iOS 5 comes with a set of Emoji symbols, which can be great to use in the Messages app, but by default they’re disabled. Here’s a step-by-step guide as to how to enable them:

Note firstly that if you’re using the email or messages app and sending the message to a non-iOS device, there’s a good chance the result will be a bunch of square blocks on the recipients screen. Gmail, for example, has emoticons, but they are GIF images, and not Unicode characters.

This Unicode chart PDF describes most of the Emoji symbols.

To enable Emoji, first go into your Settings app (the cog icon), then click on General (the small cog icon).

Scroll towards the bottom items where you’ll find Keyboard and International. You can click on either one to get to the International Keyboards, but for this example, I’m clicking on Keyboard.

Click on International Keyboards, as I hinted above.

Click Add New Keyboard.

You’ll find and select Emoji between Dutch and Estonian. Now you’re in business!

When you’re creating a message using the Messages app, you’ll see a new icon in the bottom corner of your keyboard that looks like a globe. Clicking this will toggle between your regular and Emoji keyboards. There’s buttons at the bottom of the screen to select from different sets of Emoji icons, or from your most recently used (the clock icon). The sets are (in order from left to right) Persons, Nature, Objects, Places and Symbols. 

If for any reason you’d like to remove the Emoji keyboard (such as for getting rid of the globe symbol on the keyboard), go back to the settings app and go into International Keyboards, click Edit in the top corner, then the red “-“, and you’ll be able to delete it.

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