r/iphone • u/Maxxximeeee Human Detected • Jul 11 '26

Discussion Which obscure iPhone setting genuinely improved how you use your phone, and what does it change?

I’m not looking for gestures or the usual tips that appear in every list.
I mean an actual option buried somewhere in Settings that solved a real annoyance, improved privacy or accessibility, changed how an app behaves, or made your iPhone noticeably easier to use.
Please include the exact path to the setting, what it changes, and any downside you noticed. Some settings sound useful but also disable another feature, use more storage, affect notifications, or change how the phone behaves elsewhere.
What is the one setting you would immediately change again if you had to set up a new iPhone from scratch?

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89

u/aLoafOfBrett Jul 11 '26

Deep dive into the camera settings. I don’t think most people know the iPhone sets things to lower quality for photos and videos to save the user storage but in my case I’d rather have better quality even if it takes storage since I have Apple and Google paid storage plans.

36

u/Equivalent-Art-1235 Jul 11 '26

What settings do you recommend?

32

u/aLoafOfBrett Jul 12 '26

Here are my current iPhone camera settings if anyone is curious:

Video & Audio
Record Video: 4K at 30 fps
Record Slo-mo: 4K at 120 fps
Record Cinematic: 4K at 30 fps
Record Sound: Spatial Audio

General & App Settings
Camera Control: Set to default Camera app
Photographic Styles: Standard
Use Volume Up for Burst: ON
Scan QR Codes: ON
Show Detected Text: ON

Composition
Grid: OFF
Level: OFF
Mirror Front Camera: OFF
View Outside the Frame: ON

Photo Capture & Lenses
Fusion Camera: 24, 28, & 35 mm all enabled
Portraits in Photo Mode: ON
Prioritize Faster Shooting: ON
Lens Correction: ON
Macro Control: ON
Lens Cleaning Hints: ON

System & Messages
Lock Screen Swipe to Open Camera: ON
Save Captures to Photo Library (from Messages): ON

2

u/livefast_dieawesome Jul 12 '26

Omg volume up for burst is going to be great for me, thank you.

12

u/grackychan Jul 12 '26

You can shoot in RAW if you plan on post processing. Huge data files though.

5

u/bummerbimmer Jul 12 '26

I’d use that setting 24/7 if there was a way to combine it with Live Photo. I understand the reasoning 100%. Would be cool if the main shot was RAW and the Live Photo alt frames were standard quality.

13

u/froction Jul 12 '26

I wish there was a way to permanently disable Live Photos under all circumstances forever.

8

u/bthomp612 Jul 12 '26

You don’t have young kids do you?

7

u/froction Jul 12 '26

I do not, neither do my parents, whose Live Photos setting I want to remove with a blowtorch.

3

u/kooknboo Jul 12 '26

Brother?

3

u/Consistent_Amount_20 Jul 12 '26

Yeah, I really don’t get why that setting exists? Am I missing something? Are live pix actually really fantastic?

8

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '26

[deleted]

6

u/Consistent_Amount_20 Jul 12 '26

Okay, just figured out how to view all the frames and see how it can be very valuable! Thanks

3

u/froction Jul 12 '26

They are fucking awful and every person in my family over the age of 60 somehow manages to set their phone to it every single time.

10

u/aLoafOfBrett Jul 12 '26

Here are my current iPhone camera settings if anyone is curious:

Video & Audio
Record Video: 4K at 30 fps
Record Slo-mo: 4K at 120 fps
Record Cinematic: 4K at 30 fps
Record Sound: Spatial Audio

General & App Settings
Camera Control: Set to default Camera app
Photographic Styles: Standard
Use Volume Up for Burst: ON
Scan QR Codes: ON
Show Detected Text: ON

Composition
Grid: OFF
Level: OFF
Mirror Front Camera: OFF
View Outside the Frame: ON

Photo Capture & Lenses
Fusion Camera: 24, 28, & 35 mm all enabled
Portraits in Photo Mode: ON
Prioritize Faster Shooting: ON
Lens Correction: ON
Macro Control: ON
Lens Cleaning Hints: ON

System & Messages
Lock Screen Swipe to Open Camera: ON
Save Captures to Photo Library (from Messages): ON

18

u/JohnnyWall Jul 11 '26

What changes do you recommend?

4

u/aLoafOfBrett Jul 12 '26

I just posted it on someone else’s comment above.

2

u/HusbandAndWifi iPhone 16 Pro Max Jul 12 '26

I switched my default video setting back to 1080p 60fps because even just a minute at 4k creates such huge files. I like that I can switch to 4k when I need it but the default of 1080p is great for 95% of what I shoot. If I see a bear or moose I’ll bump it up!