iOS 12: 6 things to try as soon as you get the new iPhone update from Apple

The new update brings joy, excitement, efficiency – and a little bit of horror

Apple's iOS 12 has arrived, bringing a whole host of new features and tools with it.

Each year, Apple accompanies the release of new phones with new phone software, allowing people access to a range of new features even if they're not buying the new hardware.

This time around, with iOS 12, there's less to actually try. A large part of the update is laying foundations, tweaking and improving performance, altering small features.

But there is plenty changed all the same. Here's six of the best things to have a go with as soon as you've got the new update.

Just use it

Have a flick around. Open some apps then shut them again. See how quickly you can open up the camera and take a picture.

Because the biggest change this year isn't anything fun or specific, but the deep and broad improvements Apple has made to the software's performance. On older phones especially, everything is noticeably more speedy, and the changes are even clear on the newest iPhone X.

It's not exciting. But it is finally getting rid of perhaps the worst thing of the Apple update cycle: "iPhone slow". So make the most of it.

Memoji yourself

The most novel feature of the iPhone X has become even more novel. For owners of Apple's latest phones, Animoji has been joined by Memoji – and it is just as ridiculous and fun as those names make them sound.

Animoji, if you're not acquainted with it, is a feature that uses the iPhone X's face tracking technology to control the face of a series of emoji characters, such as a poo or a dinosaur. You could move your face and talk and everything would look like it was coming from a cartoon.

Memoji allows you to make any kind of face you'd like, by choosing from a huge number of different combinations of appearances. So you can create a cartoon version of yourself, or anyone else, and then send a message using that.

(You can also overlay those onto your face on FaceTime – a feature that comes in useful when someone wants to video call but you're not feeling up to it.)

Get measuring

Apple has long been talking about the possibilities of augmented reality. The new iOS gives you an easy way to actually see how exciting that can be.

With iOS 12, Apple has included one of the more easy and impressive ways of showing that off. Just open up the Measure app that should be included, and follow the instructions – using just your phone's camera and sensors, it can accurately measure the size of things you can see, in a way that might sound boring but is very impressive.

Make some shortcuts

This might be the sort of thing that you'd rather leave until you're a bit bedded in with the new update. But it's also one of the most exciting features, so feel free to leap in.

With this year's update comes a new app, called Shortcuts. And it does what it suggests: it allows you to create quick shortcuts that can automate tasks that once would have been immensely complicated and time-consuming.

You can add just about anything you want to these shortcuts. You could create one so that when you say "good morning" to Siri, it turns on your lights, turns on your radio, works out how long the journey to your first appointment will take, and texts your friends to say hello.

Have a go at creating them by heading into the Shortcuts app and feeling your way around it. It can't go too wrong, so just have a prod around or look at the presets and see what you can make.

Look with horror on how much you use your phone

One of the biggest new updates is about stopping you using your phone. Called Screen Time, it gathers information on your phone use and presents it to you so you can do so more mindfully.

So prepare yourself, take a deep breath, and head into the Settings app to find the screen time option. Click on there and look upon what you've been doing, as well as choosing the options to improve your relationship with your phone in future.

Find some photos, and share them

Apple has drastically improved how the Photos app works this year, making it easier to find pictures whenever they were taken. And it's much easier to share them once you have, too.

Head into the app and look at the For You tab, which will collate important moments and the pictures you took of them. Or see what comes up in its sharing suggestions, which will look for photos that feature your friends.

Once you've found some, send them to someone. And marvel at the vastly improved way that sharing works, sending people a link rather than an overwhelming dump of photos.