iOS 9 3D Touch: Peek and Pop Web pages in Safari

3D Touch has added a whole new wrinkle to Apple’s latest iPhones. The inclusion of 3D Touch means that you can apply pressure on the screen of your iPhone 6s or 6s Plus to Peek at a web page without opening it. And if you press deeper you can Pop into that web page to see it fully.

But 3D Touch can be a bit confusing for folks new to it, so in this how-to I’ll show you how you can use 3D Touch to Peek and Pop Web links in Safari.

How to Peek and Pop a link in Safari via 3D Touch

Here’s how you can Peek at a link to preview the Web page without opening it and how to Pop into it if you want to read it:

1. Tap on the link and push down until you feel a subtle tap.

2. A preview of the Web page will appear.

3. If you scroll down a little in the Peek window, you will see the following options: Open in New Tab Add to Reading List Copy

4. If you want to read the Web page, just push down again a little more deeply and you will Pop into that web page in Safari.

You might be a little bit off balance when you first try to Peek or Pop a link in Safari. But you’ll soon grow accustomed to it with a little bit of practice.

How to adjust your 3D Touch settings on the iPhone 6s or 6 Plus

If you need to, you can adjust your 3D Touch settings:

1. Tap on Settings. 2. Tap on General. 3. Tap on Accessibility. 4. Tap on 3D Touch. 5. Choose Light, Medium or Firm.

You can test the 3D Touch settings right on the 3D Touch settings page, so it’s easy to find which setting will work the best for you.

Peek and pop web pages in Mail and Messages

Using Peek and Pop in Safari itself is great, but did you know that you can also use it in Mail and Messages? If you get a text message or an email with a URL link, you can press down to preview it in those apps. But if you press deeper, the URL link will then automatically open in Safari for you.

Once the Web page opens, you can read it and then click the back link in the upper left corner to resume using Mail or Messages. It’s nice not to be stuck in Safari after clicking a web page link in Mail or Messages.

3D Touch’s Peek and Pop in Safari are convenient time-savers

I have to admit that I did not expect 3D Touch to provide such an incredibly convenient feature. I’ve always hated having to click and load a web page to see what’s on it. Now I can skip that and just use Peek to preview it, and then Pop if I actually want to read it.

This has proven to be a big time-saver for me since it helps me avoid loading Web pages that don’t interest me, or that might just be a nuisance or distraction. The more I use Peek and Pop via 3D Touch, the more I appreciate having both features available on my iPhone 6s.

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