Messages app in iOS 10 has integrated Digital Touch functionality we first saw in Apple Watch. What this means is that for a second or two, your iPhone’s screen becomes your canvas. And whatever you doodle/write on it is send to the conversation, with an animation of exactly how you drew it. It’s pretty cool. You can do it on photos and videos as well. Let’s take a closer look.

How To Use Digital Touch

Go to the conversation in Messages app. Tap the “right arrow” icon besides the text input field and select the “Heart” icon.

And as long as you’re using iMessage (the text input box should say “iMessage” and not “Text Message”), the Digital Touch input box will open.

What You Can Do With It

Digital Touch does a couple of things for you. First of all, let’s take a look at the built-in actions for taps.

Swipe with 1 finger: Sketch on the screen.

Tap once: Send a tap.

Press with one finger: Send a fireball.

Tap with two fingers: Send a kiss.

Tap and hold with two fingers: Send a heartbeat.

Tap and hold with two fingers, then drag down: Send a heartbreak.

These are cute and all but the best thing you can do on this surface is to sketch with your finger.

You can slide your finger around on the black trackpad like surface and you’ll see lines appear.

If you want a larger surface, tap the “up” arrow icon in the bottom right.

You can change the color of the line by tapping on the different colors.

To start with a photo or a video, tap the “Video” icon on the left.

Now It’s On Your Creativity

We’ve shown you the tools. There’s a lot you can do here by taking a photo, doodling over it, adding a heartbeat and more.

This is your new playground. Let us know about all the cool stuff you came up with, in the comments below.