My Favorite Ios 26 Productivity Feature Is Highly Useful But Hidden - Here's How To Find It

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• Apple's Add to Calendar lets you create events pinch 1 pat from screenshots.
• It doesn't hallucinate and is much meticulous than akin Android features.
• You tin usage nan characteristic connected each iPhone compatible pinch iOS 26.

I struggle to find genuinely helpful artificial intelligence features successful regular life. Sure, removing unwanted objects from my photos is bully to have, but astir different AI capabilities connected caller phones person been one-time statement tricks astatine best. 

Unlike 1 of those features, I recovered a useful usage lawsuit pinch Galaxy AI connected nan Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra past year. A akin capacity is now making its measurement to your iPhone pinch iOS 26. The characteristic I'm talking astir is nan one-tap Add to Calendar feature. 

Also: I've tested each iPhone 17 model, and I'm recommending thing different this time

Within my first time pinch nan iPhone 17 Pro Max, I recovered nan characteristic to beryllium much useful and polished than expected. I'd been testing this characteristic connected my iPhone 15 Pro successful nan developer beta, and it has gotten much intuitive successful nan unchangeable iOS 26 build. 

As a freelancer who needs to coordinate pinch aggregate group crossed apps and clip zones for deadlines and meetings, adding things to my almanac helps maine artifact my clip and beryllium much organized. You usually request to adhd things manually to your Calendar app, which tin beryllium time-consuming. After all, it adds up if you're doing this task aggregate times per day. I struggle pinch this manual approach, and that is why it feels refreshing to person this expertise conscionable a pat away.

Prakhar Khanna/ZDNET

Apple's Add to Calendar characteristic is portion of Visual Intelligence. All you request to do is return a screenshot of an arena invite, and AI will propose nan "Add to Calendar" prompt. Tap connected it, and it creates an event, which you tin edit aliases adhd to your Calendar. For instance, I received a Diwali statement induce pinch date, time, and spot details. I took a screenshot, tapped nan Add to Calendar option, and nan characteristic added nan nonstop specifications of nan arena to my Calendar app. No edits needed.

While it blocked an hr of my clip erstwhile nan induce stated "7 p.m. onwards," I don't mind this insignificant correction for casual outings for illustration this. I couldn't see screenshots successful this article of much delicate material, specified arsenic embargo and gathering details, but nan characteristic besides gets those clip slots correct. Again, pinch nary edits needed. 

Also: This useful Apple Intelligence characteristic saves maine complete $200 a year

The characteristic is much awesome than expected, arsenic akin capabilities connected nan best Android phones thin to get a fewer specifications wrong.

How to usage nan Add to Calendar characteristic successful Visual Intelligence connected your iPhone

Prakhar Khanna/ZDNET

To adhd an arena utilizing Visual Intelligence connected your Apple device, you request to person an iPhone that runs iOS 26. Once your instrumentality is updated, here's really you tin usage nan feature:

1. Open nan induce aliases arena you request to adhd to your Calendar app.
2. Take a screenshot of your screen, pinch each details, specified arsenic time, date, and place, visible.
3. Apple Intelligence will now propose an Add to Calendar option. Tap connected it.
4. You should get a pop-up pinch arena specifications successful nan Calendar pinch 2 options: Edit aliases Create Event. 
5. Tap connected Create Event, and it will beryllium added to your Calendar app. 

The champion portion of nan characteristic is that these screenshots don't clutter your Photos arsenic your iPhone won't prevention them if you pat connected nan adjacent (x button) successful nan top-left corner. In lawsuit you want to prevention nan screenshot, you tin pat connected nan tick (top-right corner) and find it later successful your Photos app. 

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I find Galaxy AI's sidebar implementation for AI Select much intuitive because I don't person to property nan phone's buttons. However, dissimilar its competitors, Apple's Add to Calendar characteristic doesn't hallucinate and consistently gets nan day, time, and spot correct. This reliability is what makes nan iPhone characteristic guidelines retired from its rivals and makes maine usage it frequently.

The Cupertino company's return connected Add to Calendar is nan first AI productivity characteristic connected immoderate telephone that I tin spot successful position of reliability. It's 1 that I don't request to double-check. I still do, of course, because nan characteristic uses AI (and I've missed 2 meetings successful nan past while testing akin tools), but I dream this occurrence makes maine spot AI much complete time.