Top 5 secret functions of physical buttons on iOS

We all know the benefits of »magic» multitouch that iOS can offer us through preconfigured gestures. We are talking about “shortcuts” or actions that allow us to take action more quickly than we normally would. And in the same way that there are shortcuts in a tactile way, there are also them using the physical buttons of our iDevice. These devices have so few buttons that it is normal for some to perform a double or even triple function.

For those of you who already have tables in handling devices with iOS, these functions will not be new, but for the most inexperienced, these are the tricks that all the world should know.

1. Use the start button to escape everything

The biggest advantage of a physical home button on iOS devices is that it can be used as a path to escape. No matter where we are or what we are doing, the home button can get us out of there. So if we get lost in an application, or in the options, notifications, … all we have to do is press the start button. Simple but very useful.

Another of the great functions that we can perform with this button is the multitask. We can access it by pressing the start button twice in a row, which will display the recently used applications that are in background. It allows us to close them completely. From there we will also control the horizontal screen lock as well as player options.

If we are inside a folder looking at the apps, we only have to press the start button to close said folder.

2. Use the volume controls or headphones to take a photo

Normally, the volume buttons increase the sound level of our device, from the general volume to that of the music or video that we are listening to. However, when launching the camera application, these buttons are transform on a shutter button, which allows us to take pictures with greater versatility. In addition, if we have the headphones connected and we open the camera application, the volume up and down buttons on them also allow us to take the photo.

3. How to take a screenshot

Once you learn how to make one, it’s hard to believe that there is anyone who doesn’t know how to make one. But since Apple does not specify it and it is one of the most useful things there is, we put it. To get a screenshot of our screen at any time with our iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, just press simultaneously the lock and start buttons. On the screen it will appear as a flash and we will have our capture saved on the reel.

4. Home button for Zoom, VoiceOver and accessibility options

Pressing the home button once takes us back to the home screen. Holding down opens Siri. If we press it quickly twice, it opens multitasking, but what happens when we press it three times? We can configure this option from Settings> General> Accessibility> Triple click Start. From there we can choose which of the four options accessibility (VoiceOver, Invert colors, Zoom and AssistiveTouch) we want it to run when we triple-click the start button. We can configure the speed with which we have to do the three clicks so that it fits perfectly.

5. How to enter DFU mode with the start and lock buttons

DFU (Device Firmware Update) mode, which stands for device firmware update, is a step beyond recovery mode, and something that we will only have to do exceptional. This might be necessary when we want to do the downgrade from iOS 7 to iOS 6 or do the jailbreak. If we’re tinkering with our iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad software, and we just can’t get it to work, DFU mode may be our best friend. It is not recommended to use it if we have no reason to do so, but it is important to know that it exists.

To use it, we only have to press and hold the lock button and the start button for about ten seconds (as if we were going to take a screenshot, but keeping them pressed). The screen will go black. After this we stop pressing the lock button and hold down the start button and the apple logo and immediately afterwards the cable with the iTunes logo, which will indicate that it is already in Recovery.

More information – iPhone 5C may not have Siri