Every iPhone comes with a three-button headset containing a center button, a plus and a minus button. Until recently I wasn’t aware that you can do more with it then accepting calls, playing/pausing music, or changing volume. Then I found out that there are several hidden interactions behind the center button:
- Single press
- Single press and hold
- Double press
- Double press and hold
- Tripple press
- Tripple press and hold
Depending on context, or shall I say app that is in the foreground, these interactions are used differently:
Below are 14 things you can do with Apple’s remote headset:
- If you press the center button once you play the audio that’s currently on, that can be a song in iTunes, or an audio book in iBooks, or a podcast.
- Press a second time once, and you’ll pause the song.
- Press the center button twice to skip to the next song.
- Press the center button three times to go back to the start of the song or the previous track.
- To fast forward within a song double press, and on the second press keep the center button pressed.
- To rewind tripple press and again, keep the center button pressed on the last click.
- When you get a phone call press the center button once to answer
- During a call press the center button once to switch to the other call.
- Press again to switch back.
- If you don’t want to accept the incoming call, press once, but keep the center button pressed for 2 seconds.
- To hang up on a phone call, press the center button once.
- If you want to direct a call directly to voicemail, press the center button once and keep it pressed for two seconds.
- Press and hold the center button to activate Siri.
- You can use the plus and minus volume buttons to take a photo with your camera.
