David A. Cox: Hey folks.
Today I am going to teach you how to use my top 12 favorite new features in iOS 17.
That's coming up next on Tech Talk America.
I want to start with the feature that I think is ultimately the most useful
to the average everyday consumer.
That feature is family shared passwords.
Here's how to set it up on your iPhone.
Once iOS 17 drops later this fall.
You'll want to start by going into settings and then
scroll down to passwords.
It will then walk you through a setup process where you can
add additional family members.
Here's a little tip.
Let whoever in the family is the most tech savvy be the organizer and then
let them explore this setting first.
They can then add the additional family members and choose which passwords
they want to be accessible by everyone.
Then those added family members can choose what, if any of their
own passwords to contribute.
And when it's all said and done, you'll see a category called family
Passwords appear in this list.
I have to say, as someone who does a lot of private tech support for individuals
as well as couples, I'm well aware that this feature is long overdue.
You've been able to do this with apps like One Password and LastPass,
but I'm really happy to see that it's finally coming to keychain.
The second setting that I think you guys are gonna love is automatic verification.
This is just one more reason why if you use Apple Products, you
should stay in the Apple ecosystem.
And by that I mean use Safari as your browser and Apple Mail as
your default mail application.
With this feature turned on, you won't have to fill out those annoying
captures in apps or on the web.
By allowing iCloud to automatically and privately verify your devices
and account, I think you'll all agree that signing into websites has
become a massive pain in the butt.
So I'm instantly a fan of this feature at this point.
Let me show you how to set this up.
Go into settings and tap on your name at the top, and then
tap on sign in and security.
Then scroll to the bottom, and here you'll find an option to
enable automatic verification.
Speaking of making annoying things less annoying, let's talk about
those verification codes that clog up your messages and email.
Wouldn't it be great if there was a way to automatically delete all of them?
Well, now, after installing iOS 17, you can just go into settings, scroll
down to passwords, and here in password options you will find an option.
To automatically clean up verification codes.
One of the fundamentals that I love about Apple is how they have acted as
advocates for the disabled community.
Over the years, I've worked with several clients who have been given
the unfortunate diagnosis of ALS.
This next feature could be life-changing for someone facing ALS or other
conditions that involve the vocal cords.
There is a new feature in iOS 17 where you can create a clone of your own voice.
I went through the entire setup process and it's pretty fascinating.
If you go into settings and then tap on accessibility, you'll find this
new feature called Personal Voice.
Now this voice clone lives locally on the device.
It can be used in several different apps, including the phone.
FaceTime and other communication apps with support.
To start the process, you have to read simple sentences into the microphone.
For around 15 minutes.
After that, you have to leave your phone on the charger
while it generates the voice.
When it's done, you have to go back into accessibility options and
there's a feature called live speech.
You can then set the voice to personal voice.
Now to access it, all you need to do is triple click the side button,
which will make a keyboard appear.
Then just type whatever it is you want to say and when you tap
send it will speak it as you.
So at this point I'm gonna play for you my personal voice.
Uh, one quick thing.
Uh, so when I set this up, I was dealing with a little bit of a cold.
And the funny thing is, as a result, my vocal clone sounds like it has a cold too.
Let me know in the comments.
If you were my boss, would you give me time off?
If I sounded like this, sorry boss, but I'm feeling a bit under the weather.
Better get some rest and drink lots of fluids.
So sad.
Feel better, David.
The goal of this next feature is to improve your mental health by making
you more aware of your emotions and the root causes of anxiety and depression.
There is a new widget called State of Mind, which is
located in the health category.
I've been using it for a few weeks now, and I have to say, normally I
have trouble starting new habits, and this has been very easy to maintain.
At the end of every day, I get a little reminder to log my emotions for the day.
And this is what it looks like.
You can use this slider to rate your overall mood from very
unpleasant to very pleasant.
Next, you'll be asked to best describe the key emotion you're feeling at that moment.
If you don't see it in this list, there's a larger list of emotions that
you can choose by tapping show more.
Now you'll be asked to identify what is having the biggest
impact on you at that moment.
As always, apple takes the security of this information very seriously.
But if you do choose to work with a mental health professional, this
information can be exported as A P D F.
I'd also like to point out that there's a mental health questionnaire.
Which asks key questions about indicators for depression.
This next new feature I have to admit, I was a little bit skeptical about
it at first, but it's growing on me.
That new feature is you can now create your own stickers.
Think of this as an alternative to replying with emoji.
With stickers.
Basically, you can become your own emoji.
Just take a live photo of yourself doing something and
then force touch on the subject.
When you do, you'll see an option to add it as a sticker.
Then when you're in a message, instead of replying with an emoji, you can tap
the plus symbol and add a sticker and just drag and drop it onto the message.
I decided to re-shoot this next segment because this accessibility feature is
worth talking about in a bit more detail, since it affects millions of people,
enabling assistive access creates an alternative iOS experience where the most
important apps for basic communication, like the phone, FaceTime, and messages.
Are stripped down to their basics.
The icons are large, so they're easier to read, and the caregiver
can help flip back and forth between this mode and the traditional view.
By pressing and holding the volume up, down and side buttons for two seconds,
you'll then be prompted to enter a passcode, which you'll establish when
you're first setting up assistive access.
Then after a few moments, it goes back to the traditional iPhone view.
Next, I wanna show you an incredible safety feature for parents or
anyone who is going on a trip by themselves, especially at night.
The name of that feature is called Check-in.
Here's how it works.
Let's say I'm driving to Los Angeles and I wanna let my husband
know that I've arrived safely.
All I have to do is go into a text message and then tap on the plus symbol
to the left and then tap on more.
And here in this list is check in.
He would then get a notification about where I'm going, approximately how
long it will take me to get there, and once I do arrive, he'll get a
notification that I've arrived safely.
Now, if I don't arrive on time and do not respond when prompted,
it will place an emergency.
S o s call within 15 minutes.
The next feature I'm gonna show you wasn't mentioned at WW d c, but I
think you'll agree it's quite helpful.
If you're shooting a video and your hand starts to wobble, you'll now
see a horizon line so that you can much more easily level your shot.
One of the most popular new features in iOS 17 is you can now see a
live transcript of a voicemail as the caller is leaving the message.
Then if you decide you do want to take the call, you can click join.
Standby is a new feature that you can use when your phone is on a magnetic
charger and oriented in landscape mode.
You can swipe left or right to switch between different layouts, or you can
long press on widgets to swap them out.
It can display everything from weather, stock market information.
Items on your calendar appointments and so much more.
If you really like that last feature, you might want to consider getting
a charger for your phone that allows you to charge it horizontally.
Now, I've had a lot of trouble finding a charger that has all of the
features that I really care about.
For example, because a lot of people do charge their phones in their bedrooms.
I like to prioritize devices that do not have lights that
are going off all night long.
Uh, so the one that I've come to really enjoy.
Is this one made by Belkin?
Now I'll admit it's expensive.
This may be out of many of your price range.
It's right around $135, but it has fast charging for all
of your different devices.
You can put your phone in horizontal mode really, really slick.
If you wanna check it out, I'll put a link in the video description.
There are a few changes when it comes to contacts.
For example, if you go to your own contact card, you'll notice
that you can now add pronouns.
Also, you can create something referred to as a contact poster.
This allows you to have total control over what other people see
on their iPhones when you call them, you can use a photo of yourself.
Or memo.
You can endlessly customize it with different fonts, colors, and filters.
So have fun.
Swapping information is easier than ever in iOS 17, thanks
to a feature called Name Drop.
But unfortunately, this is one of those features that I can't
demo for you at this time.
This feature allows you to bring your devices together, whether it's an iPhone,
with another iPhone or an Apple Watch.
Then you can select which information to share with the
other person, and that's it.
Here's another feature we could have all used during the pandemic.
You can now use your iPhone as a webcam during a FaceTime call and project the
other person on your big, beautiful television that is hooked up to Apple tv.
Next, let's talk about autocorrect.
Autocorrect is more accurate than ever and you can use it faster than ever.
As you start to type, it will start to suggest what it thinks
the rest of the word will be.
Then just tap the space bar to accept those suggestions.
Keep in mind, if you ever need help with your Apple products, you can
work with me one-on-one from the comfort and privacy of your own home.
To book a one hour session with me, just visit my website at TechTalkAmerica.com.
Thank you so much for watching.
This is David A.
Cox with Tech Talk America.
Class dismissed.