I’ve been using iOS 18 for two months now. Here are my favorite features

I’ve been using iOS 18 on my iPhone 15 Pro Max since the first developer preview was released in June at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). The upcoming iPhone software update, set to release this fall, has a lot of exciting features. I have a clear favorite feature, and I’m starting to appreciate many others.

iOS 18 remains an unfinished product from anyone outside of Apple’s perspective, as its most anticipated new features have yet to debut. For now, at least, here’s what I like.

Dark app icons are a win

Over the years, Apple has gradually introduced new features to the iPhone that adjust the display to the time of day or general environment. True Tone, for example, adjusts the display to ambient lighting conditions, while Night Shift adds a warmer tone after dark to make viewing easier on the eyes.

However, until now, the iPhone screen has displayed very bright icons regardless of the time of day. That changes in iOS 18, thanks to a new dark mode for icons. Now, as day turns to night, the background of app icons adjusts automatically. As someone who stares at the screen for at least half of the day, I think this is a significant change and one that Apple should have implemented years ago.

Apple is also making it easier to change the colors of app icons to better match your style or mood. I’m not thrilled about this change, as the color tints wash out the uniqueness of each app icon. However, I’m excited about the new eyedropper tool, which lets you grab a color from an existing background to use on icons. This tool makes the tints look better, although I probably still won’t use it.

The company should also get significant praise for letting us enlarge apps and widgets with a simple tap in iOS 18. This change is more noticeable on the larger iPad screen, although it looks great on the iPhone too. We can now isolate apps so they sit on their own (rather than lined up in rows), which is a nice little touch.

Another new feature in the iOS 18 beta is dynamic wallpapers. Throughout the day, the colors on these backgrounds change from bright shades in the morning to softer ones in the evening. All the wallpapers available in the beta look similar, the only difference being the accent colors. So you may be disappointed if you don’t like the overall look. Nevertheless, it’s a step in the right direction, and I expect to see exclusive dynamic wallpapers for the iPhone 16 in the fall that will take this new feature to another level.

Apple should also be commended for allowing us to enlarge apps and widgets with a simple tap. This improvement looks even better on the iPad’s larger display, but it works well on the iPhone as well. Additionally, the ability to separate apps so they can be placed separately from each other rather than in rows is a nice feature.

Another new home screen personalization feature in iOS 18 is the ability to lock and hide apps. It’s a neat feature, but like isolating apps, I doubt most users will use it.

Passwords App

Apple has been waiting a long time to add an official calculator app to the iPad, which it will do in iPadOS 18. Similarly, we will soon get a new official Passwords app, which will be a great addition to iPadOS 18, iOS 18, and macOS 15 Sequoia. It is really well designed on the iPhone.

This dedicated app has all the features you’d expect. It lets you save passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and more. It also offers AutoFill and makes sharing information easy. The Passwords app offers flexible organization, letting you view information alphabetically, by most recently created, or by other criteria.

Apple is moving toward developing a password app and making it easier to save and use authentication tools across apps and devices. With the app nearly ready for release, there are concerns about third-party solutions like 1Password risking being overshadowed by Apple’s offering. But it could also motivate the creators of those solutions to improve their products by adding more features.

Regardless, I’m glad Apple Passwords is becoming a reality. It’s almost certainly my second favorite feature in iOS 18.

The Great Unknown

When I sat down to write this article, I immediately knew what my two favorite features of iOS 18 were. But it’s hard for me to think bigger than that, because there are so many highly anticipated features of iOS 18 that Apple hasn’t yet released to developers or users.

The biggest omission is definitely Apple Intelligence, which will bring new AI features to a variety of Apple platforms, including iPhone, iPad, and Mac. It’s already available in the iOS 18.1 developer beta, but it’s not yet available to beta users, and not all of the announced Apple Intelligence features are available yet. For what it’s worth, I applaud Apple’s decision to slowly roll out Apple Intelligence features to ensure their success during the developer beta and general release process.

Unfortunately, I also think Apple’s marketing strategy will play a role in determining the timing and rollout of Apple Intelligence. Despite disappointing iPhone sales this year, Apple expects things to improve quickly with the upcoming launch of the iPhone 16 series in a few weeks. Integrating Apple Intelligence into at least the iPhone 16 Pro models is key to the company’s confidence. In other words, we may not see the full Apple Intelligence in action until those phones are announced, most likely in early September. Other reports claim that the AI ​​features may not be ready until October.

In summary, iOS 18 will include a ton of exciting features. However, it is still too early to predict which features will be most widely adopted, and much will depend on the specific iPhone someone is using.

Is it worth upgrading now?

It’s early August, which means that both the developer and public beta versions of iOS 18 are getting better and more stable. With that in mind, I suggest regular users upgrade to at least the public beta version of iOS 18, especially if they have an iPhone 15 Pro. Several Apple Intelligence features currently available are still limited to the developer beta, but should make their way to the public beta soon.

iOS 18 isn’t a groundbreaking update right now, but that could change as Apple Intelligence becomes available to more people and more of its features become available. Until then, iOS 18 is still a very good update to iOS — it’s just not a particularly big one.