You’ve undoubtedly been in this situation before: You quickly responded to an email on your iPhone, only to discover that it was either full of mistakes, that you forgot to set your message to Reply All, or that you did and didn’t intend to. Most people would think that once you send a reply, the ship has gone and there is nothing you can do about it, and in some cases, that may be the case. Fortunately, if you put it up beforehand, there is a simple method for remembering an email.

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With the iOS 16 update, the Mail app gained the capability to unsend emails, which improved the already reliable email client’s quality of life. Although many third-party applications could already do this, this functionality was much appreciated in Apple’s own app. When this feature is on, the Mail app will effectively postpone sending the email until you remember it and make the necessary adjustments.

Here’s how to configure your iPhone’s transmit delay function. For further information, see what was revealed during Apple’s September presentation and how the AirPods Pro will soon function as hearing aids.

Before using unsend, be sure to verify this.

You must send and receive emails using the Mail app in order for this functionality to function. You can manage all of your email accounts from one location using Apple’s built-in Mail app, unlike separate third-party email programs like Gmail. This includes:

iCloud
Exchange for Microsoft
Yahoo, Google, AOL, and Outlook
Go to Mail > Accounts in the Settings app if you want to add your current email address to Mail. Your account may be added here, and it will show up in the Mail app.

How to get your iPhone to stop sending emails

Create a new email in the Mail app after selecting your preferred account’s inbox (tap Mailbox to browse all). Create your email as you normally would, including the subject, content, recipient email address, and any attachments. Then, click the blue button in the upper-right corner to send it.

You ought to be returned to your inbox after doing so. The words “Undo Send” are shown in blue at the bottom of the page. You have ten seconds by default to click this button to undo the most recent email you sent; if you don’t, it will be irretrievably sent and you won’t be able to retrieve it.

By selecting Undo Send, you may return to your email and make any necessary corrections or add any missing attachments before sending it again. If another issue occurs, you will have 10 seconds to reverse the email.

Modify how long it takes your iPhone to unsend an email.

The unsend function only establishes a buffer time between when you press the send button and when the email is really sent, rather than sending the email and then receiving it back. You may adjust this buffer by going into your settings, however the default is 10 seconds.

Go to Mail > Undo Send Delay in the Settings app, and then choose one of the following delay times:

Off
By default, 10 seconds
20 and 30 seconds
You will be unable to utilize the Mail app’s unsend function if you choose the Off option.

iOS 16’s “unsend email” functionality
You may unsend emails sent by Gmail, Yahoo, and other services as long as you’re in the Mail app.
Nelson Aguilar/CNET screenshots
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