Little by little, Apple has been lessening the restrictions it previously put on iPhone customizations. For example, you can now change all of your homescreen icons to the same color and stick widgets on the lockscreen.
Until recently, though, you didnât have a lot of choice when it came to default apps. Every operating system has its set of default apps: apps that automatically take over a task such as opening a file or making a phone call. A good example is the default web browser, which will launch whenever you follow a link in an email or instant message.
It was a privileged position to be in. If, for example, you tapped on an email link, Apple Mail would always launch. If you wanted to use Gmail, you would then have to copy the link, cancel the email draft in Mail, switch to Gmail, and start again.
However, Appleâs more relaxed approach now extends to default apps on iOS as well â you don’t have to use Apple’s own apps if you don’t want to. While it was originally thought that this feature would be exclusive to the EU â where Apple is under more pressure to be friendlier to third-party apps â it’s actually been made available worldwide with iOS 18.2.
If you wa …