Did you know that the iPhone's Home button, the button at the bottom center of the phone, has more uses than just returning you to the phone's default screen? It can also be used to control the iPhone's phone and iPod app, search, and more with just a few changed settings.
Home Button iOS 5
If you have an iPhone 4S running iOS 5 or higher, the home button offers a very cool feature that no other iPhones have: Siri. Siri's is Apple's voice assistant, an app that you can talk to to search the web or perform actions on your phone.
To use Siri, you need to make sure it's turned on. Do this by going to Settings -> General -> Siri and moving the slider to On.
Then, use Siri by holding down the home button--whether the phone is locked or unlocked--until the Siri icon (a round microphone) pops up from the bottom of the screen. Then speak your request or command to Siri and you'll be off and running.
Home Button in iOS 4
The arrival of iOS 4 changed much of the information below. The home button is no longer configurable in that OS. Instead, it's double clicked to open the fast app switcher to move between apps and close programs.
For iPod Controls
When the phone is locked and the iPod playing, a double click of the home button will bring up the iPod controls.
For Voice Control
On the iPhone 3GS and higher, holding down the home button for a few seconds activates Voice Control, a program that allows the user to speak the names of people to call or songs to play.
For Search
When on the home screen, if you click the Home button once, it will bring up the phone's Spotlight search tool.
Home Button in iOS 3 and Earlier
For Favorites
The first use of the Home button is as a shortcut to your phone’s favorites. With this setting, when you double-tap the Home button, your list of favorite people to call will be displayed.
Here’s how to set that preference:
- From the home screen, go to Settings
- In Settings, choose General
- In General, choose "Home" about halfway down the screen
- In Home Button, tap the option that reads Phone Favorites so that there is a checkmark next to it.
Now, each time you double-tap the iPhone’s Home button in quick succession, your phone favorites will appear.
For iPod App
You can also use Home button to control the iPod feature of the iPhone. With this preference set, a double tap of the Home button will bring you right to your music – saving you clicks if you’re not at the home screen.
Here’s how to change this setting:
- From the home screen, go to Settings
- In Settings, choose General
- In General, choose "Home"
- In Home Button, tap the option that reads iPod so that there is a checkmark next to it.
Now, each time you double-tap the iPhone’s Home button in quick succession, your music list will appear.
For iPod Controls
In the same Preferences screen, there is also an option called iPod Controls. If you set the slider to “On,” a double-tap when the iPod is playing displays controls that offer the name of the song and pause/forward/backward buttons in a window overlaid on whatever program you’re using.
This gives you control of your iPod even while you are using other programs and allows you to jump to the iPod program.
For iPod Controls when Locked
Similarly, when your music is playing and the iPhone is locked, a double-tap of the Home button will display the iPod controls without unlocking the phone.
Home Button for Search and Camera
As of iPhone OS 3.0, the home button can also be set as a shortcut to open the camera or search applications on the phone. As with the other settings, in the Home option of General settings, you'll find check boxes to set either the camera or search apps as shortcuts.
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