Secret Apple Function: Apple’s latest operating system, iOS 14, is been available since autumn 2020. The update brought numerous new features. But with the so-called back tap, there is a function that even long-time iPhone users are not familiar with.
Every iOS update has its peculiarities. Sometimes there are more functions, sometimes fewer. iOS 14 is one of the significant updates in recent years. After all, iPhone users can now customize their home screen for the first time. That means: You can, for example, freely arrange logos in different sizes on your screen or build your corona incidence widget for your city.
Secret Apple Function: The New “Button” Through iOS 14
But with all the reporting and visible changes and options, there is also a feature that even long-time users do not know: the back tap. The unknown is undoubtedly also because you don’t just stumble across the function.
Specifically, the back tap is a practical function extension. When you have activated the feature, the Apple logo on the back of your iPhone turns into a button. Yes, you’ve read that correctly.
The Back Tap Brings These Functions With It
The back tap allows you to assign various functions to your Apple logo. You can save one position each with a double-tap and a triple tap.
You have these options:
- App switcher
- Lock screen
- Screenshot
- One-handed mode
- Home
- control center
- volume up
- Quieter
- Notification center
- shake
- Siri
- Spotlight
- sound off
You can also store several accessibility features behind your Apple logo:
- Assistive touch
- Speak screen
- Magnifying glass
- voice control
- Invert (Smart and Classic)
- Voice over
- zoom
In addition, you can even scroll up or down using the Apple logo or save a shortcut that you have programmed yourself. In theory, you can easily open WhatsApp by double-clicking your iPhone logo.
How To Activate The Back Tap
If you tried to trigger a reaction by tapping your Apple logo while reading, you would have noticed that it did not happen. This is because the function is not activated by default.
However, if you want to use the back tap, you need to proceed.
- Open the settings.
- Click on Accessibility.
- Select “Tap. “
- Click on “Tap on Back.”
Now you can store one function each – a total of two—a double-tap triggers one action, the other by a triple tap.
How Does The Back Tap Work Technologically?
The most important difference compared to the touchscreen is that the Apple logo does not have touch-sensitive functions. This is why the back tap is not triggered if you hold your smartphone generally in your hand. Instead, the technology built into the iPhone is used. The gyroscope and accelerometer are very sensitive. They register all movements and touches of the device.
From a purely technical point of view, your iPhone registers with the back tap that your device moves briefly forward several times for a millimeter due to a quick and targeted tap on the mid-back.
Based on this movement, your operating system then triggers the stored function. This logic is also why you can use the back tap despite the case. On the other hand, the built-in technology is not yet wholly accurate. If you find an unwanted screenshot in your gallery after jogging, it may be because the vibrations may have accidentally triggered the back tap.
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