iPhone Life - Best Apps, Top Tips, Great Gear

Members of the iPhone Life team download and test the Apple beta software every year, to get a preview of the new software features. There's plenty to be excited about in the latest iOS update, and we'll fill you in on our favorites in this roundup. New iOS 14 features we've enjoyed so far include the Home screen organizing App Library, quickly finding just the right emoji with emoji search, watching videos and continuing FaceTime calls while using another app with Picture in Picture, improvements to group messaging, and more. Let's go over the best features we've found in the iOS 14 Public Beta so far. 

Have you ever set a work appointment in the Calendar app only to find that it's been scheduled in your family calendar rather than your work calendar? The problem is likely the result of having your family calendar rather than your work calendar set as the default calendar on your iPhone. The solution is to change the default calendar in the Calendar app to the one you use the most often. That way appointments will automatically be added to the right calendar. And on the less frequent occasions when you need to schedule an event in a different calendar, you can easily choose a different calendar when scheduling it. Here's how to set the default calendar on your iPhone to the calendar you use the most.

Many people have been struggling with the same issue when it comes to Group FaceTime on their iPhone: screen movement. While some do appreciate the current speaker on their call being featured larger than the others, moving screen videos can be jarring when someone new pops up suddenly just because they shifted and it was caught on their mic. Because of this, many people prefer for the members of their group chat on FaceTime to be equally sized throughout the whole call, regardless of who is speaking, and fortunately this can be done. Here's how to stop faces from moving during FaceTime.

Are app purchases shared in Family Sharing? Most of them are, including some paid and subscriptions apps, but other paid and subscription apps are only available to their individual purchasers. Family sharing is a great way to share apps on the iPhone or iPad, but you want to be able to monitor which ones are shareable to minimize extra purchases if something you have can already be shared, or to find new apps if the ones you currently have aren't available on Family Sharing. Luckily it's easy to do! 

When FaceTime keeps failing or doesn’t work as expected, it can be an especially frustrating experience that demands urgent fixing. After all, FaceTime is one of Apple’s most beloved marvels of modern technology, allowing users to make free video or audio calls to friends, loved ones, colleagues or anyone else using an iPhone, iPad or Mac. Here’s how to troubleshoot and fix it when FaceTime is not working.

Any set of wireless earbuds is going to be compared to Apple's AirPods and AirPods Pro. Fortunately, the AU-Stream Hybrid ANC Earbuds ($189.95) that Ausounds sent me to try have a lot of distinctions to make them a worthwhile competitor. First, they are compact enough to fit entirely in the ear with no microphone stalk extending towards the mouth of the user. That marginally impacts the quality of the speaker's voice, but it isn't too much of an issue since the primary focus is on listening not talking.

While family sharing can be a useful way to consolidate your family's tech, there can be many reasons why you might want to hide app or e-book purchases. Some apps have credit card information you might not want to give your kids access to, and other apps may have content suitable for some family members but not others. Whatever your reason is for wishing to hide certain app or book purchases from Family Sharing, it is possible to do. First, here's how to hide app purchases, followed by how to hide book purchases.