23 tasks that the volume buttons on the iPhone can do

The volume buttons on the iPhone are mainly used to adjust the volume, and besides that, they can also perform different actions within specific applications and can be customized using the application shortcuts. And while third-party apps can use the volume buttons for tasks other than volume adjustments, this ability is restricted by iOS. There is a possibility that future iPhone models introduce new types of volume buttons, such as buttons that have haptic feedback, which may open up new functions not related to volume control. Currently, the volume buttons can deal with a number of tasks on your iPhone other than raising and lowering the media volume or ringing and alerting. Here's everything you can do with one or both of them.

Take pictures in various camera applications

When using Photo, Portrait, or Panorama mode in the Camera app, you can use the volume up or down button as a capture button. It also works in photo and portrait modes for the front and rear cameras, but only works on the rear camera for panoramic photos.

Press once to take a photo in Photo and Portrait modes.

Press once to start taking a panorama photo, then press again to stop it.

Press and hold to start panorama, then release to stop it.

You can also use the volume up or down button as a capture button on many third-party camera apps.

Record videos in various camera applications

As with photos, you can use the volume up or down buttons in the camera app to start a video using the front or back camera. Choose a shooting mode such as Video, Slow-mo, Time-Lapse or Cinema, then use either the volume up or down button:

Press once to start recording, then press again to stop.

Press and hold to start recording, then release to stop.

It also works in many third party video recording apps.

Record QuickTakes in the Camera app

On iPhone XS and iPhone XR and later, which are running iOS 14, you can press one of the two volume buttons to capture QuickTake video while taking photos without switching modes.

Take burst photos in the Camera app

If you have an iPhone X or earlier, pressing and holding the volume button won't start recording QuickTake because it doesn't support this feature. Alternatively, you can press and hold the volume button in photo capture mode to take a series of photos.

On an iPhone XS or later, a long press on one of the volume buttons will start QuickTake. You can customize the buttons in Settings -> Camera, then toggle on the “Use Volume Up for Burst” switch. Thus you can use the volume up button long press for sequential capture, while the volume down button long press will capture QuickTake videos.

Scan documents in Files, Mail, and more

In apps like Freeform, which is available on iOS 16.2 and later, and the Files, Mail, Notes, and Reminders app, you can scan a document. You can use the volume button to take a picture of a document. Mostly a document scanner will scan and capture an image automatically, but if it doesn't, you can use the volume up or down button to scan instead of pressing the capture button on the screen.

snooze alarm clock

By default, you can snooze the alarm by pressing either volume button.

Turn off the alarm

If you don't like snoozing alarms, you can turn off the "Snooze" switch for each alarm in the Clock app. Without the snooze option, pressing either volume button after the alarm sounds will turn off the alarm.

Silence an incoming call

The volume buttons are also useful for incoming calls from the phone, FaceTime, and other calling apps. You can press either volume button when a call comes in to silence the call. And if your iPhone is in vibration mode only, it will stop the vibrations. You can then answer if you wish, or press the power button or home button to reject the call.

Turn off Find My sounds

If you ever lose your iPhone and need to use Find My on another device to play a sound to locate it, pressing either volume button on your iPhone when you find it will turn off the loud sound.

play games

Some third-party application developers integrate the volume buttons on the iPhone into the gameplay. For example, Blackbox - Brain Puzzles uses the sensors on your device to complete the puzzles, and some solutions require pressing volume buttons.

These types of apps are rare because changing the functionality of the volume buttons violates the App Store review guidelines. Blackbox gets around this limitation; Because the volume buttons still control the volume; The app reads volume changes, which means you can also use the volume slider in Control Center to accomplish an in-game task.

Blackbox

Free⁺

Developer	Shapes and Stories LLC

Count things

Third party developers of number counter apps usually add volume button support for adding or subtracting numbers when counting. And you can use it to count anything: people, laps, pitches, animals, golf strokes, tasbihs in rosary applications, etc.

app works Pitch X - Pitch Counter Fine with volume buttons. The volume slider doesn't appear on screen like it does on Blackbox, so it's unclear whether or not Pitch X uses the same workaround to get around App Store guidelines. The Tally counter by pressing the button also works fine.

Pitch X - Pitch Counter

Free⁺

Developer	Xappox, LLC

Perform custom actions in the shortcuts

The iPhone does not contain automatic control functions using the iPhone buttons directly, but you can integrate the volume buttons into another shortcut that is operated by something else. You can use them as input for custom shortcuts, which are a series of actions that you create to perform specific tasks.

Shortcut example: A custom shortcut called “Perform actions using the volume buttons.” Here's what it does:

◉ Gets the current volume level of the iPhone and remembers it as a number.

◉ Displays a notification explaining what will happen when volume buttons are pressed.

◉ If you press the volume up button, action A will be performed.

◉ If you press the volume down button, action “b” will be performed.

◉ If you don't press any volume button within five seconds after the notification, the shortcut will stop without doing anything.

How the shortcut decides what action to perform: After showing the notification and giving you time to press the volume button, the shortcut checks the current volume level again and compares it to the number you mentioned earlier.

◉ If the current volume is higher than the previously remembered number, it performs Action A.

◉ If the current size is less than the remembered number, Action B will be performed.

◉ If you don't press any button, the shortcut stops without performing any action.

In essence, this example shows how you can create a custom shortcut that interacts with the volume buttons. It lets you perform different actions depending on whether you press the volume up or down button and stops if you don't press any. While you can't directly use the volume buttons to launch an Automation task, you can use them as inputs within shortcuts assigned to specific tasks.

Completely disable the volume buttons

If you do not want the volume buttons to affect anything on the iPhone when using a specific application, such as when you do not want to accidentally raise or lower the volume, you can take advantage of the Guided Access feature, which restricts the use of buttons in the current application. You can enable it through Settings -> Accessibility -> Guided Access, then enable it.

After that, go to the application you want and triple click on the side button or the home button. If you have more than one action assigned to the triple-tap gesture, choose Guided Access from the list of actions.

On the Guided Access screen, choose Options, make sure the Volume Buttons switch is off, and press Done. Next, hit Start, then set and verify the passcode.

After verifying the passcode, the feature will start, and the volume buttons will not work in the app.

Things you can do with the volume buttons and other buttons

What we mentioned above is for volume buttons only. Additionally, they are used for other tasks when combined with other buttons. Here is a quick list of all they can do:

Take a screen shot

On iPhone models that support Face ID, press the power button and volume up at the same time and quickly release it to take a screenshot. A thumbnail preview of the screen will appear; Click on it to open the editor. Screenshots are saved to the Recents album and the Screenshots folder in the Photos app.

Turn off the iPhone

To turn off the iPhone, press the volume up, then the volume down, then press the power button until you see the Power Off slider. You can also press and hold the power button and volume buttons together, then drag the slider.

Call emergency services

Press and hold the power button and volume button together, or keep all three buttons pressed together, until you see the emergency call slider.

Alternatively, you can enable “Call with Hold and Release” (for iOS 16.3 or later) or “Call with Hold” (for earlier iOS versions) in Emergency SOS settings. Next, you need to press and hold the power button and volume button simultaneously, or all three buttons together to start a countdown to automatically call the emergency number or other local emergency services. When the countdown reaches zero, simply release the buttons to place the call.

View your Medical ID information

Hold the Side button and the Volume button simultaneously, or hold all three buttons simultaneously, until the Medical ID slider appears on the screen. Swipe the star (*) icon to the right to access your Medical ID information. The information displayed may include your name, age, allergies, reactions, blood type, weight, and emergency contacts.

Instead, use the press and hold method described above to call the emergency services and the countdown will begin, and the Medical ID slider will appear.

To make changes to the information displayed, go to Settings -> Health -> Medical ID, or open the Health app directly, tap your profile picture in the Summary or Browse tab, and select Medical ID.

Quickly disable Face ID or Fingerprint

Any of the aforementioned button combinations to turn off the iPhone, call emergency services, and display your Medical ID will also disable the face print or fingerprint. Once this screen appears, biometric authentications will be disabled. Check out our previous article for three ways to quickly disable the fingerprint and face print from this Link.

When the face print or fingerprint is disabled, you must enter your device passcode to unlock the iPhone. This is useful when you only have a second or two to prevent other people from accessing your device, such as thieves or others.

Restart the iPhone forcefully

Press Volume Up, Volume Down, and then press the Power button until you see the Apple logo. When the iPhone displays the lock screen, it has just been restarted by force.

Forcing an iPhone to restart is useful when your device is frozen, too heavy, or can't turn off or turn on normally.

Put the iPhone into recovery mode in the Finder or iTunes

With your iPhone connected to your computer, press the volume up, then the volume down, then press and hold the power button to enter recovery mode in the Finder or iTunes. You'll see the Apple logo at the end, but don't let go. Release the Power button when you see the recovery mode screen.

Put the iPhone into DFU mode in the Finder or iTunes

DFU mode is resorted to as the last available step when there is a problem with the regular recovery, and when the system is damaged and the iPhone does not respond to boot, then this mode is used, and we used to call it “drunk or dizziness mode for the iPhone” and here you can do everything in the iPhone without problems. To enter DFU mode:

With the iPhone connected to the computer, press the volume up button, then the volume down button, then press and hold the power button. Once the screen turns black, press and hold the volume down button without letting go of the power button, then release the power button after about five seconds, then let go of the volume down button when you see the “Restore Mode” screen in Finder or iTunes on the computer.

Enter diagnostic mode

Turn off the iPhone by pressing and holding the power button and either volume button, wait 30 seconds, then press and hold the volume buttons simultaneously. While pressing it, connect the iPhone to power using a cable, then release the buttons when you see the Apple logo appear.

If you repaired the iPhone using Self Service Repair, you may be asked to enter the iPhone into diagnostic mode as part of the system configuration. When a message appears stating that “Diagnostics allows Apple to identify potential hardware and software issues with this device,” click “Start Session.”

Access Sysdiagnose to troubleshoot software and network problems

This is a useful tool for troubleshooting software and network problems on an iPhone, and to run it:

Press and hold the power button and both volume buttons for 1 to 1.5 seconds. You must let go of the buttons before the shutdown screen appears or an emergency call is made. If any of that happens, you're hitting the buttons for too long. It's like taking a screenshot, with just one more button pressed.

When you release the buttons, the system diagnostics starts, your iPhone takes a screenshot, and you'll feel a short vibration indicating that the process has started successfully.

And if you're on a trial version of the system, you might see a message that says, “Diagnostics In Flight: Do the following.” Then you will see the options to "Send Feedback" and "Ignore".

If you are not running a trial version, the system diagnostics process will continue without displaying any additional messages or options.

Source:

ios. gadgethacks