What does the new Calculator app with iOS 18 offer?

Although Apple does not usually focus much on the Calculator app, it managed to attract users’ attention by making significant changes to this app with iOS 18. With this new update, Calculator offers innovative features such as Math Notes by integrating with the Notes app. Here are all the innovations in the Calculator app with iOS 18.

All the revolutionary innovations of iOS 18:

Math Notes:

The biggest change in the Calculator app with iOS 18 is a new feature called Math Notes. This feature provides the integration of the Calculator and Notes apps.

With Math Notes, you can write an equation in the Notes app and have it automatically solved when you put an equal sign. This feature makes everyday transactions such as sharing expenses for group trips or dividing dinner bills easier.

You can also write more complex equations, defining variables and using them in your calculations. For example, if you write “dinner = $57” and “movies = $24” in a note, then type “dinner + movies” and put an equal sign, Math Notes will understand those variables and calculate the total.

Although Math Notes is technically a feature of the Notes app, it can also be launched and used in the Calculator app. Here are the steps:

1. Open the Calculator app.

2. Tap the calculator icon in the bottom-left corner of the app.

3. Select Math Notes.

4. Tap the new note icon in the bottom-right corner of the screen.

5. Start your calculations.

You can do the same thing with a new or existing note in the Notes app. Math Notes offers the same features that are available in Calculator and the Notes app.

Using Math Notes with Apple Pencil on iPadOS 18

Math Notes on iPadOS 18 works the same way, but with the added bonus that it can be used with Apple Pencil. When you launch a Math Note from Calculator or Notes, you can handwrite your equations and get their solutions in the same way.

Math Notes in many places

You can get Math Notes results almost anywhere in the operating system. For example, you can get a result when you type an equation in the search bar, and the same goes for apps like Messages.

Unit conversion

You can also do unit conversions while using Math Notes. Just type the value you want to convert, and the result automatically appears below. For example, when you type “10 kilograms to pounds” in the Math Notes interface, the result is automatically generated. Unit conversions work in Search, Messages, Notes, the Calculator app, and more.

Calculation history

If you open the Calculator app and tap the three lines in the upper-left corner of the interface, you can see a history of all the calculations you’ve entered in the app. Apple only saves calculations done with the Basic or Scientific calculators here, and Math Notes are stored in the Notes app.

You can copy the entire expression or result by long-pressing on a calculation, and you can delete it from the list by swiping left. You can also select and delete multiple expressions by tapping the Edit button, or use the Delete All option to delete them all.

Portrait orientation

There’s now an option to use the scientific calculator in portrait orientation, so you don’t have to turn your iPhone to landscape to access the scientific calculator.