Dialing These Codes Enables Hidden iPhone Settings

It's official: The majority of American adults own smartphones. Many of us use our phones every day to play games, send texts, and keep up with social media. But if you're the owner of an iPhone, you have access to extra settings you may not even be aware of. To take advantage of your phone's hidden features, pull up your keypad and enter these codes.

By punching in *3001#12345#* and pressing the call button, you'll automatically be taken to your iPhone's Field Test page. In this window, the service bars in your left-hand corner should be replaced with a numerical value. According to the Independent, numbers any higher than -80 are considered full bars while -110 and lower indicate little to no reception. You can enable this setting permanently on your home screen by holding down the power button and then pressing and holding the home button instead of shutting down your phone.

This is just one of several codes you can enter to pull up hidden information. If your phone is on a postpaid plan, you can dial *#646# to receive a text of your available minutes and *225# to see your bill balance. For prepaid phones, typing in *777# shows your account balance.

To enable your phone's call waiting setting, type in *43# and enter #43# to switch it back off. One useful feature that most of us have seen in action but may not know how to use ourselves is call anonymity. To see if your identity is hidden when making outgoing calls, you can dial *#31# to check your status. Adding #31# in front of a phone number will make you anonymous for only that call.

When it comes to getting the most out of your smartphone, there are a lot of misconceptions. Closing out all your app windows won't conserve battery life, for example, but here are some lesser-known tips that will.