One of Apple’s latest innovations, 3D Touch, changes the way you use your iPhone. Could this cool new feature open up a world of possibilities?
3D Touch is currently available on the iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, and it will almost definitely be introduced to the iPad and other Apple devices in the near future.
The technology allows your device to determine the pressure you are applying to the screen when you touch it, which allows for many possibilities within apps.
For example, if you open up the Notes app and start sketching, you’ll be able to draw heavier and thicker lines by pressing harder, just like you would with a real pencil.
How to use Quick Action
Previously, you had two options when interacting with an app on your device’s home screen. A tap would open the app, and a long press would enable you to move or delete the app. Now, you can do much more.
By firmly pressing an app, you will bring up the ‘Quick Action’ menu. This allows you to jump straight into certain tasks within the app. These tasks will be different for every app, so you’ll have to do some investigating to see what’s on offer. If the app doesn’t have a Quick Action menu, your device will softly vibrate a few times.
How to use Peek and Pop
This function allows you to quickly preview something or ‘peek’ at it, you can then open up this preview or ‘pop’ into it.
To do this, tap on something you would like to look at, then without taking your finger off the screen press harder on your screen to peek at it. You can now swipe up to see some quick actions, or press harder on your screen to open up the preview. To close the preview, simply release your finger.
For example, in the Mail app, you can ‘peek’ at an email, then you can swipe up to forward, reply, or move the email. You can also swipe left to mark the email as unread, or right to move it to the trash. By pressing your finger harder on the device, you can ‘pop’ in to the preview, or you can close the ‘peek’ by releasing your finger.
Customise
You can adjust the settings for 3D Touch by navigating to the Settings app, then tapping General > Accessibility > 3D Touch. This menu allows you to change the sensitivity for 3D Touch, which can be useful if you have trouble pressing that hard on the screen. You can also deactivate 3D Touch from this menu.
Have you tried 3D Touch? What do you think about this new feature?
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