iPhone owners are just finding two secret Christmas tricks in iMessage – you have to type and tap just right

IF you want to add a little flair to your Merry Christmas texts, there’s a trick you need to know.

It’s perfect if you use iMessage on iPhone to text friends and family.

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Open up your Messages app and then dive into a conversation.

Now type out “Merry Christmas” but don’t hit send!

Instead, hold down on the send button and then tap the Screen icon at the top of the display.

Now use your finger to swipe from right to left, letting you cycle through effects.

A good option is the fireworks effect, but there are several that would look great for Christmas.

Once you’ve made your choice, hit the blue arrow and your message will be delivered with extra flair.

Another good option is to do an emoji crash.

Go back into your chat and drop some Christmas emoji in the text bar.

Try adding a Christmas tree, the Santa emoji, and maybe some presents too.

Once again hold down the Send button and then tap the Screen button at the top.

Now make sure you’re swiped onto the left-most effect, which should just be a flood of your emoji.

This will fill the screen of the recipient with your chosen festive emoji when they open the text.

iMessage secret phrases

You can also trigger some special effects just by typing out certain phrases into iMessage on iOS.

There aren’t any for Christmas specifically, but there are a few you should know about.

Here are some of the phrases that will trigger an effect when sent over iMessage:

• Happy New Year
• Happy Chinese New Year
• Happy Birthday
• Pew Pew
• Congratulations
• Congrats

Keep these in mind and use them to impress your friends.

One more iMessage trick

One other overlooked secret inside iMessage is the Invisible Ink trick.

Type out a message but don’t hit Send.

Hold down on Send then make sure you’ve got Bubble selected at the top of the screen.

Now choose the bottom option on the right: Invisible Ink.

This will let you send a concealed message that is only revealed when the recipient taps on it.

It makes it your conversations far more private if you’re texting in a public place.

And it also doubles up as a spoiler feature, so you can talk about movie plots in group chats without ruining it for people who don’t want to see.

This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk