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The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
New York City might elect a truly progressive mayor – thanks to ranked-choice voting
With a week left until New York's Democratic mayoral primary, one might have thought that the former governor Andrew Cuomo would be measuring the drapes at Gracie Mansion. Real estate developers, corporations like Doordash, a smattering of billionaires and even Billy Joel have shoveled cash into his campaign, with his Super Pac spending more money than any other outside force in the city's political history. This is on top of his entering the race with major name recognition advantage, amounting to a 20- or 30-point lead as recently as May. But according to a new poll, Zohran Mamdani – the insurgent state assemblyman and democratic socialist whom the Nation recently co-endorsed along with fellow mayoral candidate and New York City comptroller Brad Lander – has pulled ahead of Cuomo for the first time. And while Mamdani's campaign deserves credit for offering a clear, inspiring, progressive message, the fact that he is competitive can also be partly credited to New York City's ranked-choice voting (RCV) system. It's a winning system for candidates who would otherwise be sidelined or would cannibalize each other's support – and for voters who can finally cast their ballots based on policy rather than pragmatism. America's politics have long been dominated (or diluted) by first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting. In it, citizens cast their ballot for one candidate, and whoever receives the most votes wins. Straightforward as it seems, this method forces an either/or choice, often resulting in voters deciding between the lesser of two evils. Not only does this reinforce a two-party duopoly in general elections, but it also incentivizes a binary choice between the two leading candidates in primaries. For the candidates themselves, the system encourages scorched-earth campaigns that divide parties and inflame the narcissism of small differences. The progressive senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren came into the 2020 Democratic presidential primary as allies with much more in common ideologically than their centrist opponents. But there was no electoral incentive for either of them to form an alliance with the other. Instead, they fought to consolidate a minority faction within the party, and got mired in a grisly and public feud. The mudslinging did leave one person standing – Joe Biden. In contrast, RCV makes it possible for dark horse candidates to work together. After Mamdani's campaign reached the fundraising limit, he urged his supporters to donate to a fellow anti-Cuomo candidate, Adrienne Adams. Adams, in turn, has maintained a focus on criticizing Cuomo, even deleting a tweet that was perceived as a swipe at Mamdani. These contenders are making it clear they truly believe – as the Nation's editorial board wrote in our endorsement – New Yorkers deserve better than Andrew Cuomo. Critics of ranked-choice voting argue it's too confusing, but successful implementations of the system in other jurisdictions suggest otherwise. In Alaska's 2022 congressional special election, the first statewide RCV election there, 85% of people who cast their ballots said they found the method to be simple. It also enabled the Democrat Mary Peltola to fend off an extremist challenge from Sarah Palin. Maine has also seen promising results from RCV, with 60% of its voters favoring the system. Cities like Minneapolis and Cambridge, Massachusetts, have enjoyed higher turnout after the implementation of RCV. But RCV is only as effective as its participants make it. Ahead of New York City's mayoral primary in 2021, I wrote a column expressing high hopes for how the debut of RCV could reshape the city's politics. But that race became chaotic for other reasons. Scott Stringer and Dianne Morales's campaigns collapsed. Advocacy groups had to un-endorse and re-endorse – in some cases, multiple times. There was a progressive effort to coalesce around Maya Wiley, including a belated endorsement from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Meanwhile, pragmatists who felt Eric Adams and Andrew Yang lacked substance turned to the sanitation commissioner, Kathryn Garcia. If Wiley and Garcia had cross-endorsed, one of them might have defeated Adams. Instead, Adams won the primary in the final round by just over 7,000 votes. This time, the mayoral candidates seem to have learned. On Friday, Mamdani and Lander cross-endorsed each other, encouraging their supporters to rank the other second. Mamdani explained the decision with a refreshing mix of idealism and realism: 'This is the necessary step to ensure that we're not just serving our own campaigns – we're serving the city at large.' This was followed by another cross-endorsement, between Mamdani and former assemblyman Michael Blake, on Monday. And the national progressive movement is much more united than it was in 2021, with both Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders endorsing Mamdani in the home stretch this time. By treating each other like allies rather than adversaries, the anti-Cuomo coalition might just prevail. If anything, it is the establishment wing of the New York Democratic party that is struggling to coalesce – as evinced by the New York Times' non-endorsement endorsement that, if you squint, could be perceived as encouraging New Yorkers to support Cuomo, Lander, hedge fund manager Whitney Tilson, or flee the city. The Nation has a long history of covering New York's mayoral races. Although no New York mayor has been elected to higher office since 1869 – just four years after the magazine was founded – the office has long held fascinating implications for American progressivism. Fiorello La Guardia, whom Mamdani and Lander have both named as the greatest mayor in the city's history, took office at the height of the Great Depression and led the city through the second world war. Over 12 years of cascading crises, he transformed the city with a bold vision characterized by expanding public housing and public spaces, curbing corruption, and unflinchingly supporting the reforms of the New Deal. Now, nearly a century later, New Yorkers have an opportunity to bring the city into a new era once again. And ordinarily, making that kind of change possible would require making a tough choice. But if it happens this time, it will be because of a ranked choice. Katrina vanden Heuvel is editorial director and publisher of the Nation, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a contributor to the Washington Post, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times
New York Post
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
From booty call to ‘foodie call' — free dinner scammers flood dating apps as wallets tighten
Love might be off the menu — but the lobster sure isn't. With wallets tightening and a looming recession on the rise, some singles are turning first dates into free dinner scams. Countless TikTokkers are proudly documenting their foodie finesse, using Hinge and Bumble like Doordash — to score meals on someone else's dime. This is referred to as a 'foodie call' — where someone nabs a free meal with no plans to ever call, text or date the poor sap who picked up the check. 3 A 'foodie call' is when someone scores a free meal with zero intention of calling, texting or dating the poor sap who footed the bill. Nejron Photo – South Carolina graphic designer Katheryne Slack told MarketWatch in a recent interview that she realized she was out of coffee one Sunday and used a thirsty Hinge match to score a caffeine fix. Outta beans and full of schemes, Slack hit up her suitor for a free cup o' joe. The pair had exchanged flirty messages days earlier, but plans fizzled — until she pounced when the timing finally lined up. An hour later, they were sipping lattes at his expense at a café. 'As soon as I met him, I knew I wasn't into him. But I was already there and needed my coffee,' she told the outlet. 3 With wallets squeezed and recession fears bubbling up, some shameless singles are using first dates to dine and dash — minus the romance. motortion – @jocelynaleenaa no matter what state or country this is how it's starting to feel😂😂😂 ♬ original sound – 90dayfiance And she's far from the only one who sees things this way, TikTok is filled with cheeky clips of users bragging about 'dating for dinner' — a budgeting 'hack.' In one recent video, user @jocelynaleenaa can be seen at a restaurant table. In white text over the clip, she wrote, 'when you keep going on dates for the free food & drinks.' Another user commented beneath the TikTok, 'I did this for 2 weeks straight once I was never hungry.' One other added, 'Girl I feel you.' Some are joking that back-to-back dates are their version of meal prepping. User @alanarixonn filmed herself dancing last month with the caption, 'off on my 2nd date this week cos I cba to meal prep x.' One viewer wrote under the video, 'the fact that this isn't a joke.' Someone else replied, 'It's like a meal voucher because you are putting in the work. You deserve it queen.' An additional supporter chimed in, 'This is low key genius' as one other noted, 'Love doing this #thinksmarternotharder.' Dating with the intention of nabbing a free bite to eat isn't new. A 2019 study published in the 'Society for Personality and Social Psychology' journal dove deeper into 'foodie calls.' The study found up to 1 in 3 women admitted to going on dates for free grub. As per the researchers, anyone who thinks it's cool to dine and dash emotionally are more likely to show signs of narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism — aka the 'dark triad.' 3 Mooching meals in the name of love ain't exactly breaking news — a 2019 study in the Society for 'Personality and Social Psychology' journal dug into so-called 'foodie calls.' Prostock-studio – With sky-high rents and an endless lineup of buzzy eateries, NYC could be seen as a foodie call free-for-all. East Village local Olivia Balsinger once scored a five-course feast at swanky seafood hotspot Catch in the Meatpacking District — all on someone else's dime. 'If I had been forced to pay,' she told The Post, 'I probably wouldn't have been able to eat for weeks afterward.' Overall, while 'dating for dinner' isn't entirely novel, it's hitting harder now as tariffs bite into wallets, recession jitters grow, and job security feels shakier than ever.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Alta raises $11M to bring ‘Clueless' fashion tech to life with all-star investors
Throughout her years working in technology, Jenny Wang, 28, always found herself stumbling back to one idea — a personal styling agent to help users decide what to wear and buy based on their budget, lifestyle, weather and calendar. She has tried to build such a product numerous times in the past, 'but the AI technology was not yet mature enough,' she told TechCrunch. That's changed so a few months ago she announced the launch of her dream company, Alta, followed by the announcement today of an $11 million seed round led by Menlo Ventures. The product, which feels straight out of the movie 'Clueless,' is indeed an AI stylist and personal shopper that makes outfit recommendations and lets users try on those looks with their personalized virtual avatar. For example, a person can ask Alta what the best outfit might be for, say, TechCrunch Disrupt, and the AI will offer suggestions and present a lookbook of outfits. Users upload their closet by either taking photos, forwarding purchase receipts, or searching what is already in the Alta database. People can also dress themselves in clothes they are looking to buy, mixing and matching with clothes already in their closet. There are others playing around in the AI styling space, such as Whering and Cladwell, all trying to recreate the magic of that iconic scene in 'Clueless,' where Cher plans an outfit from her closet using computer technology. Want considers herself to be part of the new wave of consumer technology, looking to make styling and shopping more effective. 'There are existing players like Google Shopping and Pinterest who are also experimenting with AI,' she continued. 'But the experiences that consumers will crave and use in the future will need to be built with new technical architectures and new user interfaces.' The product is backed by some heavy names, including Michelle Obama's stylist Meredith Koop, who Wang said helped train Alta's AI. Other investors in the company include Benchstrength; Algaé Ventures, the investment firm backed by fashion's prestigious Arnault family of LVMH; Phenomenal Ventures, the firm founded by Kamala Harris' niece Meena; Anthroptic's VC arm Anthrology fund, and a slew of angel investors including Doordash CEO and co-founder Tony Xu, super models Jasmine Tooks and Karlie Kloss, Rent the Runway co-founder Jenny Fleiss, and Poshmark CEO and co-founder Manish Chandra. Wang used the word 'aligned' to describe her fundraising process and leaned heavily on the network she amassed while working in various tech roles throughout her career. She's a Harvard engineer by training and has invested in numerous companies, served as a technical advisor to brands, and also held roles at investment firms. Years ago, for example, she was an intern at Doordash and previously volunteered on Karlie Kloss' podcast 'Kode with Klossy.' 'I am still actively coding every day and learning from our team and technical advisors,' she said. Wang said the fresh capital will be used to grow the team and fund more research and development. 'Our team is continuously updating our in-house models and improving the experience based on community feedback,' she said. Alta has already struck a partnership with the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) to offer Alta to its membership base. Wang used to live in San Francisco but relocated to New York to help build out the technology. 'NYC is also a closer flight to Paris than SF,' she said, adding that LVMH and one of her angel investors, tech influencer Zita d'Hautville, is helping the company expand throughout Europe. Alta is also working with Marie Kondo as the company also expands throughout parts of Oceania and the Pacific. The plan is to next look at partnering with retailers worldwide. 'Many of the most exciting consumer AI companies are being started in NYC,' Wang continued, adding that she's assembled a highly technical but also fashion-obsessed team. This startup is her dream come true. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CNET
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CNET
11 of the Best Horror Movies to Stream on Max
Finished season 2 of The Last of Us on Max? If you like the series' post-apocalyptic horror, you should peruse Max's scary movies next. The streaming service hosts a variety of frightening flicks, from classics like Oscar winner The Silence of the Lambs to newer chillers like the Hugh Grant horror film Heretic. The options change often, so if you aren't feeling Max's spooky selection, it's worth swinging back by later. Max starts at $10 per month or $100 per year, and you can also get the streamer free with a Doordash DashPass annual plan. If you're ready for a horror movie, here are 11 excellent options. A24 Heretic (2024) The inclusion of Hugh Grant may draw you into this religious horror movie, but once you hit play, there's no escaping the creepiness of his character, Mr. Reed. Watch this one if you want to see if a pair of young missionaries are able to outwit their evil captor. Cara Howe/Warner Bros. Companion (2025) Companion is a scary movie you should boot up and watch without much pre-Googling. It's clever, unsettling and thrilling, with great performances from Sophie Thatcher of Yellowjackets and Jack Quaid of The Boys. Produced by the filmmakers behind 2022's Barbarian, Companion sets the bar high for 2025 horror films. A24 Pearl (2022) The Mia Goth-starring slasher Pearl is a prequel to Ti West's film X, centering on a younger version of the elderly villain in that flick. Max carries X, Pearl and a third film in the series, MaXXXine, but I recommend Pearl if you only have time for one movie. Orion Pictures The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Jodie Foster interviews Anthony Hopkins' evil Hannibal Lecter in this classic psychological thriller. Foster plays FBI agent Clarice Starling, who's determined to bring down a killer. It's the only horror movie ever to win a best picture Oscar, and it also won for best director, screenplay, actor (Hopkins) and actress (Foster) in 1992. Warner Bros. The Shining (1980) If you're still on the hunt for a horror movie, you can't go wrong with The Shining, the excellent Stanley Kubrick-directed movie starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. In the film -- another Stephen King adaptation -- a writer (Nicholson) staying in a remote hotel with his family exhibits some troubling changes in behavior. This one will absolutely satisfy your horror cravings. Warner Bros. It (2017) When this adaptation of the classic Stephen King novel hit theaters in 2017, it had moviegoers like me looking twice at storm drains and dreading red balloons. With a cast of intrepid kids and a lot of heart, it makes a compelling case for more supernatural coming-of-age stories. And a strong case against clowns. Warner Bros. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) The 1988 horror comedy Beetlejuice may not be on Max, but you can catch Michael Keaton's ghost with the most in the 2024 sequel. Winona Ryder and Catherine O'Hara also reprise their roles in the spooky follow-up film. Red Bank Films Carrie (1976) It's more Stephen King, and you have to watch Sissy Spacek's Oscar-nominated portrayal of the prom queen at least once in your life. Why not now? Libra Films Eraserhead (1977) David Lynch's first feature-length film will make you feel like you're in a bizarre nightmare. The 90-minute black-and-white horror flick is packed with odd sounds and imagery, and the result is incredibly eerie. Don't even get me started on the main character's freakish, otherworldly looking "baby" (that's oddly still kind of cute?). There are messages about men and parenthood here, but even setting aside the bigger picture, Eraserhead's surreal world is absolutely worth a visit. Max/Screenshot by CNET Night of the Living Dead (1968) George Romero's first horror film is an easy recommendation. A group of survivors take refuge in a house while members of the undead swarm outside. The influential flick is often regarded as the first modern zombie movie, and while it may not offer Freddy Krueger-level frights, you'll be drawn in by the characters at the center of its story. You're going to want to leave the door open for this one (but in the case of an actual apocalypse, keep it very, very shut). Warner Bros. Evil Dead Rise (2023) A family accidentally unearths some unimaginable evils in this gory supernatural horror story. It's the fifth entry in the film franchise after The Evil Dead (1981), Evil Dead II ('87), Army of Darkness ('92) and Evil Dead (2013).
CNET
02-06-2025
- General
- CNET
Make Your iPhone Work Smarter With These 24 Quick iOS Setting Changes
If you haven't taken a closer look at your iPhone settings lately, you're probably missing out on features that could save time, reduce distractions and personalize your experience in a big way. Every iOS update quietly adds tools and upgrades that make your phone smarter and easier to use -- but only if you know where to find them. Don't miss: 13 Hidden iOS 18.4 iPhone Features You Should Probably Know About From decluttering your home screen to maximizing battery life, we've rounded up 24 iOS settings that let you take full control of your device. Some you may already know, and others might surprise you. Take a Closer Look at the iOS Settings You Should Change Right Now +7 More See all photos 1. Stop apps from tracking your exact location Apps like Doordash and Postmates require your exact location to deliver food to the right location or directly to you. That doesn't mean every application on your iPhone needs to know precisely where you are at every moment. That's why you can prevent an app from tracking your exact location. In the Settings app, choose an application (like Instagram, for example), tap Location and then toggle off Precise Location. Any app with Precise Location off will only know your approximate location, within a few miles. Don't toggle this feature off for apps that require exact location, like food delivery and navigation services. Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET 2. Turn the back of your iPhone into a button The back of your iPhone can be used as a secret button to activate certain actions such as taking a screenshot, enabling low power mode or running a shortcut that can automatically play music when you arrive at the gym. The Action Button on the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone 15 and 15 Plus, and iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max models do the same, but if you have an older model, the back of your iPhone works. The option is hidden deep in your settings; here's how to find it. In the Settings app, go to Accessibility > Touch > Back Tap and choose one of two options: double tap or triple tap. You should see a list of actions you can run by tapping the back of your iPhone, like opening your camera, turning on the flashlight and scrolling up and down. Tap an action or shortcut to enable it with Back Tap. Tap on the back of your phone to do all kinds of fancy tricks. Screenshots by Jason Cipriani/CNET 3. Extend the lifespan of your battery On the iPhone 15 and later, head to Settings > Battery > Charging and move the Charge Limit slider. You can choose from 80% all the way up to 100%. (This is the default. Your iPhone will charge to within a few points of your chosen percentage and then stop charging.) Why do this? Well, lithium-ion cells last longer when they spend less time fully charged, which improves its lifespan. Try the 95% option and see how well it works for you throughout the day. If that's more than enough battery life, you can try some of the lower percentage point options. Even with a Charge Limit below 100%, your iPhone will sometimes top up to a full charge so it can recalibrate its battery-percentage readings. Nelson Aguilar/CNET 4. Enable Live Voicemail to get real-time voicemail transcriptions You get a call and don't want to necessarily pick up unless it's important. Unfortunately, the only way you'll know is if you listen to a voicemail left after the call. With iOS 17, you can read a real-time transcription of any voicemail being left. That's right: If someone is leaving you a voicemail, you can read it on your phone and choose to pick up the call, connecting you with the person leaving the voicemail. The Live Voicemail feature isn't on by default, so go to Settings > Phone > Live Voicemail and turn it on. That's it. 5. Bring back full-screen incoming call alerts If your iPhone is unlocked and you receive a phone call, a banner-style notification appears at the top of your screen, with a small photo and name or number of the person calling, and the options to pick up or deny the call. This wasn't always the default option. In the past, incoming calls would take over your entire display when your iPhone was unlocked. It was disruptive, sure, but it also got the job done. The banner may be a welcome change for many because it's more discreet and allows you to use your phone while receiving a call. If for any reason you're not a big fan of the banner and want to revert to the more attention-grabbing full-screen alert, go to Settings > Phone > Incoming Calls and tap Full Screen. This incoming call alert isn't ideal for everyone. Jason Cipriani/CNET 6. Turn off 5G coverage you don't want or have Apple touts a Smart Data feature that's specific to its 5G phones that will automatically switch between 4G LTE and 5G networks based on how you're using your device. You may find that your iPhone's battery drains faster than it did before. If you don't want to sacrifice battery life for faster 5G speeds, shut it down. You can always turn 5G back on when you want it, or when service in your area improves. To turn off 5G on your iPhone, forcing it to always use 4G LTE (even if you have 5G coverage), open the Settings app, then go to Cellular > Primary > Voice & Data and tap LTE. Alternatively, if you want your iPhone to exclusively use a 5G connection when available, you can select 5G On. 5G is nice if you have access, but it can also be a battery hog. Patrick Holland/CNET 7. Fine-tune how much data is used by a 5G connection If you're happy with your 5G performance, here's a network-related setting you should check out. Go to Settings > Cellular > Primary > Data Mode, where you'll find three options: Allow More Data on 5G, Standard and Low Data Mode. Even though you can read brief descriptions below the three settings, they don't paint a complete picture of the first option. According to an Apple support document, allowing more data on 5G will give you high-quality video and FaceTime calls. It also lets your phone download software updates and stream high-definition Apple TV and Apple Music content, and it allows third-party developers to improve their respective apps. The default setting on this page will depend on your carrier and data plan, so it's a good idea to check your iPhone and make sure it's correctly set to your preference. 8. Stop apps from cluttering up your home screen The App Library is a place where you can quickly find and access all of your applications. And while apps are housed here, all newly downloaded apps also appear on your home screen. This may not be a problem if you download apps sparingly, but if you're installing new apps on a consistent basis, they can quickly clutter up your home screen. To stop downloaded apps from appearing on your home screen, go to Settings > Home Screen & App Library and select App Library Only. If you want to find the app, you'll have to swipe left on your home screen until you reach the App Library. This setting will prevent your home screen from getting too messy. Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET 9. Unlock your phone while wearing a face mask If you wear a mask in public, unlocking your iPhone with Apple's Face ID technology can be frustrating. Because half of your face is covered, Face ID just doesn't work. And while entering your passcode to unlock your phone works, it's not as convenient. With iOS, you have the option to turn on a face unlock feature that makes it easy to unlock your iPhone when you're wearing a face mask. Before the update, you could only unlock your iPhone if you owned an Apple Watch. To unlock your iPhone with your Apple Watch, open the Settings app on your iPhone and then open the Face ID & Passcode option. Scroll down until you find the Unlock with Apple Watch section (you must be connected to an Apple Watch for the setting to appear), where you can turn on the feature for any watches linked to your iPhone. If you have an iPhone running iOS 15.4 or later, you can unlock your iPhone while wearing a mask without an Apple Watch. Go to the Settings app and open Face ID & Passcode. From there, you can toggle on the Face ID With a Mask option. It's pretty awesome. You can unlock your iPhone with your Apple Watch if Face ID isn't working. Lisa Eadicicco/CNET 10. Put the address bar in Safari back on top The address in Safari migrated to the bottom of the screen a few years back; welcome for those with smaller hands who had difficulty reaching it with one hand at the top. This move might feel more natural, since it's closer to the keyboard and where you typically place your thumbs, it can be off-putting since some people are used to seeing the URL bar near the top of the screen. If you want to put the address bar back at the top of the screen, go to Settings, tap Safari and choose the Single Tab option under the Tabs subheading. 11. Add features that can be used when your iPhone is locked There are times when you might want to have certain info handy even when your phone is locked. That's why Apple allows you to enable some features without having to unlock your devices, such as the notification center, Control Center, the ability to reply to messages and the Wallet app. To customize the features you'd like to access on the lock screen, launch the Settings menu, tap Face ID & Passcode and enter your passcode when prompted. Scroll down until you see the Allow Access When Locked section, and toggle the sliders based on your preferences. You can decide which features you want to access when your phone is locked. Screenshot by Lisa Eadicicco/CNET 12. Make your favorite email app or web browser your default It's not all about Safari. On your iPhone, you have the ability to choose your own default apps, at least for email and web browsing. That means that when you tap a link or an email send button, your iPhone will automatically launch the web browser or email provider of your choosing rather than Safari or Mail. To get started, open the Settings menu and select the app you'd like to set as a default (such as Google Chrome or Outlook). You should then see a button that says Default Mail App or Default Browser App. Tap that option and select the app of your choosing instead of Safari or Mail. You no longer have to use Safari or Mail as default apps. Screenshot by Lisa Eadicicco/CNET 13. Get full notifications on your lock screen The first time you experience Apple's Face ID tech, you'll notice that you can't see the content of new alerts and notifications on the lock screen. For example, instead of seeing who sent you a text message and what it says, you'll only see a generic Messages alert. By default, all iPhones with Apple's Face ID tech will hide the content of an alert until you pick up your phone and unlock it. It's a privacy feature that I rather enjoy, but I also understand how it could be annoying (I've heard a few complaints from readers and family members alike). You can change how notifications appear on your lock screen by going to Settings > Notifications > Show Previews and selecting Always. Conversely, you can select Never if you want to keep the content of your notifications always hidden from the lock screen. 14. Turn off (or on) HDR video for sharing videos The iPhone can record high dynamic range (HDR) video with Dolby Vision. That means your videos are typically brighter, with more accurate colors and improved contrast. That may be ideal for some, but if you don't want videos that are automatically adjusted because you want to do it on your own, there is a way to disable the feature. You can turn off HDR video by going to Settings > Camera > Record Video and turning the switch next to HDR Video to the Off position. Going forward, all videos will be captured in the standard dynamic range. HDR video looks great, but it doesn't work everywhere yet. Screenshots by Jason Cipriani/CNET 15. Customize your home screen with fancy wallpaper Another home screen tweak you should make involves your wallpaper or background. Apple has many wallpapers of its own, with a pretty cool twist. Open the Settings app on your iPhone and select Wallpaper from the list. Make sure the switch labeled "Dark Appearance Dims Wallpaper," which you'll see below the two thumbnail previews of your wallpaper, is turned on. Now, tap Choose a new wallpaper and select either Stills or Live. Look for the circle near the bottom of each wallpaper. It's half black, half white. That circle means that the wallpaper has both light and dark mode versions and will change automatically based on the system status of your phone. You can also set live wallpapers as your background if you're not sold on dark and light mode. On an iPhone with 3D Touch, you can use a third-party app to play longer-duration "Live" photos on your lock screen. GIF by Patrick Holland/CNET 16. Turn on dark mode to save your battery Speaking of dark mode, if you don't want to have to repeatedly adjust your screen's brightness, you can use your phone's dedicated dark mode. Dark mode converts all of the white backgrounds in apps to, more often than not, a black background. In turn, your phone is able to save battery power thanks to the darker colors. Turn it on by going to Settings > Display & Brightness and selecting the Dark option at the top of the screen. You can also just swipe down from the top-right of your iPhone and tap the Dark mode icon in the Control Center. Apple's apps will automatically switch to a dark color scheme, and most third-party apps have also adopted the feature. Dark Mode on the iPhone sure looks good. Jason Cipriani/CNET 17. Manage your notifications with Focus Mode We get a lot of notifications every day, but not all of them are relevant all the time. That's why Apple introduced a feature called Focus Mode. Think of it as a custom Do Not Disturb feature that's tailored to specific circumstances. Focus Mode blocks less relevant alerts while allowing notifications from important people and apps to come through so that you don't miss anything. You can set up different types of Focus Modes for specific circumstances. Apple currently offers options for Do Not Disturb, personal, sleep, work, driving, fitness, gaming, mindfulness and reading, but you can also create your own custom mode. You can schedule Focus Modes so that they turn on automatically when needed and display your status in apps so that others know you have notifications silenced. To get started, open the Settings menu, tap Focus and choose one of the available options to set up your notification preferences. Tap the plus (+) symbol in the top right corner to add a new Focus. 18. Make your screen text bigger or smaller With a couple of taps on your iPhone's screen, you can adjust the font size to make it easier to read. Open Settings and go to Display & Brightness > Text Size where you can use the slider until you're happy with the font size. For a little added oomph, you can turn on Bold Text (it's just below the Text Size button). 19. Add an alternate appearance to Face ID Apple's facial recognition feature, Face ID, constantly learns different aspects of your face with each scan. If you're struggling to get Face ID to consistently recognize you, try the Alternate Appearance option. Go to Settings > Face ID & Passcode > enter your PIN > Set Up An Alternate Appearance and go through the process of enrolling your face again. Face ID doesn't always get it right. Óscar Gutiérrez/CNET 20. Disable auto-brightness for longer battery charge Your iPhone's screen brightness level can have a big impact on battery life. By default, iOS will automatically adjust the display's brightness based on how much light its ambient sensor detects. If you want to take complete control, you can disable auto brightness, meaning the brightness level will stay where you set it until you adjust it again. Open Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size and at the bottom of the page, you'll find a switch to turn off Auto-Brightness. Now, whenever you want to adjust your screen, you can do so by opening Control Center with a swipe up from the bottom of the screen on a device with a home button, or a swipe down from the top-right corner on newer iPhones. Keep your screen dim to save battery life. Screenshots by Jason Cipriani/CNET Now Playing: 11 Hidden Features in iOS 18 06:44 21. Triage your privacy settings The first time you set up an iPhone with all of your apps, you're bombarded with prompts asking for permission to access personal information ranging from tracking your location to your Apple Health information or your camera roll. It's far too easy to get in the habit of approving everything just so you can use the app, but take a few minutes and go through your privacy settings to tailor what each app can and can't see. We walk you through the whole privacy process in two quick steps. Apple has put all of its privacy controls in one place. Jason Cipriani/CNET 22. Use the Control Center to access apps with a swipe or tap The iPhone's Control Center is a convenient spot to quickly change songs, turn on airplane mode, connect to Wi-Fi or start a timer, but there's so much more to it than that. You can quickly turn on your flashlight, check on a timer or start recording your screen with a quick swipe and tap. Customize which apps and features are available in Control Center by opening Settings > Control Center. Remove an option with a tap on the red minus button or add an option by selecting the green addition button. Drag features up or down using the three-line icon on the right side of the screen. I like having quick access to the Wallet app and toggles for low-power mode and dark mode. As a reminder, if you have an iPhone with a home button, like the iPhone SE, you can swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open Control Center. If you have an iPhone with Face ID, you'll need to swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen where the battery icon is. Control Center has a lot of potential; you just need to customize it. GIF by Jason Cipriani/CNET 23. Organize alerts with Notification Summary Apple wants to help you manage your notifications in iOS, starting with the Notification Summary feature. Rather than letting notifications pile up on your home screen, you can schedule alerts that aren't urgent to arrive in a bundle at a specific time of day. Important notifications like calls, direct messages and other time-sensitive alerts (like the status of your Uber or Lyft ride, for example) will still appear immediately. To try this out, open Settings, press Notifications and tap Scheduled Summary. 24. Change Siri's voice If you've recently set up a new iPhone, you may have noticed that Siri no longer defaults to a female voice. Instead, you'll be asked which Siri voice you want to use, including several more recent options. Once you've made your selection, Apple will change Siri's voice across all of the devices linked to your Apple ID. You can check out the voice options by going to Settings > Siri & Search > Siri Voice. To learn more, check out our complete guide to changing Siri's sound. Apple also added a gender-neutral Siri voice option for English speakers. A pro iPhone battery tip No matter how many settings you toggle off and on, battery life will always be an issue, especially if you're traveling and don't always have access to your fast charger. If you're constantly on the go and need some juice, consider getting this affordable and slim MagSafe charger that can charge your iPhone from zero to 50% in just 30 minutes. Details $40 at Amazon For more, here are 17 hidden features on our iPhone you should know about and annoying iPhone features you can do something about.
