With a host of new features and functions coming with iOS 18 later this year, you might be able to retire some of the apps and services you currently rely on and maybe save some money too. As is often the case with Apple software updates, the next iPhone update will fill in some of the gaps currently filled by third-party developers.
Of course, there are also reasons to stick with these third-party options: They'll often give you more flexibility and more advanced features, and maybe you don't want Apple to be in charge of everything you do. you're doing on your phone. On the other hand, if you ditch everything we list below, you could save up to $58 / £50 / AU$85 each month.
These are the most important apps and services that have had key features added in iOS 18. You could say that Apple has blocked them, a term widely used whenever Apple software copies a third-party app, in honor of the old Sherlock file search tool. on macOS which eventually duplicated the features in a standalone program called Watson.
Regardless of how you interpret the iOS 18 updates, here are the apps they could soon take off your hands (and your bank statements)…
1. LastPass (and other password apps)
iOS, iPadOS, and macOS have been able to manage passwords and other information for a while now and keep it securely synced between devices. But iOS 18 will bring with it its own standalone password manager, and that could mean you can do without LastPass, 1Password, or whatever you're using right now.
iOS 18 can handle passwords, passcodes, and codes, and you'll be able to easily share these logins as well. Interestingly, Apple Passwords will also work with third-party web browsers like Chrome and Edge, through an extension called iCloud Extension.
However, there's one main reason you might want to keep paying $3 / £2.60 / AU$4.50 a month to LastPass: you regularly use devices that aren't made by Apple (and it's worth noting that LastPass is free for a single device.) , also).
2. Grammatically
One of the main tricks you'll be able to do with Apple Intelligence (Apple's new AI built into iOS 18) is to have it check the text you've typed for spelling and grammatical errors, whether in a web form, an email, a text message or anything else. You can even request that your text be rewritten to change the tone or conciseness of the text.
All of this is very much in the wheelhouse of Grammarly, which offers AI-powered text verification and rewriting in your web browser and across all your various devices. While there are plenty of things you can do with Grammarly for free, much of the AI-enabled magic requires a subscription, and that starts from $12/£10 (around AU$18) per month.
3. Otter AI
Otter is one of the most popular and feature-rich voice transcription apps out there, and it uses some advanced artificial intelligence models to convert spoken audio into written text with a high degree of accuracy. If you need transcripts of meetings, interviews, or anything else, Otter usually does a good job of producing them, and at a decent speed, too.
However, you can only work with 30-minute files and up to 300 minutes of audio per month; after that, you'll pay from $10 (around £8 / AU$15 per month). Meanwhile, iOS 18 will record, transcribe, and summarize all the audio you want through the Notes app, which may mean many Otter users decide to make the switch.
4. Record a call
If you need call recording, TapeACall does the job for you for $10.99 / AU$17.99 (it's free right now in the UK) and is packed with features: text transcriptions, cloud sync, conference call recording and more. However, it doesn't work natively on your phone, instead you set up a group call with your contacts and TapeACall to do the recording.
What's more, you only get a limited number of recording minutes with the app's initial price, with more available through a subscription. With that in mind, you might want to consider moving on to the built-in call recording features that come with iOS 18, which are built right into the Phone app and also offer automatic text transcription.
5.ChatGPT Plus
With OpenAI adding so much functionality to ChatGPT's free tier recently, you may have already been weighing the value for money you get from your ChatGPT Plus subscription. But now that Siri is also getting ChatGPT features, you have another reason to stop paying every month for access to your AI chatbot.
We're not talking about the LLM (large language model) or Apple's AI chatbot (although that could come later): we're talking about the same AI text responses currently offered by ChatGPT Plus, available through Siri. thanks to Apple's agreement with OpenAI. You could save your $20 (around £16 / AU$30) every month.
6. Bullitt Satellite Messenger
Since the launch of the iPhone 14 in 2022, iOS users have been able to lock onto a passing satellite to send an SOS emergency message if they are in trouble and are in an area without cellular network coverage. With iOS 18, any text can be sent via satellite if necessary, so you can always stay in touch with friends and family, wherever you are.
So far, Apple hasn't said anything about this feature costing money (it's made noises about emergency SOS satellite communication becoming a paid feature, but it's free for now). That means you may no longer need the plans offered by Bullitt Satellite Messenger, which start at $9.99/£9.99 (around AU$15) for 80 texts per month.
7. All trails
Another improvement that iOS 18 brings is the Apple Maps app, where you can navigate through thousands of different hiking trails in the 63 national parks in the United States. There are filters for length, elevation, and route type, so you can find something perfect for you and you can also set up your own custom trails if necessary.
These improvements may make you think twice about renewing your subscription to AllTrails Plus (at least in the US), which costs $35.99 / £35.99 / AU$35.99 each year. Admittedly, that covers many more trails and many more parts of the world than Apple's offering, but you may find that Apple Maps covers everything you need, and will no doubt expand over time as well.
