Still confused by Apple’s all-new Calendar app for iOS 7? I know I still am .. and just as I was getting used to it, here comes iOS 7.1, complete with a slew of additional Calendar changes.
One of the biggest complaints I originally heard about the new Calendar app (particularly on the iPhone) was that there was no easy way to view a list of all your upcoming events. After a little digging, I found that tapping the Search key did the trick.
Well, the Search key won’t do you a lick of good in the updated Calendar app for the just-released iOS 7.1 update. Tap the key, and you’ll get a search box, but no event list.
That’s the bad news. The good news is that Calendar for iOS 7.1 does, in fact, still have a “list” view, and it also adds a better way to check your events from the month view.
Oh, and after a brief moment of missing Calendar’s handy day view—complete with drag-and-drop events—I’m happy to report that I found it again.
Last but not least, I’ll show you Calendar’s nifty “week” view—which, I admit, I stumbled upon completely by accident.
Read on for four ways of viewing your events in the new Calendar, starting with…
(Note: The following tips are focused on the iPhone version of Calendar; the big-screen iPad version is, to my mind, much easier to use and requires little explanation.)
1. Visit the “day” view with drag-and-drop events
You can drag and drop events from the “day” view in Calendar for iOS 7.1.
So, first things first. Want to see your schedule for a given day, with color-coded events you can drag and drop? Here’s how.
- First, go to the full “month” view, then make sure the Details button—it’s the third button from the right, just left of the Search button—is de-selected.
- Tap a day, any day. When you do, you’ll jump to the “day” view, where you’ll see hours blocked out whenever you have an event.
- Want to move or edit an event? Tap and hold it, then drag and drop the event to a new time. You can also “grab” the top or bottom of an event to lengthen or shorten it, To edit the event’s details, tap it, then tap the Edit button on the next screen.
2. View a list of all your events
Want to scroll through a big list of all your upcoming events and appointments? Like I mentioned above, tapping the Search key won’t help you anymore. Instead, try this.
- Still on the “day” view? If so, tap the List button—it’s (again) the third from the right, to the left of the Search button, and it replaces the Details button from the “month” view.
- Presto! A list of all your events should appear. Scroll down to your heart’s content, or tap an event to view its details.
3. See daily events in the “month” view
One of the most frustrating aspects of the Calendar app in iOS 7 was that you couldn’t see individual events for a given day in the “month” view—or at least, not in the iPhone version of Calendar.
Tap the Details button to see daily events from the “month” view.
Luckily, that’s no longer a problem in Calendar for iOS 7.1.
- Head back to the “month” view, then tap the Details button at the top of the screen (just to the left of the Search button). You’ll know the Details view is active when the button is surrounded by a red box.
- Once you tap the button, the month view will shrink, making way at the bottom for a list of events on the day that’s selected. Tap an event to view its details.
- Now, want to go back to the “day” view with drag-and-drop events? Tap the Details button to toggle it to the “off” position, then tap a date. If you see the list view instead of drag-and-drop events, tap the List button at the top of the screen.
4. View your calendar for the week
Here’s a final trick for you: just tilt your iPhone sideways, in “landscape” mode, either in the day or month views.
Tilt your iPhone sideways for a weekly view of your Calendar events.
When you do, you’ll get a weekly view of your Calendar events.
Swipe back and forth to view days in the past or future, or tap, hold, and drag an event to move it to a new day. Neat.
All that making sense? (Don’t be embarrassed if it doesn’t; it took me a good half an hour of trial and error to figure it out.) Still have questions? Let me know!
Bonus tip
Not sure how to update your iPhone to iOS 7.1? Just tap Settings, General, Software Update, then follow the prompts. The update will take about 15 minutes or so, depending on how long it takes to download the update file. Make sure your iPhone is plugged in and backed up before beginning the update.