Quick Tip – Access extra buttons in Calculator app on iPhone and iPod Touch

Calculator-iconThis post shows how to access the stock Calculator app’s hidden buttons by turning your device sideways.

Some of the most useful apps in iOS are the simple ones. The stock Calculator app on iPhone and iPod Touch has been around since day one and is a great option for doing quick calculations on your device. However, sometimes the Calculator can be too simple. In fact, in iOS 7 Apple simplified the app even more by removing some buttons, including the memory buttons, from the Calculator’s main screen. Fortunately, these buttons and many more buttons that are typically included in scientific calculators are still available in the Calculator and can be accessed by using a simple trick.

In order to access the extra buttons in the Calculator app, simply rotate your iPhone or iPod Touch 90 degrees into landscape mode. The calculator app will rotate as you turn the phone and reveal 24 additional buttons including everything from memory to Pi to square roots to sine, cosine, and tangent. (NOTE: For the trick to work, you’ll want to make sure that the rotation lock is turned off on your phone in Control Center.)

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Many people know about this trick, but I’ve shown it to several of my friends who didn’t know it existed on their iOS device. Give it a try next time you need to use your device to perform a slightly more difficult calculation! Also, check out this related post to find out how to delete entered digits in the Calculator app. And if you’re looking for an iOS calculator with a bit more horsepower, check out our recent post on Tydlig.