Your iPhone just changed forever – millions now need to check their settings

APPLE changed the way AirDrop works for millions of iPhone users, so it’s time to clean up the new rules.

The latest iOS update for your iPhone changed the function permanently.

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If you’ve never used AirDrop, you’re missing out.

It’s an amazing feature that lets you share and receive photos, documents and more with other iPhones and iPads extremely quickly – with a combination of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Previously, you could keep your AirDrop open to “Everyone” permanently, so you could get files from anyone – even if they weren’t a contact.

But Apple has now changed that to make it a temporary feature.

The change first rolled out in China earlier this year, but has been live for everyone since this week’s iOS 16.2 update.

Setting your AirDrop to Everyone is a temporary change that will only take 10 minutes.

Some feared the change would make it harder for iPhone owners in China to share protest materials.

But it could also help millions of iPhone owners avoid shady AirDrops from pranksters.

Of course, you can still opt for Off and Contacts only as permanent options.

However, if you need to use Everyone, it’s important to know how to quickly enable it.

How to change AirDrop settings on iPhone

The quickest way to turn everyone on is to swipe into your control center.

For Face ID models, this means swiping down from the top right of your screen. On models with a Home button, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.

Then long-press the tile that contains your Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, mobile, and airplane mode settings.

Now just tap AirDrop and select Everyone for 10 minutes.

You can also change your settings by going to Settings > General > AirDrop.

However, this is much slower, so it is better to make the Control Center method a habit.

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