iPhone hidden feature takes screenshots and controls home with simple gesture

While there's a plethora of tricks you can perform with your iPhone, many might not know that a simple gesture could unlock a host of additional features.

A hidden gesture on your iPhone could enable you to take a screenshot or even control parts of your home with barely a flick of a finger. To access this feature, iPhone users need the Shortcuts app.

This app typically comes pre-installed on your iPhone and doesn't require downloading from the App Store. The tool lets users create custom shortcuts on their phone, enabling them to streamline a multitude of tasks by linking them all to one action, such as a gesture or button press.

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One specific gesture that can utilise Shortcuts is the 'Back Tap' feature. This allows users to trigger a Shortcut when they double or triple-tap the back of their phone with their finger.

How to activate back tapping on your iPhone

Official guidance from Apple states that a double or triple tack on the back of an iPhone can be activated with the following steps:

Press Settings

Press Accessibility

Press Touch

Press Back Tap

Select Double Tap or Triple Tap

Choose what action you want to link it to (e.g. take a screenshot)

What can be controlled with back tap

Apple's guidance highlights that a double or triple tap can perform minor actions such as taking a screenshot. However, to fully exploit the feature, you might want to link it to run a personalised Shortcut.

The Shortcut app boasts a plethora of actions that can be executed with just a tap on your smartphone. DiscoPumpe, a Reddit user, shared their use of the shortcuts app to switch off all lights at home.

In a discussion about the various uses for shortcuts, they explained: "I use it a lot. You can even make different shortcuts depending on the focus mode that is activated. So while a triple tap shuts all light and music off while my home focus is activated, it activated my budget tracking shortcut while I'm out."

Meanwhile, Larten_Crepsley90 said: "I have a shortcut that takes a screenshot and copies all of the text, it then saves it into a note and opens the note. Handy when I want to copy something that is not selectable."

Not_TheMenInBlack added: "Double tap opens a prompt to switch between mono and stereo. It gets a lot more use than you'd think. Triple tap turns on my color filters, night shift, etc. to redwash my screen before bed. I typically have this all automated with my sleep focus, but occasionally it helps to minimize eye strain when I have headaches."