With iOS 7, Apple updated most of the iPhone’s built-in apps with a sleeker, simplified look. One of the updated apps was the compass app. Formerly designed to resemble its real-world counterpart, the new Compass app is a study in sleek, black and white utilitarian design.

Starting the Compass App For The First Time

The best new feature of the new Compass app is that it does away with the weird looking, “wave your iPhone around-and-round in a figure eight” calibration method. (You know people looked at you like you were a crazy person the first time you did this in public.) Calibrating your compass app now is more like a simplistic video game in which you roll a ball around in a circle, creating a dotted line circle. Small motions with your hand and wrist are all that is required. The app will let you know when it’s properly calibrated.

New Features

While the iOS 7 compass app has retained all the features from the previous versions, it also adds a few cool new features, such as location services. The compass now displays your current city and state, along with the full longitude and latitude readings, along with the compass reading.

Following a particular bearing is easier too. Just tap the compass face once to set a particular bearing and the compass app will then draw a red arc around the inside of the compass circle to indicate how far you’re deviating from your set course.

Using the Built-In Level

By swiping to the left while on the compass face, you can access a new feature of the Compass app, a horizontal and vertical level.

The level app is exceedingly simple to use. It uses the colors: white, black, and green to display information to you.

Lay your iPhone on its back, and you’ll see two overlapping white circles with measurement degree readings in the center of the display. The closer to level the surface the iPhone is siting on, the closer the two circles overlap. If they overlap perfectly for more than a few seconds, the screen will turn a bright green to indicate a level surface.

Holding your device upright, in landscape or portrait, activates the rectangular level feature. A black and a white level appears. When an equal amount of black and white are displayed on the screen, the black area turns green, indicating you are at level. That should prove handy for hanging shelves and pictures.

You’ll find that the iOS 7 Compass app has been improved in many ways. Its clean, simple look allows you to obtain your directional information with a minimum of fuss, and its built-in level will make tasks like leveling a photo, shelf, or even a pool table much simpler without the need to purchase an additional level app. Just remember, the level will be more accurate WITHOUT a case on your iPhone.