iPhone Sound Recognition might just be the coolest feature of iOS 16
The accessibility tool just got more powerful.
iPhone hacks keep changing all the time, and often fall under the category of ‘pretty obvious features that most guys are already aware of’ (we knew we could use our iPhone to make phone calls, thanks). But every now and again something genuinely cool pops up, like this awesome unknown accessibility tool.
First introduced as part of 2020’s iOS 14 update, Sound Recognition is able to, well, recognize sounds. With the feature enabled, your iPhone can detect sounds such as a crying baby, doorbell, or siren, and notify you when it recognizes these sounds. And the feature got even better with the release of iOS 16 this week. (Want the best iPhone experience available? Check out our guide to the iPhone 14.
While the feature has been around for a couple of years, iPhone users are still taking to Twitter to declare their surprise on discovering it. “I only knew about this because of my friend who’s deaf he uses this on his watch so he can detect things like his kid crying. Thanks Apple!” one user comments (opens in new tab), while another adds, “This is a genius idea.”
To enable the feature, all you have to do is head to Settings, tap Accessibility and turn on Sound Recognition. You can then tap ‘Sounds’ to select what you’d like the iPhone to listen out for or record your own. Pre-programmed sounds the device can detect include alarms, doorbells and glass breaking. It can also detect cats and dogs – much the delight of various iPhone users.