iPhone Shortcuts

I’ve got a great iPhone tip for you.

Keyboard Shortcuts

iOS has a feature hidden deep in the settings called Keyboard Shortcuts.  The idea is that you can type a short phrase that gets expanded into a longer one.  Your iPhone (and iOtherStuff) comes preloaded with an example.  Type “omw” and into any text input, and it will give you the option of expanding to “On my way!”.  It will feel like an autocorrection, in that the full phrase will pop up next to your shortcut.  Press “space” to expand, or the tiny little “x” icon to get rid of it.

Username and Email

Yeah, that is kind of handy.  But I’m not usually so canned with my communication that I will always resort to the same phrases.  But then I realized I do type something over and over: my username and email address.  I’ve added shortcuts for these, and now logging into apps or websites has gotten a lot eaiser.

Instructions

Sounds good.  If you were as excited as me about this revalation, you’ve probably gone and set it up even before reading this far.  If not, here is a quick guide.

Drill down into your Settings app: General -> Keyboard -> Shortcuts

Now, when it comes time to enter your email address, just type your shortcut, and then let the magic happen.