The App Store is at the heart of the iOS ecosystem. It’s the portal to great new games, productivity tools, camera apps, and pretty much anything else you want to install on your iPhone 18 Pro Max. So not being able to connect to it is kind of a big deal.

If you’re experiencing difficulties with slow performance, load times, or logging on then the problem could be due to the site itself. We’ll show you how to quickly check whether things are working as they should at Apple’s App Store.

Visit the Apple System Status page

Your first port of call when checking to see if the App Store is offline or in trouble is the Apple System Status page. This shows the current state of all the Apple online services, letting you know if there are issues or scheduled maintenance that could be causing the problems. It will also indicate whether there were recent disruptions that have now been resolved.

If you do see a message next to the App Store, clicking on it will bring up more details about the issue, including when the outage occurred and the kind of problems users would have experienced.

While on the Apple System Status page you can also check on the current health of Apple Pay, Siri, iCloud, Photos, Maps, and pretty much anything else Apple provides. A very handy site to have on your bookmark list.

Visit an independent status checking site

Apple isn’t the only site that provides up to date information about problems and outages on the App Store. Visiting Down Detector will also give you the latest news on any disruptions currently being reported by the service. The site provides the facility to report problems (about any website, not just the App Store) and allows you to see any past issues that have affected performance.

For a more detailed analysis of the App Store status you could try www.isitdownrightnow.com which offers similar data as Down Detector but also features a grid layout displaying access speeds over the past few days.

Just remember that when you search for the App Store to use the following URL – itunes.apple.com – or you’ll have trouble finding it on the site.

Check your device and settings

If, after checking the various status sites listed above, you find that the App Store is working properly then the bad news is that it could be a problem with your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max. See Cannot Connect to App Store on iPhone 18 Pro Max.

Thankfully there’s no need to book that Genius bar appointment just yet.

Can’t connect to the App Store to download apps on your iPhone 18 Pro Max? Is your device refusing to sign in? Or are you having problems downloading an app or an update to an app?

These are quite common problems, sadly. But more happily, there are plenty of simple solutions you can try. We recommend you work through the following steps to try and fix the problem.

1. Check if the App Store is down

From time to time Apple suffers from a server outage. It could be that the App Store is down and nobody can access it.

The quickest way of finding out is to check Apple’s System Status page, which lists problems with all of the company’s online services; the App Store is first on the list. Note that if the problem occurred very recently it may not have been noticed yet: the site’s update frequency is in the order of minutes, not seconds.

If that comes up blank, a search for relevant terms on X can often be a good way of finding out if people are sharing your pain.

If the store is down, this is both bad news and good news. There’s not much you can do to solve the problem, but on the other hand you can just sit back and wait for Apple to solve it, which should happen quickly.

2. Check your web connection

It’s an obvious one, but you need to be online to access the App Store.

Make sure you’re connected to the internet – visit Google, for example.

3. Try another Wi-Fi network

Even if the Wi-Fi network is working there may be a restriction on it that is stopping you from accessing the App Store. Work networks, for instance, may be set up to block certain sites and services to preserve bandwidth.

Try using an alternative Wi-Fi network and see if that fixes the problem.

4. Are you set to download over cellular?

Perhaps you aren’t on a Wi-Fi network at all. If you are accessing the App Store over your cellular connection, that may be the root of your issue.

While using your mobile network connection shouldn’t stop you from accessing the App Store entirely, if your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max is set to only download apps over Wi-Fi you won’t be able to download apps over a cellular connection.

Try connecting to a reliable Wi-Fi network and see if this allows downloads to go ahead. Or, as long as you can spare the data, open the Settings app and tap Cellular. Make sure the slider beside App Store is set to on (green).

While we’re on this topic, there is a separate option that dictates whether your device can automatically download app updates as soon as they appear on the App Store, as long as your iPhone is connected to the internet via Wi-Fi. This could be a handy setting if you are frequently finding apps aren’t working because they need to be updated. But it could prove annoying if you have a lot of apps and feel that your iPhone is always downloading updates (and wasting battery life doing so). Go to Settings > Apps > App Store, and turn on App Updates.

There is even a setting that allows your iPhone to use mobile data to automatically download app updates. Before you turn this on beware that it could mean that your iPhone uses a lot of data downloading updates. If you think that the risk of using up data is worth it, go to Settings > Apps > App Store, and turn on Cellular Data.

5. Have you run out of data?

Even if your settings allow you to download apps over a cellular connection, your data allowance for the month may be maxed out.

It’s a good idea to check the terms of your contract to see how much data you’re allowed and to find out the date on which your data allowance is reset.

If you know this information you can reset the Cellular Data statistics on your iPhone in Settings > Cellular, on that day of the month and at least keep tabs on how much data you are using, and which apps are the biggest data swallowers.

If it turns out you need more data then you might have to pay for more.

6. Is the app no longer supported?

It’s possible that you’re trying to update an app that is out of date and no longer supported by iOS. Try downloading a different app to see if this is what’s causing the update to fail.

Try searching for the app in the App Store, if it isn’t showing up it’s likely that it’s been removed.

7. Is the app too large to download over cellular?

A final note for those unable to download apps: remember that iOS stops you downloading really large apps over a cellular connection, so check the size of the file. Go to Settings, tap Apps, tap App Store, then tap App Downloads below Cellular Data and choose Always Allow.

8. Try logging out and logging in again

Okay, let’s try some simple resets to see if this jogs the App Store into working. First, try logging out and then log back into the App Store on your iPhone 18 Pro Max – that should fix it:

• Go to Settings, tap your name, then tap Media & Purchases.

  

• Tap Sign Out.
• Log in again using your Apple Account and password.

9. Clear your memory

Perhaps it’s a memory issue. To quit the app, open the App Switcher, swipe right to find the app, then swipe up on the app. Reopen it and see if that fixes the problem.

If it doesn’t, close all open apps and turn your phone on and off again to clear the memory.

10. Force-refresh the App Store

If you’re trying to get updates to load you can force a refresh by dragging down on the screen until a spinning icon appears.

11. Check your Date & Time settings

Your Date & Time settings are unexpectedly relevant to this issue, because the App Store uses them to check on your location (probably).

Go to Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Time Automatically. (This setting means that if you travel from, say, London to San Francisco, as soon as your iPhone recognises it is in a new territory it will automatically change the time accordingly.)

12. Reset your network settings

Try resetting your network settings. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Network Settings and see if that fixes the problem.

13. Update your software

There might be a known issue with the way the App Store is accessed by your iPhone 18 Pro Max that has been fixed in an update to iOS, so it’s worth checking you’re on the latest version.

Go to Settings > General > Software Update and see if there are any available updates.

14. Contact Apple

If all else fails you could contact Apple and seek further advice.

Summary

• Restarting your iPhone 18 Pro Max or the Camera app can clear temporary glitches that cause camera blinking issues.
• Using the right settings for specific camera options can help fix blinking or flickering.
• If your iPhone’s camera blinking issues persist after trying all the fixes, contact Apple support.

Are you experiencing blinking or flickering issues with your iPhone 18 Pro Max camera? Various factors can cause this, so don’t assume it’s a hardware issue and take it to an Apple Store just yet. Go through these troubleshooting steps first.

1. Close the Camera App and Open It Again

One of the first fixes is to close and relaunch the Camera app. Doing so will reset the app’s state, eliminating any temporary data that may be corrupt and cause blinking issues. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open the App Switcher (by swiping up from the bottom of the screen and pausing in the middle).

   

2. Swipe to the Camera app and then swipe up to close it.
3. Reopen the app and check if you encounter the blinking issue.

Closing and relaunching apps is also one of the best solutions if your iPhone apps keep crashing.

2. Disable Macro Mode

Even after restarting your Camera app, the camera blinking issue might persist. In such cases, the built-in macro mode that helps you take detailed close-up photos might be the culprit. If you experience blinking or flickering problems only when taking close-ups, this might be due to your camera switching to the ultra-wide lens.

Disable macro mode by following these steps:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and select Camera.
3. Turn on Macro Control. When you get within macro distance of your subject, tap the Auto Macro On button in Camera to turn off automatic macro switching.

3. Manually Adjust Your Camera’s Exposure

Your iPhone’s camera automatically adjusts the exposure (amount of light entering the lens) depending on the environmental conditions. It will reduce exposure in a bright environment and increase it in a dark environment. This automatic adjustment might not always be ideal. Sometimes, your iPhone 18 Pro Max might find it difficult to settle on a specific exposure value, which leads to blinking.

To solve this, you should manually adjust the exposure by following these steps:

1. Tap the Camera Controls button or swipe up from the camera modes at the bottom of the screen.

   

2. Tap Exposure, then drag the slider to adjust the level.
3. Once you’re satisfied with the outlook in the Camera preview, tap the Shutter button to take a picture.

4. Enable Lock Camera in Settings

Macro mode isn’t the only feature on your iPhone that switches camera lenses to help you snap the best shot. Your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max will also switch lenses automatically at any point while shooting a video to try and give you the best results. However, this can also cause camera blinking and flickering issues if your device can’t quite get it right.

Fortunately, Apple allows you to prevent the Camera app from switching lenses while recording a video. Here’s how to turn off this default behavior:

1. Open the Settings app and select Camera.
2. On the next page, tap Record Video.
3. Toggle on Lock Camera.

5. Restart Your iPhone 18 Pro Max

Restarting can fix most smartphone problems, so it’s no wonder it’s commonly recommended in almost every guide on fixing most issues. Restarting clears all the data stored in memory, thus removing any temporary glitches causing irregular behavior, such as your iPhone camera blinking.

It also releases all resources and restarts all apps afresh, including the Camera app, which can help fix the issue. Simultaneously press and hold the side button and either volume button until the sliders appear, then drag the Power Off slider. Press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears.

Hopefully, one of our fixes helped you sort out your iPhone camera’s blinking or flickering problem. However, if you’ve tried all the solutions above and the camera is still blinking, it’s time to contact Apple support.

You can easily get tech support for your iPhone using the Apple Support app. If the issue is hardware-related, you’ll need to take your iPhone 18 Pro Max to an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider for lens replacement. But this may cost you a lot of money unless you’ve purchased an AppleCare+ warranty.

Guided Access limits the content a user can access on your device. It’s a handy iOS feature that helps to protect your privacy when, for example, you let your friend borrow your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max.

So, what should you do if a person can still access other content on your iPhone, even after you enabled Guided Access? Or if your iPhone’s Guided Access triple-click is not working, and pressing the button just turns off your iPhone screen?

Let’s look at the different solutions you can apply when your iPhone’s Guided Access is not working.

1. Review Your Guided Access Settings

Before assuming that Guided Access is not working because it’s faulty, it’s best to check the settings you have in place first. If you can still triple-click your Side button to enable Guided Access, do so, then triple-click again to access Session Settings to review your customized settings.

For example, if Touch is toggled on, this is the reason why other people can explore the contents within your opened app. Toggle off Touch to solve the issue.

If you don’t want users to type anything, toggle off Software Keyboards. To prevent a Guided Access session from ending automatically, toggle off Time Limit.

2. Turn Off Guided Access and Turn It On Again

If your Guided Access triple-click is not working, the first method probably isn’t applicable in your situation. In this case, you need to head to Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access. Toggle off Guided Access and toggle it on again.

It’s that simple because the triple-click issue may just be a random glitch. Afterward, head to your desired app, triple-click your Side button as usual, and Guided Access should start working again.

3. Restart Your iPhone 18 Pro Max

The next solution is to soft reset your iPhone. The procedure is also known as a force restart. There are a couple of reasons why restarting your smartphone fixes most problems, making it a go-to solution for technical issues like this. Press and quickly release the volume up button. Press and quickly release the volume down button. Press and hold the side button. When the Apple logo appears, release the side button.

4. Update Your iPhone

iOS updates often come with bug fixes and performance improvements. Therefore, you can resolve your iPhone’s Guided Access problem by ensuring that you have updated your iOS to the latest version.

Head to Settings > General > Software Update to check if an update is available for your device.

5. Reset All Settings on Your iPhone

If your iPhone’s Guided Access is still not working, the last solution you can try is to reset all settings on your iPhone 18 Pro Max. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset All Settings.

The procedure restores all settings on your iPhone to the default state. As long as you follow the above instructions carefully and tap the correct buttons, rest assured that you won’t delete any data on your iPhone.

Get Guided Access Working Again on Your iPhone

The convenience of Guided Access makes it easy for you to control what users can look at when they’re using your device.

When Guided Access is not working, check that you have customized the settings correctly first. But if the issue lies with the Guided Access triple-click, try applying the other solutions, and the feature should start functioning again on your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max.

Getting to know the IMEI of your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max is a useful trick – and quite possibly essential, if you’re unlocking your iPhone – but it became slightly more difficult a few years ago when Apple stopped printing the number on the back of its phones.

But there are still several different ways to find the IMEI of an iPhone, and in this article we show the simplest and most useful. You’ll only need one, of course, so pick the method that’s easiest for you.

What’s an IMEI, and what is it used for?

Every iPhone has a unique identifier code, known as an IMEI number. The letters stand for International Mobile Equipment Identity, and the number is used to identify each mobile phone.

The IMEI number is used by your mobile phone company to match the phone to the networks, so it can figure out who is making calls. It is also used to maintain a blacklist of stolen mobile phones.

Find your IMEI by dialling a code

You can retrieve the iPhone’s IMEI number by dialling the code *#06# into the Phone app. Follow these steps:

1. Open Phone app.

   

2. Tap Keypad.
3. Enter *#06# – you don’t need to hit the green call button; it’ll just register automatically.

The IMEI code will then appear on the screen.

Dialling a code is the most commonly described method of finding the IMEI number, but we don’t think it’s the best because you can’t copy the number. Instead of being able to copy and paste the code you have to write it down – and it’s long enough, at 15 digits, for this to be annoying.

On the bottom of the SIM tray

On supported models, the IMEI is also printed on the SIM card tray.

Insert a paper clip or SIM eject tool into the small hole of the SIM tray, then push in toward iPhone to eject the tray. Carefully take out the SIM card and turn the tray over. The IMEI will be written on the underside of the tray, rather small.

Note: iPhone 18 Pro Max models purchased in the United States can only be activated with an eSIM.

Once again, you’ll obviously need to write it down laboriously by hand, and again, it’s written very small. Let’s find a method that’s easier on the eyes.

Use iOS Settings

The IMEI number is also located in the iPhone’s Settings app. Using Settings is probably the best option because it enables you to copy and paste the number. Follow these steps:

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap General > About.
3. Scroll down to locate the IMEI number.
4. Tap and hold the IMEI number to bring up a Copy bubble.
5. Tap Copy.

Now you can paste the IMEI code into another app, such as Notes.

How to find the IMEI if your iPhone 18 Pro Max is lost or stolen

One of the principal situations in which an IMEI is needed is when you’re reporting the theft of the device.

Go to account.apple.com in a web browser. Sign in to the Apple Account that you use on your device. Choose the Devices section. To see the serial number, EID, and IMEI/MEID, select the device.

Predictive emoji is a valuable iPhone feature that uses machine learning to give you emoji suggestions above your keyboard. It can make your life so much easier that when the feature stops working, you will really feel the burden of needing to go looking for emojis manually again.

If your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max has stopped predicting emojis for you to use, here are several fixes you can try to make predictive emoji work again.

What Is the Predictive Emoji Feature on an iPhone?

When it’s working, Apple’s Predictive Emoji feature will suggest different emoji to insert to text as you’re typing. It should work in any app, allowing you to tap the emoji suggestion above the keyboard to instantly replace your text with it.

Not only does this make it easy to spice up your conversation with colorful emojis, but it can also be one of the quickest ways to search for and insert your favorite emojis.

If Predictive Emoji isn’t working, you might just see a blank space on the right side of Apple’s predictions. Luckily, this is easy to fix with the quick steps below.

1. Make Sure Predictive Emojis Are Turned On

First, check if you have the Emoji keyboard enabled on your device. Head to Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards > Add New Keyboard, then find and select Emoji.

Now, make sure the Predictive Text function is enabled. Go back to Settings > General > Keyboard, then scroll down and enable the Predictive Text toggle.

2. Switch to Apple’s English Keyboard

There are tons of cool third-party iPhone keyboards you can use, but not all of them have a Predictive Emoji feature. If you’re using a third-party keyboard, try switching back to the official Apple one.

To do this, tap and hold the Emoji button or the Switch Keyboard key in the bottom-left corner of your keyboard, then select the English keyboard.

Make sure the keyboard language matches what you’re typing, otherwise it won’t know which emojis to predict.

3. Feed Your Device With Emojis

Your iPhone feeds on the information you give it and makes suggestions based on your typing style and past usage. If you don’t use emojis much in a certain app, that may be the reason you’re not getting any predictive emoji suggestions in it.

You need to let your iPhone 18 Pro Max know that you like using emojis for it to start predicting them. To do that, open the app that doesn’t show you predictive emojis and tap the Emoji button in the bottom-left corner to select the Emoji keyboard.

Now start typing random emojis. They don’t need to make sense, but you need to add enough of them to teach your device that you like using emojis in this app. It could take 20 or more emojis.

Now delete all the content you just typed and check if Predictive Emoji is working by typing a word like “puppy,” “candy,” or “haha.” You should see emoji suggestions above the keyboard.

You should repeat this process for every app where predictive emoji is not working.

4. Reset Your Keyboard Dictionary

If predictive emojis still aren’t working, you should try resetting your keyboard dictionary. This will make your iPhone 18 Pro Max forget any words you’ve taught it, so you may need to fix autocorrect errors on your Apple devices again. But it will also give you a clean slate to teach your device that you like using emojis again.

To do this, go to Settings > General, then scroll down and select Transfer or Reset iPhone. Now tap Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary. You’ll need to enter your passcode, then confirm you want to Reset Dictionary.

Now go back to the previous step and teach your iPhone that you like using emojis in all the relevant apps again.

5. Delete Your Emoji Keyboard

You can also reset your emoji keyboard by removing it and adding it again. To do this go to Settings > General > Keyboard. Tap Keyboards, then swipe left on the Emoji option and hit Delete.

Tap Add New Keyboard, then select Emoji to add it again.

6. Restart Your iPhone 18 Pro Max

If everything else seems to fail, you should try restarting your iPhone. Sometimes, a simple reboot can clear up issues and bugs, which may be enough to solve the problem. Simultaneously press and hold the side button and either volume button until the sliders appear, then drag the Power Off slider. Press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears.

7. Update Your Software

Apple does its best to improve your iPhone software with every update. These updates include fixing common bugs that pester users, like when the Predictive Emoji feature stops working. To update your software to the latest version of iOS, head to Settings > General > Software Update.

If your software is out of date, you’ll see an Update Now button at the bottom of the screen. Tap it and follow the prompts to complete the update.

Emojis Are a Necessity for Modern Communication

In this digital age, emojis have become a regular part of our communication. Apple’s Predictive Emoji feature is a handy tool that intuitively suggests emojis that you can seamlessly insert into your conversations. So it’s a big loss to easy texting when that feature stops working. Hopefully these suggestions fixed that for you.

We try to avoid profanity, but there are times when gosh and crikey and what’s the meaning of this and lord love a duck don’t cut it, language-wise. Those are the moments when you simply have to call someone a gigantic fuckface.

Annoyingly, digital devices do not always understand the human need for four-letter venting. Type “fucking” on an iPhone 18 Pro Max and it may decide that you really meant “ducking” and change it accordingly. Did you want to use the word ducking? Not ducking likely.

In this article we explain how to stop your iPhone from censoring your swearing. Bear in mind, however, that turning the digital air blue may upset your friends and relations, so try to exercise a little restraint.

Note also that iOS’s behaviour is a little unpredictable in this regard, and whether or not it chooses to zap a naughty word depends on your past behaviour (which iOS learns from, and uses to modify its internal dictionary), as well as the version of iOS you’re running, whether your rude word contains a typo and even whether or not you’re using swipe typing. It is not an exact science, and for this reason we would suggest that you work through these solutions and see what works best for you in practice.

Use tap-typing instead of swiping

Testing (your mileage may vary on different versions, as outlined above), we found that the aforementioned words are not changed, provided we type them in the traditional way. They are only corrected if we use swipe typing – perhaps because there is a greater chance of physical errors in that format.

It’s worth trying this out for yourself. If it works, and if you can cope with tap-typing, then one solution would be to use that instead of swipe typing, at least when delivering F-bombs.

Update iOS

If you’re on an older version, updating your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max may help. Go to the Settings app on your iPhone. Tap General, then tap Software Update.

As a side note, we generally recommend updating iOS on a regular basis unless you have a specific reason not to.

Create a text replacement shortcut

This is probably the most sensible and universally applicable solution. We’re going to use iOS’s text replacement feature, designed to look for a pre-arranged sequence of letters and change them into something else.

Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement. You’ll see any text replacements you’ve already set up (or just the pre-written “omw” for “On my way!” if you haven’t done any). Tap the + sign at the top right to add a new shortcut.

Enter the word in the Phrase field, but leave the Shortcut field blank. It isn’t telling iOS to change anything; it’s simply telling it that the word is legitimate. So: put “fuck” in the Phrase field, leave the Shortcut field blank, and hit Save.

The only downside of this method is that you have to repeat the process for each swear word you want to protect. You’ll probably want to create separate shortcuts for “fuck”, “fucking” and “fucked”, for instance, but there are probably some other rude words you can think of.

Turn off autocorrect

This is the nuclear option, but one we’d advise against. Autocorrect is in general a valuable feature that (in our experience at least) easily outweighs its occasional errors by catching and fixing dozens of typos.

If you can live without it, however, go to Settings > General > Keyboard and, in the section headed All Keyboards, tap the toggle next to Auto-Correction so it turns grey.

We trust this tutorial has helped you swear at your loved ones to your heart’s content.

Autocorrect is a pretty neat feature that automatically checks and polishes your spelling as you type on your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max. However, it can be more than a little annoying when autocorrect begins to type the wrong words or replace what you wrote with words that don’t make sense at all.

Fortunately, it’s possible to reset your iPhone’s vocabulary and teach autocorrect to spell properly again. Here’s how.

How the iPhone’s Autocorrect Goes Wrong

When you’re typing on your iPhone default keyboard and you misspell a word, you’ll likely see a bubble above your error, showing the correct spelling.

The wonder of autocorrect means you only need to continue typing—either by hitting Space, tapping Return, or adding punctuation—to accept the change. But this becomes a problem when your iPhone 18 Pro Max starts correcting words you don’t want to be changed.

Your Apple devices correct the spelling of the words you type based on the built-in dictionary and your previously typed words. They can learn incorrectly spelled words if you typed them too many times, which can lead autocorrect to start “fixing” the actual spelling.

You might find that it starts changing words that you don’t want changed. One such example is with changing words like “were” to “we’re” and “bit” to “but.”

1. Repeatedly Type Words to Fix Autocorrect

Unfortunately, Apple doesn’t allow you to edit your dictionary directly. One way around this is to type the word that’s being erroneously corrected and dismiss the change before it takes place by tapping the dismiss (x) button beside the suggested spelling. You may need to repeat this numerous times before your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max stops “correcting” the word in question.

If you automatically accept a change by mistake, hit Delete and your previously-typed word will appear in a bubble. Tap it, and your change will be reverted. This may also teach your iPhone that it is unnecessary to correct this word, encouraging it to add the word you just typed in its dictionary.

Some users suggest adding the words to your Contacts. However, this is a little unreliable and works best with proper nouns and company names.

2. Reset Your iPhone Dictionary

If your dictionary has become an unmanageable nightmare, you could always reset your iPhone dictionary. This sounds severe, but all you’re doing is removing the custom words and typing rules that your iPhone has picked up since you started using it. As your iPhone dictionary is often backed up to iCloud when you change devices, it could be many years old.

To reset your dictionary head to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary. You’ll also be asked to input your iPhone’s passcode to complete the erase.

Once you’ve done this, you’ll have to train your iPhone to spell your favorite words properly again. Remember all that you’ve learned about accepting erroneous corrections before you end up in the same position you were in before.

3. Teach Your iPhone 18 Pro Max New Words With Text Replacement

Aside from teaching your iPhone manually, you can also add new words using text replacement. This feature basically allows you to create shortcuts for commonly used words, like typing “omw” as a shortcut for “on my way.” Your iPhone will automatically substitute the shortcut with the expanded word or phrase.

Head to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement to add as many text replacements as you like. Your new additions will adhere to capitalization when added in lowercase, but if you add capital letters (e.g., Apple), these will be reflected in the correction.

4. Turn Autocorrect Off

If autocorrect has become overly irritating on your iPhone 18 Pro Max, it might be time to turn it off. To do this:

1. Head to Settings > General.
2. Select Keyboard.
3. Toggle Auto-Correction off.

If you’re wary about missing spelling errors, you can always turn on the spellchecker, which highlights spelling errors in red. To do this, just go back to Keyboard and toggle on Check Spelling and Grammar.

5. Turn On Predictive Text Instead

Unlike autocorrect, which actively changes words as you type, Predictive Text works in a more passive manner. Instead of changing a word to its suggested correction, Predictive Text simply shows predictions above the keyboard and allows you to tap or ignore them. See Predictive Emoji Not Working on iPhone 18 Pro Max. To enable the feature, just head back to the Keyboard settings, then toggle Predictive Text on.

Now, when you’ve typed a word that you think your iPhone will mistakenly “correct”, just tap the correct spelling in the top left box above the keyboard.

6. Use a Third-Party Keyboard

With iOS 8, Apple allowed app developers to replace the built-in iPhone keyboard with third-party alternatives instead. These keyboards do not use Apple’s dictionary, and only Apple’s keyboard can make changes to the system-wide custom word list. As a result, many third-party keyboards come with their own dictionaries, which you can often sync with other devices (including Android).

These keyboards will require you to provide “full access” to your keystrokes. You should be wary of allowing any old keyboard full access to everything you type.

SwiftKey

SwiftKey is one of our most-recommended keyboards for the Android platform—and for good reason. The app learns based on your typing habits, includes a full custom dictionary, and even syncs with its Android version when you sign in.

Download: Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard (Free, in-app purchases available)

Typewise

Typewise is another third-party keyboard option, especially if you prefer to add some customization to your keyboard. It has larger keys and allows you to type a lot faster than the default iOS keyboard. It also doesn’t ask for suspicious permissions.

Download: Typewise (Free, subscription available)

Carefree Typing on Your iPhone 18 Pro Max

The downside to well-polished messages is the tendency for our iPhones to misunderstand slang, informal phrases, and sometimes even uncommon names. This can be funny at best and frustrating at worst, and may even be a cause of embarrassment or upset.

What’s good is that there are several solutions to autocorrect problems, or alternative keyboards you can switch to. If teaching your iPhone to relearn the words seems like a hassle, you can always reset your dictionary or turn off the autocorrect feature for a more carefree typing experience.

Is your iPhone 18 Pro Max keyboard not showing up, typing the wrong letters, or malfunctioning in some other way? We’ll go through common problems and the corresponding solutions you can try when your iPhone’s on-screen keyboard isn’t working.

1. iPhone Keyboard Isn’t Showing Up

If the entire on-screen keyboard isn’t showing up when you need to type something, it’s probably because the cursor isn’t in a text field yet. Try tapping a text field or search box on your screen for the keyboard to appear.

If it’s a specific language that’s not showing up on your iPhone 18 Pro Max keyboard, it’s likely because you haven’t added the language yet.

To add a language to your keyboard, go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards > Add New Keyboard. From the list, select the language and your preferred input method if needed, then tap Done.

2. iPhone Keyboard Typing the Wrong Letters and Words

Almost everyone has had a text message needlessly autocorrected by their iPhone. But if this happens too frequently, and there are more mistakes than accurate corrections, here’s what you should do.

Test Your iPhone Screen

If the on-screen keyboard seems to type on its own and input the wrong letters and words, the issue may lie with your iPhone screen. Test to see if your iPhone works normally when you’re not using the keyboard.

If your iPhone is also opening apps randomly when you’re not touching the screen at all, this is a problem known as “ghost touch.” You can try solutions such as cleaning your iPhone screen and replacing the screen protector to fix ghost touch on your iPhone.

But if the cause of ghost touch is damaged hardware—for example, you dropped your iPhone recently, and there are visible screen cracks—you probably need to replace your iPhone’s display.

Check Your Text Replacement Setting

Let’s say you’re typing the phrase “I’m studying” in a message, but it autocorrects to “I’m napping” every time. This is probably caused by a text replacement setting.

The purpose of iPhone text replacement is to help people save time by completing phrases from preset abbreviations. However, it can also be used by a family or friend to set up a prank, hence the endless “correction.”

Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement. If there’s an unwanted phrase in the list, swipe left on it and tap Delete.

3. iPhone 18 Pro Max Keyboard Is Lagging

If you’re typing swiftly on your iPhone keyboard but the text takes a while to show up on the screen, the cause might be a temporary software glitch or an incorrect iPhone setting. Try the solutions below.

Reset the Keyboard Dictionary

Your iPhone’s keyboard dictionary doesn’t only autocorrect misspelled words. It also learns from what you type and provides predictive text accordingly.

You can try resetting the keyboard dictionary if your iPhone 18 Pro Max keyboard has been lagging frequently. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary to do so.

Review Your Touch Accommodations Settings in Accessibility

If you’re using a pre-owned iPhone, the previous owner might have changed some accessibility settings that affect how sensitive the screen (including the on-screen keyboard) is to touch. Therefore, these settings may cause a delay between typing on the keyboard and the text actually appearing on the screen.

To remove this, go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch > Touch Accommodations and tap Reset Touch Accommodations.

4. No Sound or Vibration When Typing on the Keyboard

By default, when you type on your iPhone keyboard, there should be a soft tapping sound. However, you can customize it to include haptic feedback for each key press in the Settings app. And if you don’t hear a sound while typing, you can check if it’s enabled here.

Go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Keyboard Feedback and toggle on Sound and Haptic, depending on what you’d like.

If you still don’t feel a vibration when you type, go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch and make sure Vibration is toggled on. Also, make sure you have Silent mode turned off on your iPhone.

5. General Fixes When Your iPhone Keyboard Doesn’t Work

If your iPhone 18 Pro Max keyboard is still not working after going through the above troubleshooting methods, you can try a few generic solutions. First, restart your iPhone by turning it off and on again. However, if the on-screen keyboard is frozen, you may need to force restart your iPhone instead. Press and quickly release the volume up button. Press and quickly release the volume down button. Press and hold the side button. When the Apple logo appears, release the side button.

Secondly, go to Settings > General > Software Update to check if a newer version of iOS is available for your device. Apple frequently rolls out updates that include bug fixes and performance improvements, which may help solve keyboard problems if it hasn’t been working right.

Similarly, if you’ve been using a third-party iPhone keyboard app, it’s best to update the iPhone app to get the latest bug fixes as well.

As a long-time user, I’ve noticed that several iPhone keyboard issues crop up from time to time. However, if the issue persists, it’s best to contact Apple Support for further assistance.

Welcome to our complete guide to iPhone 18 Pro Max security, where you’ll find essential tips to protect the sensitive data on your phone from the prying eyes of snoops and hackers.

While Apple’s iOS system is pretty secure, there are ways to make sure that your iPhone is as secure from hackers as it can be. If you have concerns about the safety of your private data, sensitive information including website logins, email addresses, text messages and even photos and videos, we have tips to help.

Keep iOS up to date

Make sure you’re always running the most recent iteration of iOS, including smaller ‘dot’ or point updates.

This is wise because hackers occasionally find flaws in Apple’s coding which they can exploit, potentially giving them access to your personal data. iOS updates are Apple’s way of combatting the exploits by patching holes and implementing better stability enhancements.

To update to the latest version of iOS, open the Settings app and tap General > Software Update. You’ll either be assured that you’re already running the latest version, or prompted to download and install something newer.

Expect further updates to be released regularly: it’s important to keep an eye out.

Activate Find My

Another step you can take in the war against hackers attacking your iPhone 18 Pro Max is to activate Find My iPhone.

Find My iPhone is handy because, if you lose your device, you can log on to Find My from another Apple device (or via the web on a Mac or PC) and locate your iPhone – or, more importantly, remotely wipe your personal data from the lost phone. This means that even if the hacker does manage to gain access to your lost/stolen device, they’ll find no valuable data.

To turn on Find My iPhone follow these steps:

1. Open Settings and tap your name/picture at the top of the screen.

   

2. Next tap Find My.
3. Tap Find My iPhone.
4. Now make sure the toggle by Find My iPhone is green.

If your device is offline (not connected to Wi-Fi or cellular), Find My can locate it using the Find My network.

Turn on Find My network if you want your iPhone to be discoverable in this way – it’s a good idea to as it will make it possible to locate – and crucially – wipe your iPhone if it falls into the wrong hands.

To remotely wipe an iPhone once located with Find My iPhone, follow these steps:

1. Log in to the Find My app (or iCloud website).
2. Tap on Devices.
3. Select your iPhone.
4. Tap the More button, tap Erase, then tap Continue.
5. The next time it has an internet connection (if it doesn’t already) it’ll automatically wipe itself.

Create a longer passcode

You may have heard of a hacking tool called GrayKey that was being used to crack iPhone passwords. It’s understood that the tool was being used by law-enforcement agencies, and could crack a four-digit passcode in a couple of hours. A six-digit code can be cracked in a few days.

The device, which needed to be plugged into an iPhone, could disable the usual delays and locks (one minute after six incorrect guesses, five minutes after seven and so on) that would normally stop anyone from brute-forcing their way past a passcode.

While you probably don’t have any reason to not want the police or government agencies to hack into your phone, the real concern here was that if it’s possible for the GrayKey device to hack into your phone this way, it’s highly likely that there will be similar devices and hacks available to criminals.

Luckily Apple blocked the GrayKey tech back in iOS 12, however, should such a thing become possible again – and it’s sure to – here’s what you should do to protect your phone:

• Choose a long passcode: one that’s longer than six digits. It could take a few months to hack an eight-digit pin, and a ten-digit pin could take a decade to crack!
• Use a passphrase containing words, rather than numbers. But use random words that wouldn’t normally appear together.

While passcodes only use numbers 0-9, a passphrase includes numbers, letters, symbols and case-sensitivity which should make your iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max a lot harder to break into – although it may take a little longer to unlock your iPhone when you want to use it.

You might be thinking that your phone is secured by Face ID, but remember your phone can still be unlocked with your passcode, so if that’s 0000 you have a reason to be worried!

How to set up a new passcode for iOS

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Face ID & Passcode.
3. Enter your Passcode.
4. Tap on Change Passcode.
5. Enter your Passcode.
6. Tap Passcode Options.
7. From the options, choose either Custom Numeric Code or Custom Alphanumeric Code.
8. Enter your new code and verify it.

If you use Face ID to unlock your phone you won’t normally need to use your passcode to unlock it, but there are exceptions: the passcode will be required when you haven’t used your phone for more than six days, for instance, or when you restart your device.

(On the subject of passwords, you can significantly improve your security by using a password manager.)

Auto-wipe iPhone content

Our next suggestion may sound a little unnerving, but it’s a great option if you’re worried about people trying to guess your passcode. The idea is that after 10 incorrect guesses, the iPhone will automatically wipe all content and thus make the smartphone useless to the hacker.

It’s slightly worrying as we’ve known people to accidentally activate the feature (usually when under the influence of alcohol!) and delete all their personal information. These are usually the same people who tend not to back up regularly… so if you do enable the option we’d advise also turning on automatic iCloud backup so if your data is wiped (due to an accident or someone trying to hack you) you’ll have everything saved in the cloud.

To enable the nuclear option, simply head to Settings > Face ID & Passcode, enter your passcode, scroll to the bottom of the page and toggle on Erase Data.

Avoid opening unknown links

This one is fairly self-explanatory – if you receive an unknown link via text, email or randomly on the web, don’t click on it. This could potentially pose a threat to your device and even though it may not be able to hack your iPhone directly; some pose as popular email clients like Gmail to gain access to your email account.

The pages usually look pretty close to the real thing, so this type of scam is fairly common and it always pays to keep your wits about you.

The general rule is that if you don’t trust the look of the email/message then just don’t bother opening it. The same goes for email attachments too, although there aren’t many cases (if there are any) where hackers have been able to gain access to an iPhone via this method, and this is more of a general tip.

Revoke app permissions

The next step to take in the war against hackers is to revoke access to apps. When you use iOS apps you’ll often be prompted to allow the app to access things like the camera, microphone, contacts, etc to use the app to the fullest extent.

Even though allowing access means you can use every feature of the app, the app may also be able to access your private information.

Don’t get us wrong – this is against Apple’s privacy policy and any apps found collecting personally identifiable information will be removed, and as far as we know this hasn’t happened so far, but it is a possibility.

Either way, if you feel like you’ve installed a less-than-reputable app on your iPhone 18 Pro Max, you can either delete it or head to Settings > Privacy & Security, select the permission you’d like to revoke and toggle the application off.

Don’t share location data in images

Another way your data can be leaked is in a photo which includes metadata revealing the location in which it was taken.

Note: Sharing a photo or video includes sharing its associated metadata, such as date and time, location, device, and captions.

How to avoid iCloud photo leaks & hacks

Speaking of photos, you may recall there was a swathe of celebrity photo leaks. As usual on the web, famous women get the worst treatment – which in this case meant the widespread posting of nude photos. And in a lot of cases an iPhone, or an iCloud account, was involved.

That doesn’t mean that Apple hardware and software services are fundamentally insecure. In fact, we feel confident in saying that the iPhone is the most secure mainstream smartphone on the market right now. But it does show that nobody can be complacent about the security of their most personal data and photos.

There are various ways to ensure that your intimate photos aren’t stolen and posted online by hackers: two-factor authentication is a good idea.

Turn off Siri

Apple’s personal assistant, Siri, is a great feature of iOS and provides users with a way of using their smartphone hands-free.

However, no matter how helpful Siri may be to users, it can also provide hackers with personal data. Siri will often ask for some kind of verification before allowing access to contacts, photos and other types of sensitive information, but there have been multiple occasions where people have found workarounds completely bypassing the iPhone passcode and providing easy access to the device.

To disable access to Siri on the lock screen, simply head to Settings > Face ID & Passcode and toggle the “allow access when locked” option off.

Turn off auto-fill

The same can be said about Apple’s auto-fill feature in Safari. Apple’s Keychain stores website logins, prompting users to save the information after successfully logging into their account.

It’s a hugely handy feature as it means we don’t have to remember the login information for the myriad of websites we browse – and the same goes for credit/debit card information. Simply tap a button and Apple will fill out all your card information, apart from your security code.

However, if a hacker does manage to gain access to your iPhone 18 Pro Max, it provides them with access to all your online logins. To disable keychain and auto-fill, simply go to Settings > Apps > Safari > AutoFill and toggle off each option.