iOS 15: 6 New Features That Just Came to Your iPhone

Apple’s latest software for iPhone, iOS 15, is out today. Here’s what you’re getting.

Published September 20, 2021

Updated November 29, 2021

It didn’t get much stage time at the big iPhone 13 event, but iOS 15 is here and you’re getting some new features on your iPhone even if you aren’t upgrading.

iOS 15’s official launch date is today, 9/20, so you may already have it. You can check by going to Settings > General > Software Updates.

If iOS 15 isn’t there yet, it soon will be (unless your using an iPhone 6 or older).

Here’s what’s on the way, and how to do it.

How to share a Facetime call as a link in iOS 15

iOS 15 will bring a number of updates to Apple’s FaceTime that will let it function more similarly to video conferencing apps like Zoom that became so popular during COVID-19. In iOS 15, you’ll be able to schedule a FaceTime call, and get a link that you can share by email or messaging.

To do this, simply:

1. Open the FaceTime app
2. Click “Create Link“
3. Tap “Copy” and share the link with your friends on Android or PC

How to share your screen in Facetime in iOS 15

FaceTime is also introducing a feature called SharePlay which will let you share your screen with a FaceTime call, or even listen to music and watch movies together in perfect sync. This feature won’t necessarily work with all streaming services, but it will work with Apple’s Music and TV apps at launch (of course), and SharePlay deals are in place with companies like Disney, HBO Max, and the NBA to allow content to be used with SharePlay.

To share your screen with SharePlay:

1. Open Facetime
2. Tap “Create New FaceTime“
3. Tap the SharePlay icon on the far right of the dropdown menu at the top of the screen.
4. Click “Share My Screen“

How to turn on Notification Summary in iOS 15

Apple is introducing a feature called “Notification Summary” with iOS 15 which lets you bundle a bunch of your “less pressing” notifications into a digest that gets delivered at a set time of day.

To turn it on:

1. Go to “Settings”
2. Go to “Notifications”
3. Select “Scheduled Summary”
4. Flip it on
5. Complete the guided setup process.

How to turn on Focus mode in iOS 15

In addition, iOS 15 has a new “Focus” feature, which allows you to create custom settings that will priorities different types of notifications. You can turn on a Focus like “Personal,” which will prioritize notifications from friends and family, or a setting like “Work” which will prioritize notifications from work related apps and coworkers.

To turn it on:

1. Go to “Settings”
2. Select “Focus”
3. Select an existing profile or hit the “+” button at the top right to create a new profile
4. Follow the guided setup procedure
5. (Optionally) scroll down on the page for a selected Focus to enable automation.

How to install extensions on Safari on iOS 15

iOS 15 gives you the ability to use Safari browser extensions on mobile just like you currently can on the desktop version of Safari and control what websites they’re active on.

All you have to do is:

1. Open “Settings”
2. Go to “Safari”
3. Scroll down to “General” and pick “Extensions”
4. Manage any existing extensions or click “More Extensions” to go to the Safari extension section of the App Store.

How to group your tabs on Safari mobile in iOS 15

iOS 15 is also introducing tab grouping to mobile Safari.

To create or modify a tab group

1. Open “Safari”
2. Click the multi-tab icon on the far right of the bottom command bar.
3. Click the text in the middle of the command bar.
4. Select “New Empty Tab Group” to start a new group of tabs or “New Tab Group from Tabs” to turn your open tabs into an official group.