Get a hands-on look at all the new features and changes coming to the Messages app as part of iOS 17: redesigns, check-ins, live stickers, and more.
Apple’s iMessage continues to be the iPhone’s selling point, and Apple refused to stagnate, adding quite a few new features and quality-of-life changes with iOS 17. Sending messages works as usual, but everything around the text input block has changed. Rethought.
We’ve been testing iOS 17 for some time, and here are all the changes and new features we’ve found so far.
Messages in iOS 17: Iterative Redesign
Apple didn’t overhaul Messages as briefly rumored, but it did make some iterative changes to make the app feel better and embrace new features. added.
As a first example, joining a delayed conversation will show a small caret in the upper right corner. This feature, called catchup, allows you to pick up where you left off in a conversation.
It works for both one-on-one conversations and group chats. If you’ve ever had your phone blown up by an overly loud group of friends, you’ll appreciate this feature.
It’s easier to reply. Swipe to Reply allows you to reply directly to a message by swiping from right to left. Threaded messages make it easier to understand ongoing conversations and eliminate the need for cumbersome tap-and-hold functionality.
Apple introduced the idea of Contact Posters with this release. A contact poster is a large, full-screen image that appears to anyone in your message or even when you call them.
Create a contact poster in iOS 17
You can create your own that you can share with anyone you share your contact information with. Updating your contact poster will update it for everyone you chat with.
Whenever sensitive content is submitted, whether consent-based or not, that content will be blurred and you will be given the choice of whether or not to view it.
Messages in iOS 17: Improvements
The redesigned App Drawer bridges the gap between redesign and new enhancements with new features. However, it is no longer a drawer.
Previously there was a camera and a plus icon side by side, now only the plus button is visible. This expands to a full screen menu with all your messaging apps.
It’s now even easier to tap the camera, stickers, Memoji, and more. The Photos app also displays a small version of your most recent photo as a glyph.
Your favorite or most used apps are displayed at the top, and you have to scroll to get a cumulative list of the remaining apps. By default these are in alphabetical order, but you can reorder them by tapping and holding.
When searching for messages, Apple lets you combine multiple criteria. For example, you can search for photos of a specific person.
Search filters in messages
Start typing a name or search type and tap it as it appears below the search bar. Search terms that can be combined include links, documents, photos, people, and more.
With iOS 17, the Messages app will no longer be cluttered with endless verification codes. That’s because there are new settings that help control passkeys beyond just migrating to passkeys.
by going to setting > password > Password option > clean up automaticallyYou can choose to delete it as soon as you enter .
In iOS 17, there are three new Memoji poses. Your character can now have a halo, peek through your fingers, and even grin.
When someone sends you a voice message, the message is automatically transcribed so you can read it without playing it.
Messages in iOS 17: Location Sharing
Apple has been allowing location sharing from Messages for years. The iOS 17 update brings the most changes in years.
Instead of accessing someone’s contact info to share your location, it’s been moved to the new Messages app menu. You can also request someone else’s location or share your own location from the contact information view.
You can request someone’s location or share your location by opening it from the app’s menu. If you share your stuff, you can choose to share it indefinitely, until the end of the day, or the next hour of his. Here are her three options, the same as before.
Our favorite added feature is the ability to drop pins. Instead of opening Apple Maps, you can tap the pin icon in the top left corner of the Messages app.
You can move the pin anywhere and send its exact location. Great for specifying meeting points, highlighting entrances to events, or sharing locations other than your own.
Messages in iOS 17: Stickers
In Messages this year, stickers received a surprising amount of attention, both in Messages and in other apps.
First introduced in iOS 10, stickers are images you can place anywhere in your conversations. You can download his packs of themed stickers from your favorite brands, movies and shows from the App Store or use Memoji.
You can now turn emoji into stickers
This update adds the ability to use emojis as stickers. Just open the emoji keyboard and drag the emoji anywhere in your conversation. You can reply to messages or stack them side by side to create longer messages.
In iOS 16 you could remove subjects from your photos, but in iOS 17 you can remove those subjects and create stickers. Create static stickers by extracting subjects from still images, or use Live Photos as Live Stickers.
Live Stickers animate and move whatever your subject is.
make stickers from home videos
You can create stickers not only from photos, but also from videos. Pause the video, tap the subject to remove it, and create a sticker from that frame.
When creating stickers, Apple offers four new visual effects. You can turn them into cartoons, add white outlines, add a 3D bloated look, or add a holographic look reminiscent of collectible trading cards.
3D fluffy stickers and hologram stickers react to your phone’s movement as if reflecting light.
Finally, stickers can be used anywhere emojis are supported across iOS. If you’re using the Notes app, open the emoji keyboard and tap the sticker icon on the left.
If animated stickers are not supported, you will simply see a flat static image.
check-in
It’s time to check in. This new safety feature lets others know you’ve arrived safely at your destination.
Turn on check-ins from the new app menu and send to trusted friends and family. You will be notified when you depart and when you arrive at your destination.
If you’re slowing down and not getting close to your destination, your iPhone will keep an eye on you. If you don’t get a response, alert your trusted contacts.
You can limit the information you share to only send your location, iPhone and watch battery life, and cellular signal.
Sharing check-in information
If you send all information, we will also send you the route you traveled, where your phone was last unlocked, and where your Apple Watch was removed, in addition to all the limited information.
Check-ins support live activity and are a great way to let someone know if something might go wrong. If you’ve ever walked home from the late shift at work, or just walked home from a few hours of study, this is what you’ve been waiting for for a long time.
Available as part of iOS 17
Apple plans to release iOS 17 this fall alongside other major operating systems for iPad, Apple TV, HomePod, Apple Watch and Mac. However, anyone wishing to test these features can sign up for the public beta at their own risk.
Apple