How to optimize iOS 10 for users with 16GB iPhones

James Falconer

Well-known member
Nov 1, 2012
1,891
0
0
Visit site
Thought this would be a useful thread to start for any iPhone users with a 16GB version.

Anyone out there have tips/tricks on getting the most out of iOS 10 with limited capacity? Some quick tips from my end:

1. Clear that Cache. I've found certain apps like Instagram and Facebook (Instagram especially) can drive up a HUGE cache on your device. Pro tip: Uninstall the app to clear the cache off your phone. Re-install and you should have a lot of extra free space.

2. Photos. Mind how many photos/videos you store on your device. Backup what you can to iCloud, dropbox, or some service to free up space by deleting the local copies off your phone.

3. General cleanup. Get rid of any old apps you don't need. If you don't use them, get rid of them. They will be in your iTunes purchase/download history if you want to restore at a later time!
 

Ledsteplin

Ambassador
Oct 2, 2013
50,095
688
108
Visit site
Keep messages deleted in the messages app. Especially photos and videos.
Most apps with a log in will delete cache by signing out, then sign back in.
Keep the recently deleted album in photos deleted.
 

njlx2016

Well-known member
Jun 2, 2015
366
0
0
Visit site
The latest Facebook app weighs in at 350MB - that's just for the app itself, never mind its cache. Add in Messenger and you're eating up at least another couple hundred MB's. For a 16GB phone, that's a significant amount of space being taken up by just two apps.

You can save yourself some space (and maybe a little bit of battery life) by deleting the Facebook app and using it in a browser. The only issue with that is potentially sharing your browsing habits with Facebook, but that can be mitigated using Private Browsing or Incognito mode in your browser of choice.

For the Messenger app you can save space by removing stickers. In a conversation in Messenger, tap the smily face icon next to the "Type a message" box. Then, tap the plus sign (+) on the lower right side of the screen. Tap "Your Stickers" and remove any unwanted ones.

I'm pretty sure that your stickers get downloaded directly to your device once you log into the app. A handful of stickers might not take up a whole lot of space, but I found that I've added a ton over the years.
 

Just_Me_D

Ambassador Team Leader, Senior Moderator
Moderator
Jan 8, 2012
59,681
627
113
Visit site
In addition to what's listed in post #1 , make use of cloud services as well as streaming services to keep from using up all of the internal storage.
 

Ledsteplin

Ambassador
Oct 2, 2013
50,095
688
108
Visit site
The latest Facebook app weighs in at 350MB - that's just for the app itself, never mind its cache. Add in Messenger and you're eating up at least another couple hundred MB's. For a 16GB phone, that's a significant amount of space being taken up by just two apps.

You can save yourself some space (and maybe a little bit of battery life) by deleting the Facebook app and using it in a browser. The only issue with that is potentially sharing your browsing habits with Facebook, but that can be mitigated using Private Browsing or Incognito mode in your browser of choice.

For the Messenger app you can save space by removing stickers. In a conversation in Messenger, tap the smily face icon next to the "Type a message" box. Then, tap the plus sign (+) on the lower right side of the screen. Tap "Your Stickers" and remove any unwanted ones.

I'm pretty sure that your stickers get downloaded directly to your device once you log into the app. A handful of stickers might not take up a whole lot of space, but I found that I've added a ton over the years.

My Facebook app is 224 mb for the app itself. At any rate, another option for Facebook is the client, Friendly+. I use it a lot. Only uses 22.3 mb of space. Doesn't cache up like the Facebook app. Multiple accounts, dark theme, and can add Instagram account.
 

phessler

Well-known member
May 3, 2011
305
31
28
Visit site
Another space saver is to use the setting in iTunes to convert higher bitrate song files to 128 kbps. This will reduce the space needed for the songs you sync.
 

mark-d

Well-known member
Apr 24, 2012
289
0
0
Visit site
So many helpful tips in here but as a 16GB owner I find space a constant worry.

Look at the size of some apps now and compare them to the same app 2 or 3 years ago and there's where your space has gone!

I deleted and reinstalled Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Plex, Messenger and Snapchat and that generated me almost 3.5GB of space
 

Trending Posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
259,860
Messages
1,764,746
Members
441,207
Latest member
Erik4711