Auto-correct and Inline Predictions
With iOS 17, the keyboard also got some worthy upgrades, including enhancements to Autocorrect, which now relies on a machine-learning language model for better accuracy and user experience. There’s also a shortcut to revert to the original word you wrote.
Further, sentence-level autocorrections can correct more grammatical mistakes so your text looks clean and professional. Lastly, the inline predictive text recommendations make it super-easy to complete words and sentences. Dictation also uses a new AI model, which makes it much more accurate.
16. Set Multiple Timers
It has taken this long, but your iPhone finally lets you add multiple timers, all thanks to iOS 17. You can now have multiple timers running simultaneously on your iPhone. Also, you can set labels to differentiate between the timers. All the timers are listed on the Lock Screen, and if you’re using an iPhone 14 Pro model, you’ll see the last timer in the Dynamic Island. Here’s how you can set multiple timers on iOS 17.
17. Interactive Widgets
If you’re a fan of iPhone widgets, the new Interactive Widgets will surely top the list of your favorite iOS 17 features. You can now directly interact with the widgets rather than having to be taken to the associated app. For example, you can play music or turn off lights right from the widget. How convenient is that?
18. New Journal App
Later this year, iOS 17 will offer a new iPhone app called Journal, which helps users practice gratitude and appreciate little moments of their lives. This iOS 17 feature uses on-device learning to automatically suggest moments you might want to lock down in a journal entry.
You would get personalized suggestions based on recent activity, photos, workouts, places, and more. You can lock the app to ensure your entries remain private. With on-device processing and end-to-end encryption, Journal protects the user’s privacy so that no one (not even Apple) can access the entries. However, the Journal app is not available as of now.
iOS 17 Release Date: When will you get new features?
If you are wondering when is iOS 17 coming out and you’re eager to check out new features, then you will be glad to know that Apple is set to release iOS 17 on September 18, 2023. We have also prepared a iOS 17 release time guide to help you know when iOS 17 will release in your region/country.
iOS 17 Supported Devices
All iPhone XS and newer models support the latest iOS 17. It’s worth knowing that Apple has dropped support for iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X. The upcoming iPhone 15 models will ship with iOS 17 out-of-the-box. So, here’s a list of all iOS 17 compatible iPhones:
- iPhone 15 series
- iPhone 14 series
- iPhone 13 series
- iPhone 12 series
- iPhone 11 series
- iPhone XR
- iPhone XS
- iPhone XS Max
- iPhone SE (2020 & 2022)
Which iOS 17 feature did you like the most? We’ll love to hear your views in the comments below.
FaceTime on my tv!!! Have family out of town with young kids!! What fun we will have!!