How to Navigate the Home Screen on iOS Devices?

by Paul Smith Business Owner

Just like Mac or PC, iPhone and iPad's home screen is a location where you can find various stuff in the form of apps, shortcuts, widgets, etc. The home screen on the older iOS devices was very simple, containing very few features. Still, it gained several functionalities and tools over the years, while some of them have been removed to enhance your device's performance.

Now, the iPhone and iPad are coming with several features and advancements to make the device more accessible.

Here is how you can master your Home Screen by learning the basics of the iOS home screen and its features:

Getting to the Home Screen

Follow these steps to get into the home screen on your device:

If your device is locked with a password:

At the start, hit the Home tab.
Type four to six digits of alphanumeric characters as a password.

In case your device is locked with your Touch ID or fingerprint identity sensor, then follow these guidelines:

Get started by placing the touch ID registered finger over the Home tab.
Then, press the Home tab.

Follow these instructions if your device is locked with Face ID or biometric identity sensor:

Get started by tapping the device's screen to wake it up.
Then, glance on your device's screen in portrait mode. On the iPod, glance at the screen in either landscape or portrait mode. Ensure that your finger isn't covering your TrueDepth camera.
Swipe the screen upward from the bottom portion of your screen to make it unlocked.

Switching Between Home Screens

To switch between home screens, follow these straightforward steps:

Initially, swipe your finger from the right to the left-hand side to move to the Home page.
Swipe your finger from left to right-hand side to return to the earlier Home page.
Hit the Home tab to move to the first Home page. Alternatively, you can swipe up the screen on Face ID enabled devices.

Launching Apps from your Home Screen

Pursue these steps to launch your apps directly from the home screen:

At the start, hit the specific icon of an app on the home screen of your device.

Viewing Quick Actions with 3D Touch or Haptic Touch on your Home Screen

Tap the app icon on your Home screen you like to launch quick actions for.
Hit the action you like to perform.

Quickly Switching to Launch Apps from the Home Screen

Here are the guidelines to switch to launch apps directly from the home screen:

Perform a double click on the Home tab, or slide your finger slowly from the lowermost portion of the device in case of Face ID.
Swipe your finger to the app you like to switch to.
Hit the app screen to switch to it.

Accessing Spotlight Search

Follow these guidelines to access the Spotlight search tool on your iOS device:

Tap the finger to the home screen.
Now, swipe any finger on the home screen in a downward direction to expand down the Spotlight search bar.
Enter your search entry in the provided bar.
Hit the result you desire.

Quickly Accessing the Today View Gadgets from your Home Screen

Abide by these instructions to access your today view gadgets directly from your home screen:

Navigate to the primary home screen.
Swipe down the finger towards the right-hand side edge.

Quickly Accessing Notification Center from the Home Screen

Here is how to access the Notification center directly from the Home Screen:

Get started by tapping the bezel just above the screen.
Then, swipe down the finger downward on your device's screen.
Once you have successfully swiped down the screen, you can also swipe rightward to reach the Camera app or leftward to reach the Today view section without quitting the Notification Center.

Quickly Accessing Control Center via the Home Screen

Pursue these straightforward steps to access the control center through the home screen quickly:

On iPhone 8 or Older

Tap the lower edge of your device's screen.
Swipe up the screen.

On iPhone X or Later

Tap the upper right side edge of your screen where the Wi-Fi, battery, cellular icons, etc, are visible.
Swipe down towards the lower portion of your screen.

Navigating and accessing Home Screen is not a complicated task on iOS devices. You have to follow some easy steps to launch your desired app or icon directly from your iOS Home Screen.

Read Official Blog Post - How to Navigate the Home Screen on iOS Devices