iPhone includes an emoji keyboard that allows you to choose from a wide variety of emoji characters. If your device is running the latest version of iOS, you can access more characters. The emoji keyboard can be activated via the settings menu or “Settings”, then selected when the keyboard is displayed on the screen.
Step
Part 1 of 2: Enabling the Emoji Keyboard
Step 1. Update your device to the latest version of iOS
New versions of iOS sometimes bring additional emoji icons so that by updating your device to the latest iOS version, you can get all the emojis.
- Open the settings menu or “Settings” on the iPhone. You can find the icon on one of the home screens. The icon looks like a set of gears.
- Touch "General" and select "Software Update".
- If an update is available, touch "Install Now". The update process takes 20-30 minutes. If you are using an iPhone 4, the last supported iOS version is 7.1.2.
Step 2. Open the settings menu or “Settings” on the iPhone
Once your device is running the latest version of iOS, you can check if the emoji keyboard is enabled. The settings menu icon is displayed on one of the device's home screens.
Step 3. Select “General” and touch “Keyboard”
You may need to scroll through the " General " section to find the " Keyboard " option.
Step 4. Touch “Keyboards” at the top of the menu
A list of keyboards installed on the device will be displayed.
Step 5. Tap "Add New Keyboard" if the emoji keyboard is not showing in the list
If it is installed, the keyboard will appear in the list. If not, tap " Add New Keyboard ". A list of all the keyboards that are available and can be activated on the device will load.
Step 6. Touch " Emoji " on the keyboard list
The entries on the list are arranged alphabetically. Select "Emoji" on the list to enable it automatically on iPhone.
Part 2 of 2: Using the Emoji Keyboard
Step 1. Open any app that allows you to type text
You can insert emoji in any application or field that allows you to type something. Try using Messages, Mail, or Facebook to test the keyboard.
Step 2. Touch the text field to display the keyboard
If the keyboard isn't already displayed, touch the text field to bring it up.
Step 3. Touch the smiley face or “Smiley” button on the left side of the spacebar
This key will display the emoji keyboard and the regular character keys will be replaced by emoji characters.
Step 4. Hold down the globe button and select "Emoji" if you don't see the smiley face button
If the button is not available on the left side of the keyboard, press and hold the globe button, then drag your finger to the " Emoji " option. Release your finger to select the keyboard.
- You can also tap the globe button multiple times until the emoji keyboard is displayed.
- The globe button is displayed when you have two or more keyboards installed on the device (excluding emoji keyboards).
Step 5. Swipe the keyboard from left to right to browse the available emoji options
As you swipe across the screen, you can browse through different types of emoji categories.
- The page at the far left of the emoji list shows the most frequently used characters.
- You can touch the category icon below the keyboard to quickly switch to another category. You have more characters in each category than the options on one page.
Step 6. Touch the emoji to add it to the message
You can add as many emojis as you want. Each emoji counts as one character if your app displays a character limit.
Step 7. Change skin color for some emoji characters (iOS 8.3+)
If your device is running a new version of iOS, you can change the skin color of some human emoji characters:
- Press and hold the character whose skin color you want to change.
- Drag your finger on the screen in the direction of the skin color you want to use.
- Release your finger to select it. The main skin color of the character will be changed.
Tips
- Older models of devices may not be able to display some or all of the emoji characters so the recipient cannot see them.
- Emojis added to newer versions of iOS may not be visible on older versions of iOS.
- There are several emoji keyboards available on the App Store. However, these keyboards don't insert emoji, but rather image files into messages.
- Different phones, different display or display of the emoji (eg Apple and Google phones).
