iOS 14 Adds Accessibility Feature for Tapping on the iPhone to Perform Actions

iOS 14, released for developers today, includes an interesting new Accessibility option that's designed to allow users to double tap or triple tap on the back of the iPhone to perform various actions.

backtapios14
The feature can be used to do things like access Control Center, Notification Center, the Lock screen, the Home screen, or the App Switcher, or it can change the volume, bring up Siri, mute the ‌iPhone‌, take a screenshot, or access a Shortcut.

It can also be set up to work with a number of Accessibility features like Assistive Touch, Magnifier, or VoiceOver.

The Back Tap options can be accessed in the Settings app by tapping Accessibility > Touch > Back Tap. Tapping to trigger an action appears to work fairly well when the ‌iPhone‌'s back is tapped in any spot on the device with either the double tap or triple tap gesture.

Back Tap is just one of many new Accessibility features that Apple has built into iOS 14. VoiceOver has also received major improvements with support for image descriptions, text recognition, and screen recognition, as well as Headphone Accommodations that can amplify soft sounds and adjust certain frequencies for music, movies, phone calls, podcasts, and more.

Related Forum: iOS 14

Top Rated Comments

QuarterSwede Avatar
50 months ago
Super cool!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tillsbury Avatar
50 months ago
Interesting... wonder if it works with a case on...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gymnastboatman Avatar
50 months ago
FYI: This only works on models that support tap to wake. It is not available on my iPhone SE 2nd gen.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hal~9000 Avatar
50 months ago
This seem’s like a fantastic trick for the large Pro Max iPhone in order to easily bring down Control Center when using the phone one handed. Just another feather in the cap of the great update that is iOS 14 ?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr. Awesome Avatar
50 months ago
Awesome! And arguably more useful then the squeeze gesture on Android phones.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rain111 Avatar
50 months ago
Ok, I am mind-blown by this feature. thumbs up Apple ?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Delta Feature

Delta Game Emulator Now Available From App Store on iPhone

Wednesday April 17, 2024 9:58 am PDT by
Game emulator apps have come and gone since Apple announced App Store support for them on April 5, but now popular game emulator Delta from developer Riley Testut is available for download. Testut is known as the developer behind GBA4iOS, an open-source emulator that was available for a brief time more than a decade ago. GBA4iOS led to Delta, an emulator that has been available outside of...
iOS 18 Siri Integrated Feature

iOS 18 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Friday April 12, 2024 11:11 am PDT by
iOS 18 is expected to be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. iOS 18 is rumored to include new generative AI features for Siri and many apps, and Apple plans to add RCS support to the Messages app for an improved texting experience between iPhones and Android devices. The update is also expected to introduce a more...
iOS NES Emulator Bimmy Feature

NES Emulator for iPhone and iPad Now Available on App Store [Removed]

Tuesday April 16, 2024 11:33 am PDT by
The first approved Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) emulator for the iPhone and iPad was made available on the App Store today following Apple's rule change. The emulator is called Bimmy, and it was developed by Tom Salvo. On the App Store, Bimmy is described as a tool for testing and playing public domain/"homebrew" games created for the NES, but the app allows you to load ROMs for any...
iGBA Feature

Apple Removes Game Boy Emulator iGBA From App Store Due to Spam and Copyright Violations

Sunday April 14, 2024 9:22 pm PDT by
Apple today said it removed Game Boy emulator iGBA from the App Store for violating the company's App Review Guidelines related to spam (section 4.3) and copyright (section 5.2), but it did not provide any specific details. iGBA was a copycat version of developer Riley Testut's open-source GBA4iOS app. The emulator rose to the top of the App Store charts following its release this weekend,...
iPhone 15 Pro Action Button Translate

All iPhone 16 Models to Feature Action Button, But Usefulness Debated

Tuesday April 16, 2024 6:54 am PDT by
Last September, Apple's iPhone 15 Pro models debuted with a new customizable Action button, offering faster access to a handful of functions, as well as the ability to assign Shortcuts. Apple is poised to include the feature on all upcoming iPhone 16 models, so we asked iPhone 15 Pro users what their experience has been with the additional button so far. The Action button replaces the switch ...
iGBA Feature

Game Boy Emulator for iPhone Now Available in App Store Following Rule Change [Removed]

Sunday April 14, 2024 8:06 am PDT by
A week after Apple updated its App Review Guidelines to permit retro game console emulators, a Game Boy emulator for the iPhone called iGBA has appeared in the App Store worldwide. The emulator is already one of the top free apps on the App Store charts. It was not entirely clear if Apple would allow emulators to work with all and any games, but iGBA is able to load any Game Boy ROMs that...