These incredible iOS 26 -features are hiding – here is how to find them

Apple has officially released iOS 26 to everyone, and although changes like Liquid Glass make the update impossible to miss, there are plenty of useful new features that are not so obvious. Some of them are buried in menus and others will only appear when you know where to look.

Here are some of the best hidden features of iOS 26 worth trying and exactly where to find them.

1. Use AirPods as a video recording microphone

One of the most practical additions in iOS 26 is the ability to use your AirPods as an external microphone when shooting videos with the iPhone camera. This means you can catch clearer sound even if you stand away from the iPhone.

To do this, follow the steps below:

1. Put your AirPods in your ears.
2. Open the camera app on your iPhone.
3. Switch to video mode.
4. Pull the control center down and press Camera control.
5. Make sure AirPods is selected as sound input.

From now on, your videos are recorded with the AirPods microphones, ensuring that you get sound quality sound. This feature is perfect for vlogging, shooting interviews or making tictok without external gear.

Just remember it only works with AirPods 4, AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3.

Create polls in messages

The group chats on iMessage became equally more interactive. With iOS 26 you can add quick polls to help everyone decide dinner, a movie or weekend plans.

How to do it:

1. Open the Messages app.
2. Choose a group chat.
3. Press the “+” button next to the text field.
4. Select Voting.
5. Add the settings you want and send the message.

Participants in this group chat can vote and everyone will see the results in real time. Much better than endless discussions and answers that root together your chats.

Turn on adaptive force

Apple has refined power control in iOS 26 with a new adaptive power mode. Unlike low power mode, this feature balances quiet performance and battery life without drastic changes. It’s great if you don’t want iPhone to slow down too much but still want to extend the life of the battery a little longer.

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How to activate it:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Go to Battery menu.
3. Enter Power mode Option.
4. Shift Adaptive force on.

The system will adjust performance, screenshots, update speeds and background tasks depending on your use, which helps you save power with fewer compromises. Just note, adaptive power is only available for the iPhone 15 Pro and later.

See Estimated Charging Time

When we talk about batteries, iOS 26 finally shows the estimated time it will take for your phone to finish charging. The system detects how much power the charger delivers to estimate how many minutes (or hours) it will take to recharge the device.

Using this feature is super easy. Each time your iPhone is connected to the charger, you see the estimated charging time for a few seconds on the lock screen. You can also see the estimated time when you want to go to Settings> Battery.

Set any audio file as your ringtone

For years, customization of ringtones on iPhone using iPhone or garage band required. Fortunately, iOS 26 finally makes it much easier to set a custom ringtone.

1. Save an audio file (as an MP3 or M4A) to the file file.
2. Press and hold on Filnameee.
3. Press Share.
4. Select Use as a ringtone Option in the Share menu.

Now you can use any sound you want as a ringtone. You will also find new ringtones from Apple in Settings> Sounds & Haptik > Ringtone.

Run a task in the background

With iOS 26, iPhone users can finally run certain tasks in the background without having to worry about interruptions when jumping to another app. This has been enabled thanks to a new API that allows apps to run certain tasks even when the user interacts with another app.

This means you can continue using your iPhone while downloading files or exporting a video in other apps. But there is a catch: This requires developers to adopt the new API in their apps, so the feature may not be available in all apps on the first day.

Still, you can try background assignments in Safari. Next time you download a file in Safari with iOS 26, try switching to another app and you will see a Live activity message indicating that the file is still downloading in the background.

Wonder on album art on full screen

When you listen to a song on Apple Music that has an animated album art, you can use it as your full -screen wallpaper on the lock screen with iOS 26.

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Just press the album artwork’s thumbnail on the lock screen to extend it to full screen. Press the artwork again to switch back to your default wallpaper.

Haven’t you updated for iOS 26 yet? Go and get it now

If you haven’t updated your iPhone for iOS 26 yet go to Settings> General> Software update And look for iOS 26 update. Apple’s latest software is compatible with iPhone 11 or newer, although some features are exclusive to the latest models.