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Back Tap is the Extra Button You Never Knew You Needed

Tap, tap, tap

By Charlie Sorrel Charlie Sorrel Senior Tech Reporter Charlie Sorrel has been writing about technology, and its effects on society and the planet, for 13 years. lifewire's editorial guidelines Published on November 3, 2020 10:14AM EST Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Phones Mobile Phones Internet & Security Computers & Tablets Smart Life Home Theater & Entertainment Software & Apps Social Media Streaming Gaming

Key Takeaways

Back Tap lets you trigger settings and shortcuts by tapping the back of the iPhone.The feature is hidden deep in the iPhone’s accessibility settings.Combined with Shortcuts, Back Tap is insanely powerful. Apple In iOS 14, Apple added a new button to your iPhone. What? Yes, if you double- or triple-tap the back of your iPhone, you can open an app, take a screenshot, invoke Siri, or even run a shortcut. Back Tap, found in the Accessibility section of your iPhone’s settings, uses the iPhone’s built-in accelerometer sensors to detect a sharp tap on the back of the handset. You can set two Back Tap triggers—a double tap, and a triple-tap—and there are several built-in options, but the real power comes when you assign a tap trigger to a shortcut automation. It’s a fantastic feature, but there’s a downside: It doesn’t alway work. "Just set it up for Spotlight, but it’s super unreliable to trigger it, in my experience," iOS app developer Think Tap Work told Lifewire via Twitter. "Am I tapping it wrong?" How to Use iPhone Back Tap Controls for Shortcuts and More

Double and Triple Taps

I have my iPhone set up to launch the Halide camera app whenever I double-tap the back. This works from anywhere: the home screen, inside another app, and even on the lock screen. This makes Halide almost as convenient to use as the built-in camera app. Tapping doesn’t have to be hard, but it should be positive. It also works best on a naked iPhone. Depending on the case you’re using, the material might absorb some of your tapping energy. Double-tapping is almost always recognized, whereas the triple tap seems a lot more flaky, but not everybody has trouble with it. "I just added double-tap [to] open up my Telegram conversation with my wife," software developer John Goering told Lifewire via Twitter. "This is amazing."

What Can a Back Tap Trigger

There are plenty of built in options for the back tap. You can show the app switcher, run a Spotlight search, mute the iPhone (very handy if your mute button is broken or gummed up), take a screenshot, or trigger any of the accessibility options (Voiceover, Zoom, the built-in magnifier). All of these are great choices, but if you scroll down a little further, you’ll find a list of shortcuts. If you’re not familiar with shortcuts, they’re little automations that you can run on your iPhone or iPad. You can even create your own.

Back Tap Shortcuts

"Shortcuts can automate a wide variety of things," says Apple in its Shortcuts guide. "For example, getting directions to the next event on your Calendar, moving text from one app to another, generating expense reports, and more." Those are some pretty boring examples, so here are some better ones. Shortcuts can be as simple or as complicated as you want. You could create a one-step shortcut that connects to the AirPlay speaker in your kitchen, for example, and assign that to a back tap. Or you could have a shortcut which takes your latest three screenshots, wraps each one in a nice frame that looks like an iPhone, then combines them. That’s how the screenshot in the previous section was generated. 18 Best Shortcuts for Apple's iOS Shortcuts App

Accessibility

The iPhone’s Accessibility settings were originally designed to make the phone easier to use for people with impaired sight, hearing, motor skills, and so on, but it has since become a home for any kind of deep tweaks to the operation of the iPhone and iPad. This is where limited mouse support first appeared on the iPad, for example. If you ever find yourself with a few minutes to spare, and are tired of doom-scrolling through Twitter, you should check it out. You might find something in there that changes the way you use your iPhone. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Use iPhone Back Tap Controls for Shortcuts and More Can You Delete the Apps That Come With the iPhone? How to Take a Screenshot on iPhone 11 How to Change the Color of Apps on iOS 14 How to Schedule a Text Message on an iPhone What Are AirPods and How Do They Work? 3 Ways to Take a Scrolling Screenshot on iPhone How to Use Google Assistant on iPhone How to Search Mail in iPhone Mail The History of iOS, from Version 1.0 to 16.0 How to Turn Off RTT on iPhone How to Use Siri Shortcuts How to Use Siri on iPhone 12 How to Turn Off VoiceOver on a Mac How to Turn Off an iPhone XR How to Change the Alarm Sound on iPhone Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies