The Apple ecosystem is full of secrets. While iPhone users enjoy exclusive features like AirDrop, Face ID, and seamless integration between devices, there are even more advanced tools that have never been made available to the public.
These hidden features, designed for Apple employees and internal developers, allow you to do things that feel like they’re straight out of a modified version of iOS. From quick access to advanced settings to debugging tools that make software development easier.
We have some bad news for you: the iPhone an Apple employee uses isn’t the same as the one in your pocket.
An Apple developer’s iPhone is not the same.
One of the best-kept secrets is the “Internal Settings,” a hidden menu that only appears on devices configured with special permissions. This panel allows you to modify system options that normal users can never touch. These include advanced network settings, hardware tests, and diagnostic tools that display detailed device performance metrics. This menu is not visible in iOS and is only accessible if the device has been authorized by Apple with a special profile.
Another mystery surrounding iOS is the existence of internal apps exclusively for employees. Among them, the leaked “AppleConnect” app, a tool that only Apple employees can use to access internal company resources. There’s also “SwitchBoard,” a special app launcher used in Apple factories and development centers to test devices before release. Through this app, technicians can verify the proper functioning of the screen, sensors, and other components of each iPhone before it reaches stores.
In addition to these internal apps, Apple has a secret testing system called “PurpleRestore.” This tool allows employees to restore iPhones in a more thorough way than iTunes or Finder, and is even capable of reverting iOS versions without having to wait for a new public update. PurpleRestore is primarily used in Apple’s development labs to test new features before they are officially released.
More ports and different construction, and software
One of the most interesting aspects of Apple’s internal software is that employees can test iOS versions months before the rest of the world. While registered developers have access to public betas, Apple engineers are given special builds that include experimental features. Some of these features never see the light of day and are scrapped before the official release.
On the hardware side, Apple employees working on developing new devices use special iPhones with additional USB-C ports or internal connectors that facilitate software debugging. These test devices, known as “Dev-Fused iPhones,” often leak on the black market for astronomical sums. Although they’re useless to most users, hackers and security specialists use them to discover vulnerabilities in iOS.
Apple is a company known for its secrecy, and these exclusive tools are part of its strategy to maintain absolute control over its ecosystem. However, from time to time, fragments of this hidden world come to light through leaks and former company employees. The truth is that, although the iPhones we use every day seem like closed devices with limited customization, in the hands of Apple engineers, they are true testing machines with advanced features that we will never see officially.
