Apple just released iOS 16 for iPhone Second, and the software update brings many new iOS features.
There’s a new lock screen that you can fully customize, and the Mail app has some new features that make it more like Gmail.
But one of the biggest updates is found in the Messages app. Apple has added the ability to edit sent messages, or even delete messages that you may have accidentally sent to the wrong person.
Also: How to get your iPhone ready for iOS 16
When you have installed iOS 16, this is how you can edit and delete sent iMessages. Just to be clear – you can only use the edit and delete features on iMessages, not regular text messages.
How to edit messages
I think it’s safe to say that people have relied too heavily on autocorrect when sending iMessages, leading to potentially embarrassing typos. Before iOS 16, you had to own the mistake and accept that it would stay on the recipient’s phone, forever. However, after updating to iOS 16, you’ll be able to edit a message within 15 minutes of it being sent.
You will need to act quickly after realizing your mistake. But once you do and you’re still in the 15 minute window, all you need to do is press and hold the notification, then select Edit from the list of options. The text field will show the backup, allowing you to correct the error and then save it.
Also: The worst thing about eSIM-only iPhones
On the recipient’s side, if they’re also using iOS 16, a small “Edited” label will appear below the new version of the message, which should no longer contain your embarrassment. If they tap the Edited label, they’ll see a log of the changes you’ve made to the message. If you make multiple changes, each will show up in the history.
Users of older iOS versions will receive a second notification with the corrected content.
How to delete sent messages
The process of completely deleting a message you’ve sent within the last 2 minutes – useful if you’ve sent it to the wrong contact or thread – is akin to editing a message. Originally, deleting a false message had the same length of 15 minutes as it took to edit the message, but Apple eventually changed the limit to 2 minutes to prevent any abuse of the feature.
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When you realize the error of your ways, press and hold the notification until you see a pop-up menu. From that menu, press Undo send. There’s a small animation that shows the message disappearing, followed by a line of text in the thread letting everyone know the message has been deleted.
Easy, right?
The best part is that this also works on iPad and Mac once they are running iPadOS 16″ and MacOS Ventura. So feel free to make a mistake on whatever device you’re chatting on – because now you can fix it.
