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The original iPhone featured a physical Ring/Silent switch on the left side and it has carried over to every iPhone since. This is the only way to switch between ring mode and silent mode, isn’t it?
Apple doesn’t include an “official” method to switch between these modes without the physical switch. What happens if it stops working? What if you keep accidentally changing it? There are some nifty “tricks” we can use thanks to the great iPhone Accessibility suite.
RELATED: Make your iPhone easier to use with these hidden accessibility features
Make a “virtual” doorbell/silent switch
Let’s be a little more creative. With the iPhone’s “AssitiveTouch” feature, we can create a virtual ring/silent switch. First, open the “Settings” app.
Next, go to the “Accessibility” settings and select “Touch”.
Go to “Assistive Touch” and turn it on at the top of the screen.
A floating button will appear on the screen. By default, this button opens a menu that can contain up to eight different shortcuts. Tap “Customize Top Level Menu.”
Select one of the shortcuts and replace it with “Silent”.
Now when you open the menu you will have a mute/unmute toggle button that works independently of the physical switch, although the switch can still control modes if it is functional.
If you want even easier access to the virtual switch, you can choose it as the single tap, double tap or long press option for the floating button.
This method requires having a semi-transparent floating button on the screen at all times, but it’s a neat trick, especially if the physical switch stops working.
RELATED: How to quickly enable or disable AssistiveTouch on iPhone and iPad
Touch the back of the iPhone
Did you know that you can initiate actions by touching the back of your iPhone? It’s a very cool trick and we can use it to toggle Ring/Silent mode. Let’s go to the “Settings” to start.
Next, go to the “Accessibility” settings and select “Touch”.
Scroll down to “Play Back.”
Decide whether you want to use the “Double Tap” or “Triple Tap” gesture.
Select “Mute” from the list of actions.
That’s all about it! Tap the back of the phone as many times as you like to toggle between Ring and Silent mode.
RELATED: How to launch actions by tapping on the back of your iPhone
It’s a bit strange that Apple has ditched the headphone jack but stuck with this slightly outdated method of controlling alert volume with a physical switch. Regardless, you have some viable options to circumvent the change.
RELATED: You can still use wired headphones without a headphone jack
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