Apple has added many new features to the Messages app in iOS 18, such as RCS, satellite support, schedule iMessage, and more useful features with Apple Intelligence. Here OTOFLY will introduce the new features of the iOS 18 Messages app.
Schedule messages for later
A new iOS 18 Send Later option has added in iMessage, which can schedule messages to be automatically sent to someone at a specific time or date. For example, if someone's birthday is coming up, you can set a happy birthday message in advance through the iMessage scheduling feature.
Note: Scheduled message can only be delayed by up to 14 days, and the recipient needs to be an iPhone and have iMessage enabled to schedule the delivery.
Send and Receive Messages via RCS
RCS on iPhone is finally supported in iOS 18. Whether you have an Android or an iPhone, you can send high-quality pictures and videos, even files and audio for free.
Send Messages via Satellite
Messages in iOS 18 also includes support for a new Messages via Satellite feature that’s designed to help you out in situations where you don’t have access to a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. This is a very practical feature (but U.S. only) for people traveling in remote areas.
Messages via Satellite is currently completely free for iPhone 14 and newer models, and Apple has not yet revealed how much it will charge for this service in the future.
Smart Replies
When you receive an iMessage from someone else, you can also use the Smart Reply option to quickly generate the most appropriate text for response. For example, if you receive a question from a friend asking “Do you want to go to the movies?”, Apple Intelligence will pop up above the input box to suggest a response, such as "Sure!" or "Sorry, busy tomorrow." If you don't like these suggestions, you can ignore them and manually type in your own response.
The feature will only be available on devices that support Apple Intelligence and are upgraded to iOS 18.
Apple Intelligence Writing Tools
The Messages app in iOS 18 also supports Writing Tools. For example, type a message to be sent, select all the text, and choose Writing Tools. You can use Apple Intelligence to help optimize the text, which can be done in the following ways:
- Proofread what you write for spelling and grammatical errors, including word choice and sentence structure.
- Rewrite the text in a different tone, with options such as Friendly, Professional, and Concise.
- Narrow down the highlights of what you've written, with a quick summary, extract key points, generate a list of topics, or create a table.
Get a Bigger Emoji Experience
With the iPhone iOS 18 Messages, you can tap on multiple emoji at the same time to send them together, and the emoji are larger than before, so if you type more than one, they'll automatically display the same size. However, please note that on older versions of iOS, stickers will still be sent as separate images as before.
Redesigned Tapbacks
If you think the current gray Tapback option is too monotonous, then iOS 18 will bring you a surprise. Now you can use any emoji to reply to messages. Long press on a text and you will see six standard Tapback icons, which now feature color and more detail.
Text formatting and special effects
New rich text formatting options will appear above the keyboard, and you will see various formatting options when you tap it. In addition to the bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough, you can also add text effects to your message. You can select the entire message or specific words to animate, but you can't apply multiple effects to the same selection at the same time.
Calculate Math Problems with Ease
Now you can solve math equations in the Message app without turning on the Calculator app. As long as you type in an equation in the bar, the answer will be automatically displayed when you add in an equals sign. Currency conversions, temperature conversions, measurement conversions, and more are also supported in the Message app.
Generate Images with Image Playground
Image Playground, an image creation tool that uses Apple Intelligence to quickly generate interesting and personalized images, will also be integrated into the Messages App, allowing you to share different styles of pictures with friends and family.
The above are the new Message features brought by iOS 18 for the Messages App, which makes Messages more powerful with the assistance of AI. The new version of the Message app will be available after the official version of iOS 18 is launched in September. Are you looking forward to it?
