7 iMessage Tricks For “Pew Pew” Like Special Effects on iPhone

Mehvish Mushtaq is a computer engineer by degree. Her love for Android and gadgets led her to develop the first Android app for Kashmir. Known as Dial Kashmir, she won the prestigious Nari Shakti award from the President of India. She has been writing about technology for 6+ years and her favorite categories include how-to guides, explainers, tips and tricks for Android, iOS/iPadOS, social media, and web apps.

Arshmeet has been a tech tinkerer since childhood, but she realized her love for technology and writing about 5 years ago. Since then, she has been honing her skills and helping people figure out how things work, troubleshoot problems, choose the right app and products, and dig deep into the new and old concepts of technology. She is a self-professed Apple Enthusiast who loves debating what’s good and what’s not. It is her passion for finding techniques, hacks, apps, and products that make everyday life simpler.

Things to Keep in Mind While Using iMessage Text Effects

Trick 1. Add iMessage Effects Like Pew Pew by Sending Keywords

Just like the Pew Pew iMessage effect, you can trigger more iPhone text effects that will fill up the entire screen by sending some keywords. Before we discuss these keywords, let’s see how Pew Pew works.

Step 1: Launch theMessages appon your iPhone.Open the chatyou want to send the message.

Step 2:WritePew Pewor any of the following special effects keywords in the message box and hit theSendbutton.

Your entire screen will be filled with animation. And the same thing will happen on the receiver’s end when they open the message.

List of Words That Trigger Effects like Pew Pew

Note:

Tip: For a list ofLanguages and words that generate special effects, check out the link.

Trick 2. Add Fun Animated Effects To Any Text (iOS 18)

iOS 18brought in a bunch of changes in iMessage, including new animated text effects. You can add these effects to a singular word or sentence.

Step 1: Open the iMessage chat and type in your message.Select the textyou want to animate.

Tip: Double-tap to select a word, and triple-tap to select the entire message.

Step 2: Tap> (arrow icon)from the pop-up menu. SelectText Effectsfrom the list.

Step 3:Tap the effectyou want to apply andSend.

List of Text Animation Available in iOS 18

Tip: Need a guinea pig to test all the iMessage effects mentioned in the article?iMessage yourselfand experiment as much as you want.

Trick 3. Send Full-Screen iMessage Effects For Any Message

Not just animate the text, but animate the whole screen with the text. To do so, follow these steps:

Step 1:Open theChatin iMessage.Typein your message.

Step 2:Hold theSendbutton, and a new screen will show up. Tap theScreen tabfrom the top.

Step 3:Swipe leftto see all available options. You can see the preview of the iMessage effect selected. Choose one and tap Send.

List of Full-Screen Effects

Trick 4. Add Special Effect to Message Bubble Only

If you think animating the whole screen is a bit much, you can animate just the blue message bubble. While these are not the same effects as above, there are some interesting animations here. Follow these steps to animate message bubble on iPhone:

Step 1:Type in yourmessage. Long-press theSendicon.

Step 2:From the Send with effect screen, stay on theBubble tab.

Step 3: Tap the effect to see a preview. Tap again to send the message with that effect.

List of iMessage Bubble Effects

Trick 5. Send Emoji or Stickers with Full-Screen or Bubble Effect

On yes! Not just text, you can also animate Stickers or Emojis. The process is pretty much the same, select theemoji or sticker→ long-press theSendbutton → select the effect and send.

The animations available are the same as for text. And though the Invisible Ink doesn’t work for stickers, it works like a charm for emojis.

Send Multiple Emojis with iMessage Effect

While you can’t do the same with stickers (as you can send only one sticker at one time), you can add multiple images in one message horizontally or vertically and add effects to them before sending.

Tip: If you’re facing trouble sharing stickers, check out our guide tofix stickers not working in iMessage.

Trick 6. Send a Handwritten Message or Doodle

Handwritten messages are so rare these days. If you want to relive those moments and add a personalized touch to your messages, you can create handwritten messages in iMessage. The message will animate for the recipient as if you are writing it at that moment only.

To send a handwritten note from an iPhone or iPad, follow these steps:

Step 1:Open thechat threadin the Messages app.

Step 2: Rotate your iPhone to switch to theLandscape mode(only then will the handwriting option appear). Tap theHandwriting icon.

Step 3:Write the messagewith your finger or Apple pencil or choose a saved message from the bottom list. Tap the arrows on the left and right edges to increase the writing area.

Step 4: When you’re satisfied with the message, tapDone.

Step 5:Tap theSendbutton.

What’s more, you can even animate this handwritten note using the screen or bubble effects. Simply long-press the Send button, select the animation, and send.

Trick 7. Send A Digital Touch Effect

While essentially designed for the Apple Watch, where the receiver would actually feel vibrations based on the sent effect, you can use it to send a special message.

Use the effect to send a hand-drawn sketch or animated graphics such as heartbeats, taps, fireballs, kisses, and a broken heart.

Step 1: In thechat thread, tap + to open iMessage apps. Swipe down to find and select theDigital Touch icon(heart with two fingers).

Step 2: The Digital Touch screen will open. Use your fingers to draw something or use gestures (mentioned below) to send animated graphics.

When the receives the sketch, it appears step-by-step, drawn as you’ve drawn it initially. To change the pencil color, tap the color button on the left-hand side, and select from available options.

Tip:If you can’t find the Digital Touch, here’s a guide toadding or deleting iMessage appson iPhone.

List of Digital Touch Effects

You can also use Digital Touch to send a short video/photo with these animated gestures. Tap the camera icon → click picture or record video → use gesture as shown above → send.

Tip: Looking for some more fun things to do on iMessage, check out thesebest iMessage apps.

FAQs About iPhone Text Tricks

Yes, long press on the message and select the emoji that you want to react with. Learn how tofix message reactions not working on iPhone.

If you are unable to see message effects, you must have disabled the auto-play message setting. To enable that, go to Settings > Accessibility > Motion. Enable the toggle next to Auto-play Message effects.

No. These cool iMessage tricks work only between Apple devices.

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Last updated on 01 August, 2024

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