Don’t like iOS 18’s new Photos app? Try these fixes to make it more like the old iPhone
The launch of iOS 18 has been generally well received by iPhone fans, but the most controversial change is Apple’s redesign of the Photos app.
In the TechRadar office and several Reddit threadsMany fans are outraged by the many changes, with the most despicable change being Apple’s decision to remove the tab navigation bar that previously sat at the bottom of the app’s screen.
Instead, Apple has embraced a scrolling design that, for many, makes the app slower and more cumbersome to use. Fortunately, it has also hidden two handy tweaks that can help you return the app to something resembling the previous tab experience.
The first is the ability to rearrange the order of the app’s long list of photo collections. To do so, scroll to the bottom of the app and tap “Customize & Reorder.” This will let you move your favorite collections, like “Albums” and “Recent Days,” further up the page.
If you want something closer to the old navigation bar, you might want to put Pinned Collections at the top (so it sits just below your Photos feed when you open the app).
As the name suggests, this is a bar of shortcuts to your favorite photo sets. To change the order of these, tap Change, and you can move some of the old favorites in the navigation bar, like Albums, back into the one-tap area without having to scroll.
If your photo feed is flooded with screenshots, you can also delete them and confine them to a Screenshots folder in Pinned Collections. To do this, scroll up on the Photos app home screen until the menu bar appears at the bottom of the screen. Now, tap the up/down arrows, click ‘View Options’ and uncheck Screenshots.
While you may still have to rediscover some muscle memory, these tweaks make the Photos app less confusing and overwhelming than you might first think.
RIP navigation bar
It’s fair to say that the new Photos app has traded in some old-school simplicity for a more modern look, and that’s a matter of some controversy. The undeniable benefit, however, is that this approach offers greater customization.
These options are somewhat hidden in the user interface. While many were shocked and bewildered when they opened the new Photos app, thankfully there are ways to restore a more familiar experience.
That’s not to say there aren’t legitimate complaints about Apple’s new app. One is that video playback seems to have taken a step backwards, with the scrub bar losing its thumbnail previews and requiring a tap to play videos full screen. Another is that the app feels a little cluttered, with so many automated collections vying for your attention — though you can delete the ones you don’t want using the Customize & Reorder menu.
While some iPhone owners are holding off on updating to iOS 18 in order to hold on to their trusty Photos app, they may be tempted to take the plunge soon when Apple Intelligence features finally begin rolling out. Apple confirmed today that this will happen next month in the US and in December in the UK and Australia.
