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Culture > Digital

The iOS 16 Update (Finally) Allows You To Unsend & Edit Text Messages

Kayleigh Shaw

If there’s one thing that we can agree on, it’s that Gen Z is extremely tech-savvy and that we’re always looking for the best way to communicate efficiently. Luckily, the new Apple iOS 16 update that is coming to all iPhones and Apple Watches is here to make that a possibility.

After many months of testing out the update and making sure everything runs smoothly, iOS 16 will officially come into effect for iPhone and Apple Watch users on Monday, September 12, while iPad users may have to wait for a later date to get these new and exciting updates. Whether you’re prone to embarrassing typos, have a tendency to text the wrong person, or just want to make your lock screen a little bit more exciting, something tells me you’re going to enjoy and take advantage of all these opportunities.

The time has come for the perfect lock screen.

Have you ever wished that there were certain apps you could access on your lock screen before having to put your passcode in? Well, now that’s become a reality. With the new iOS update, you can add widgets to your lock screen like with your home screen for easier access.

If you’re also someone who wants their lock screen to look as aesthetically pleasing as possible, you can now match your clock with your lock screen by changing the colors and the font. And if that wasn’t enough to get you excited, another cool option is that you will be able to add to wallpapers with depth effects, allowing them to come to life in a way they never have before.

Say goodbye to panicking while texting. 

How many times have you made an  embarrassing typo or sent a text to your crush that was actually meant for your best friend? Well, with the new texting update, you can stress less about that. You will soon be able to edit a text message up to 15 minutes after you’ve sent it, or unsend it up to two minutes after you’ve sent it. It seems like editing features have begun to arise for different ways of communication, as Twitter recently announced they are testing out an edit option after many years of requests. Other texting updates that will be available are SharePlay, which will allow you to share your screen while FaceTiming and collaborating on messages. With this new update, you can stress less about what may go wrong when texting and let yourself relax.

navigating Mail and Safari just got easier. 

Along with updates to your lock screen and text messages, the new iOS update will make using your email and Safari easier. The Spotlight Search feature will be updated, but it’s still unclear specifically how. Mail is getting a new feature that allows you to schedule when an email is sent, so you can now schedule an email that you wrote at one in the morning to be sent to your professor at 8 a.m. instead of midnight. You know, so that it looks like you weren’t staying up late working on that paper that’s due in a couple days. 

With the new shared tab groups feature in Safari, you will be able to share multiple tabs at once rather than sending them individually. Safari Passkeys will also give users a safer way to log into their accounts on their phone than ever before. Safari Passkeys will allow you to log in using your fingerprint or Face ID, reducing the chance of someone stealing your phone and hacking into your account.  

Maps will also be getting a couple updates for safer and smarter travels. With multi-stop routing, you will be able to get directions to multiple locations without having to put in directions to each location when you’re done at one destination. No need to worry getting lost going from school to the mall to the coffee shop with this new feature. Now, if you live in a big city and take transit, you can add your transit card to your phone and never have to worry about forgetting it at home or at your dorm!

For everyone with a Second Generation iPhone SE and older, make sure you update your phone this upcoming week because you definitely don’t want to miss out on all that it has to offer. Now the next time you send a drunk text or text your work group chat instead of your group chat full of your besties, you can simply unsend it. May these new iOS updates allow you to enhance your technology skills!

Born and raised in Arizona, Kayleigh Shaw is a Her Campus National Writer. She mainly writes for the Culture section, primarily focused on the latest entertainment news, but will occasionally write about life and career, giving advice to a wide array of readers. Outside of Her Campus, Kayleigh was also a part of Rod Pulido’s Street Team for his debut novel, Chasing Pacquiao and completed social media challenges to promote the book. She also hopes to one day write for Screen Rant and Comic Book Resources. where she will continue to use her love of all things pop culture to her advantage. She also graduated from Glendale Community College in May 2022 with an Associate's Degree in English. When Kayleigh's not working on journalism pieces, she can be found writing poems and short stories, reading, watching TikToks, listening to their favorite podcasts, listening and dancing to Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift, watching movies and TV shows on Netflix and Hulu (while crying over fictional characters and relationships.) She would live in a library and avoid the rest of the world if she could. She also drinks coffee like a Gilmore and often goes down rabbit holes researching their hyper fixations.