When Apple unveiled iOS 17 at its WWDC event in June, the Journal app drew a lot of attention. While Apple didn’t release the app with iOS 17 in September or with the iPhone 15 series, the tech giant did release the app on Dec. 11 with iOS 17.2.
Journaling has been linked with many mental health benefits, including helping manage anxiety, reducing stress and coping with depression. Some people might have a difficult time remembering to journal or figuring out what to write. Apple’s Journal app makes it easy to jot down a few thoughts when you’re on your phone, and it provides you with writing prompts and other reminders about what you’ve done in a day.
Here’s what you should know about the Journal app and how it works.Â
What is Journal?
Journal is an app developed by Apple to help users write journal entries and easily insert pictures, videos and other content. Your entries are stored locally on your iPhone, and you can have backups on iCloud.
Journal provides prompts, called Reflections, that you can write about. Some Reflections the app gave me included, “Think about something you love to do and why it brings you joy,” and “Describe someone in your life who you really appreciate but forget to thank.”
The app can also access certain data and give you suggestions about what to write based on that data. For example, on my first weekend with Journal, it suggested I write about a coffee shop and park that I visited. You can control what types of data and other apps Journal can access to create these suggestions.Â
How do you get Journal?
Apple included Journal in the iOS 17.2 update, so if you’ve downloaded the update, you should see the app on your home screen.
How secure is Journal?
According to Apple, the app has end-to-end encryption between your device and iCloud, and it uses on-device processes to create journaling suggestions including Reflections. That means the…
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