Our February 17, 2026, meeting was titled “iPhone Literacy Part 2.” The goal was to show many (definitely not “all”) the things you could do with an iPhone, right out of the box, besides making or receiving phone calls. There were lots of short video demonstrations, and plenty of commentary.
Immediately after the February meeting ended, and the host closed the Zoom meeting, Zoom informed me that it could not convert the Zoom file to video because the file was “corrupted.” No transcript of the closed captioning was available, either.
This was not an auspicious ending. But there were still all those individual demo videos, and they are shown below.
In March, we will continue with iPhone Literacy Part 3. We may even show how to make a phone call, but no promises.
Slide Presentation on iPhone Literacy, Part 2
These are the slides from the February 2026 meeting. They were done in Keynote, but not on an iPhone.
Videos from the February 2026 meeting
All videos were recorded on an iPhone 17 Pro Max using the Screen Recording function in Control Center. Most of them do not have any sound, and since they are screen recordings, you can’t see a finger pressing, sliding, stroking, or flicking something. You do, however, see how various apps appear and, with luck, why you’d want to use that app. All of the apps are bundled with iOS 26, except Classical, Apple’s classical music app, which is a free download.
These are presented in the order shown during the meeting. Note that, in most cases, the iPhone search function is used to find and launch the app, rather than flipping back and forth through multiple screens to find the app. This is a hint: use the search function; it saves time.
iOS 26 Control Center
Control Center (https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/use-and-customize-control-center-iph59095ec58/ios) is not really an app but an overlay that you can call up at any time by swiping down from the right top edge of the iPhone screen. It brings up a list of controls for doing things like turning on Airport Mode, increasing screen brightness, or turning on Do Not Disturb, or any of a number of other functions. It is customizable by the user, and you can add or remove functions according to taste. Along the right margin of the screen are five small buttons that go to functions by group — favorites, functions, music, home automation, and networking.
iOS 26 Measure app
The Measure app can be used for measuring things, both large (walls, doors, oversized TVs) and small (a very small atomic bomb). Additionally, if you click the menu in the upper left, an overlay will appear showing you the measurement in both English (inches, feet) and metric (millimeters, centimeters, meters).
iOS 26 Measure app, used as a level
The Measure app can also be used as a bubble level, showing how many degrees off from level something might be, or indicating that something is flat with a fully green screen. No bubbles are harmed with this app.
iOS 26 Calculator app
The iPhone Calculator can be used to convert weights, temperatures, currencies, and other things, as well as act as a basic calculator and a scientific calculator. It also has a virtual “paper tape,” keeping track of calculations and conversions.
iOS 26 Calendar app
If you sync your Calendar via iCloud, anniversaries, reminders, and appointments are shared among your devices. You can also go back in time to mark birthdays and anniversaries, or see what day of the week the Declaration of Independence was declared (Thursday, July 4, 1776), though that is a lot of scrolling, or Chinese independence from the Manchu dynasty (Tuesday, October 10, 1911), which is less scrolling.
iOS 26 Clock app
The Clock app is not only a clock, but a World Clock, and also does alarms, timers, and has a stopwatch function.
iOS 26 Weather app
You can set the Weather app to not only display local weather but also the weather in other parts of the world. Click on an individual day, and a pop-up menu allows you to see the UV index, wind speed, precipitation, humidity, visibility, and air pressure throughout the day.
iOS 26 Voice Memo app
The Voice Memo is a quick way to take a quick voice memo, and also a quick way to record odd sounds, such as a damaged fan blade or the thunder noise made when the garbage truck collects cans. If you have an Apple Watch, you can also trigger a voice memo from your watch.
iOS 26 Find My app
Find My can find your iPhone, your MacBook, or things with an attached Apple AirTag. The video shows a search for a TV remote hidden under some papers. Though you can’t hear it, you can see when the button is pushed to trigger a sound from the AirTag.
iOS 26 Maps app
Apple Maps can give you detailed driving directions, which is handy. But you can also use it to find Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, complete with a 3D model of the building.
iOS 26 News app
Apple’s News app is a “news aggregator,” collecting recent stories from a variety of publications, according to your preferences.
iOS 26 Notes app
The Notes app can be used to store handwritten notes (which it can optionally convert to text), typed notes, voice notes, and can also hold images, sounds, and lots of other things. The collective notes are searchable, and you have the option of password-protecting individual notes.
iOS 26 Reminders app
Reminders are a great way to create a shopping list, and you can optionally add a location. With a location attached, your phone can alert you the next time you drive near Costco to stop in and get raccoon stuffing, or something more useful.
iOS 26 Apple TV app
Apple TV is a streaming video service with movies and TV-style series presentations. And yes, you can watch them on your iPhone.
iOS 26 Apple TV remote control panel
Confusingly, Apple TV is also a small device that you can use to control your TV. The iPhone comes with a Control Center control to turn on and off the Apple TV, mute it, control the volume, change channels, pause, fast forward, etc.
iOS 26 Classical music app
While you have to download Classical from the iPhone App Store, it is made by Apple, and is free. It is a music app focused just on classical music.
iCloud on Windows application
This is not an iPhone app but an application for Microsoft Windows. It allows you to sync things from your phone directly to your Windows computer via iCloud. The application is made by Apple, and is free.
iOS 26 Tips app and iOS Books app
Two apps are in this video: Tips, which is a searchable encyclopedia of what you can do with your iPhone (and, if you have one, Apple Watch), and Books. An iPhone is just slightly smaller, and about the same weight, as a paperback book, but with Books, you can carry thousands of books with you — on your phone.
We will explore more of what your iPhone can do on March 17, 2026, in iPhone Literacy, Part 3.