14 iPhone tips and tricks that make your phone feel new again

You love your iPhone, but after a year or two, that initial snappy performance starts to fade because it is cluttered and running inefficiently. New iOS updates often introduce features that demand more resources, and a pile-up of background apps and forgotten settings quietly saps your device’s energy and speed.

A few simple iPhone tips and tricks, and settings changes can deliver an instant refresh, making your phone feel as responsive and new again as the day you unboxed it. I’ve broken down the best iPhone hacks into clear categories for easy action, and I’ve also consulted with phone expert and salesman Desmond Francis K, who runs Desontechhub, a gadget device store in Computer Village, Lagos. His insights are included throughout this guide to give you an expert-backed checklist for making your device feel brand new.

Performance & speed-boosting tips

These quick adjustments remove digital clutter and streamline iOS processes for noticeable speed improvements.

1. Tame the background refresh: many apps refresh content even when you’re not using them, draining battery and slowing performance.

• Tip: Go to settings > General > Background app refresh. Turn it off entirely, or restrict it only to essential apps.

2. Clear your Safari cache: A cluttered web browser cache can slow down your surfing.

•  Tip: Go to Settings > Safari > Clear history and website data. This logs you out of most sites but delivers a significant speed boost.

3. Reduce motion and visual effects: iOS uses subtle visual effects (like zooming into apps) that consume Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) resources. Disabling them saves power and makes transitions feel snappier.

• Tip: Go to settings > accessibility > motion > reduce motion and toggle it on.

4. Delete unused apps: This is one of the most effective iPhone tips you can follow. Apps you haven’t opened in months are still taking up space and potentially running background tasks.

• Tip: Go to settings > general > iPhone storage. Review the list and delete anything you haven’t used recently.

Battery life tips

Do the following to extend or preserve the battery life of your iPhone. 

5. Disable location services for non-essential apps: That game or photo editor app does not really need to know where you are 24/7.  

• Tip: Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services. Set non-essential apps to “While Using” or “Never.”

6. Use dark mode: For iPhones with an OLED screen (iPhone X and newer), Dark Mode saves power because black pixels are simply turned off.

• Tip: Swipe down for the Control Centre and long-press the Brightness control to find the Dark Mode toggle.

7. Optimise battery charging: This essential setting learns your charging habits and charges past 80% only when you need it, which extends the battery’s lifespan.

• Tip: Go to Settings > Battery > Battery Health & Charging and ensure Optimised Battery Charging is On. 

“When your battery is below 80% it should, when the battery health is below 80% it will be for servicing,” Francis says.

8. Turn off automatic downloads: Stop your phone from automatically downloading app updates or new music and podcasts over cellular data.

• Tip: Go to Settings > App Store and disable App Updates and Automatic Downloads.

Camera & photo management

Get better photos and free up massive storage space with these iPhone tricks.

9. Use the hidden scan feature: Instead of taking a photo of a document, use the built-in scanner in the Notes app.

• Tip: Open Notes, tap the camera icon, and select Scan Documents. This creates a clean, digital PDF file.

10. Switch to high efficiency format: If you take many photos/videos, this setting drastically reduces file size without a noticeable drop in quality.

• Tip: Go to Settings > Camera > Formats and select High Efficiency.

11. Review your live photos: Live Photos take up significantly more storage than static images.

• Tip: Go through your library and convert Live Photos to static images if you don’t need the motion. Alternatively, use the Live Photo editor to select a single ‘Key Photo’ and delete the rest.

“Your camera should always be on 4k [resolution] 60 [fps],” Francis says.

Smart settings & organisation

Declutter your phone’s interface and notifications.

12. Hide your home screen pages: If you have pages of apps you rarely use, but you don’t want to delete them, you can just hide the whole page.

• Tip: Tap and hold the dots above the dock on the Home Screen. Uncheck the pages you don’t want to see. Your apps remain accessible in the App Library.

Security and longevity

Long-term iPhone tips to keep your device secure and valuable.

13. Review your passwords: iOS has a powerful, built-in password manager. It flags weak or compromised passwords you should change.

• Tip: Go to Settings > Passwords and review the Security Recommendations section.

14. Always update your iOS: Updates contain crucial security patches and performance fixes. Delaying them leaves you vulnerable and missing out on optimisation.

“[Disregard] the rumour that when a new iOS comes out, you should not update. Always update your iOS and other applications on your phone, so that you can get the new features. It makes the processor to be very fast,” Francis says

• Tip: Go to Settings > General > Software Update. If you’re considering an upgrade, make sure you know what to look out for when buying a used iPhone.

 iPhone habits you should build over time

Francis says, “Always change your pouch and screen guard  at least every two or three months because it gives the phone a new feeling.”

In addition, he advises incorporating these easy habits to maintain that ‘new’ feeling:

1. Weekly restart: A simple full restart (turning the phone completely off and back on) clears temporary system files and is a highly effective way to prevent slowdown.
2. Regular storage check: Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage once a month and delete media/files you no longer need. This prevents your storage from hitting 95%+ capacity, which significantly degrades performance.

“ Disable automatic media save on WhatsApp, and sometimes endeavour to clear group chats that have heavy media files”, Francis says.

3. Use optimised photo storage: Under Settings > Photos, enable Optimise iPhone Storage. This keeps full-resolution images in iCloud but smaller, space-saving versions on your device.