A tape measure, a metal detector and a spirit level: 25 surprisingly useful things you can do with your phone

Our smartphones are magical things - far more than dopamine drip providers and a way to keep in touch with friends and family. Using the built-in features and easily available additional apps, there are plenty of clever things you can do with your smartphone. Illustration: Getty Images Remote control … smartphones can operate your other connected media devices.Photograph: Maskot/Getty Images Plant-spotter … apps can identify plants, animals and other objects.Photograph: Evgeniia Siiankovskaia/Getty Images Signalling issues … Sensors on your smartphone help health apps to estimate blood oxygen saturation.Photograph: Trevor Williams/Getty Images Calorie counting … ‘Phones make food diaries far less of a faff’.Photograph: Sorrasak Jar Tinyo/Getty Images Turn your phone into a tape measure The iPhone’s Measure app uses augmented reality and the device’s camera to calculate everything from ceiling heights to room dimensions - handy for those DIY tasks that require a quick decision. And, good news for parents, Apple also points out that you can use it to measure a person’s height: the digital equivalent of etched markings on the wall. Become a detectorist Metal detectors cost a pretty penny, but many modern devices have built-in magnetometers designed to help improve the accuracy of GPS within apps. Those magnetometers are also used in metal detectors, and some apps can harness that tech to detect metal. These apps are never going to be as accurate as tailor-made products, but if you are looking for a way to entertain the kids on a day at the beach, they will more than suffice in seeking out small bits of treasure. Turn it into a remote control Lost the television remote down the back of the sofa again? Many Android phones include an infrared blaster that can mimic the signals from your TV, set-top box or air-conditioning remote, while others can talk to smart devices over wifi or Bluetooth. Download a remote control app, point your phone at the screen, and you can adjust the volume, switch inputs or change channels. Link in smart lights, speakers and streaming sticks and your handset becomes a control centre for the whole living room ... though it does make it easier for teenagers to prank you by changing channel mid-episode. Digitise your old holiday snaps Got a load of old photographic negatives that you never got round to having developed - or worse, lost the prints for? Apps such as FilmBox, available on iOS and Android, can turn your negatives into digital photos (provided you shine light through them). Even better, you can then use image-editing apps to fine-tune the colour balance on old, washed-out pics. Don’t get stuck on hold to companies Some companies now offer a callback service so you don’t have to stay on hold for ages, but if they don’t, you can use your phone to do the same thing. The Hold Assist feature , available on iPhones running iOS 26, gives you a notification when it hears a human voice on the other end of the line, so you can...

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