How to turn on and add custom words to the new Voice Control feature on an iPhone with iOS 13
- You can easily add custom words to Voice Control on an iPhone with iOS 13 to make the feature more accurate and useful.
- Apple's iOS 13 software update introduced Voice Control — a feature that lets you navigate your device using just your voice.
- Voice Control gives users the ability to use their voice to command actions on their iOS device, like taking a picture, closing out of an app, or swiping left.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Voice Control, one of the many features introduced with Apple's iOS 13 software update, gives users the ability to navigate their iOS devices with just the sound of their voice.
Commands include phrases like "swipe left," "take a photo," or "scroll down," but Apple also allows users to add their own vocabulary to the feature.
Adding custom words and phrases to Voice Control can be essential for those with disabilities, and according to Apple, will make it easier for those who "work with specialized apps or documents."
Check out the products mentioned in this article:
iPhone 11 (from $699.99 at Best Buy)
How to turn on Voice Control on your iPhone in iOS 13
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and select "Accessibility" from the third list of items. It should have a blue and white icon with a person standing in the middle.
3. Scroll again to the second list of items called "Physical and Motor" and select "Voice Control."
4. At the top, tap the blue "Set Up Voice Control" tab — according to Apple, Voice Control may require a "short initial download before its ready to use," meaning a 250 MB download when connected to Wi-Fi. After the download, you do not need cellular data or Wi-Fi to perform actions with Voice Control.
5. Next, tap "Continue" to begin installing Voice Control.
6. Next, a list of voice commands you can use with Voice Control will appear. You can always see the list again by saying, "What can I say?"
7. Click "Continue" again and in the next window select "Allow" or "Don't Allow" depending on whether or not your want to share your activity and voice with Apple.
8. Voice Control is now on — you can tell by the blue microphone icon in the top left of your screen. You can turn Voice Control off by saying, "Go to sleep" and turn it on with "Wake up."
How to add custom words to Voice Control on an iPhone to ensure accuracy
1. Launch the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and select "Accessibility" from the third list of items.
3. Scroll again to the second list of items called "Physical and Motor" and select "Voice Control."
4. Scroll and tap "Vocabulary."
5. Add a word or phrase you want Voice Control to recognize by tapping the blue plus icon "+" at the top right.
6. Type a word or phrase using the keyboard, then tap "Save."
7. Adding commonly misspelled words and phrases, for example many medical terms, can ensure Voice Control enters them accurately every time it's prompted.
For a comprehensive look at how to use the Voice Control feature, check out this video.
Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:
-
How to flip a picture on your iPhone using the Photos app in iOS 13, or a third-party app
-
How to translate any webpage on your iPhone with a free browser extension, so you can read foreign websites and articles
-
How to track an iPhone using a Find My app or iCloud's website, and locate it even when its battery is dead
-
How to search your browsing history on an iPhone, in Safari or Google Chrome