Apple announced the new iOS 14 at the ongoing WWDC event. And among the several new features that the company’s mobile OS has been endowed with, the ‘Back Tap’ is perhaps the most interesting. Broadly speaking, the feature enables users to select a custom task that the iPhone will perform once the user double taps or triple taps on the iPhone’s back panel.
This can be immensely convenient for users who often do repetitive tasks on their iPhone. With Back Tap, users can program their iPhone devices to perform those just by tapping on the phone’s rear. For instance, the iPhone can be made to launch a specific app, take a screenshot, locking the phone and so on simply by tapping on the rear.
iOS 14 has a new Back Tap feature in Accessibility and it's wild. You can perform quick actions by double- or triple-tapping the *back of your iPhone*. Literally quick taps on the back; works with a case on.
These include system actions as well as custom shortcuts. pic.twitter.com/87uJU9qAtu
— Federico Viticci (@viticci) June 23, 2020
What is also amazing with the Back Tap feature is that it can be used to enable system actions or Shortcuts as well. For instance, users can pair up with Apple Homekit and program the iPhone to perform selected tasks simply by tapping on the back. Such tasks can be like switching on or off the lights during a specific time of the day and so on.
To enable the feature, got to Settings > Accessibility > Back Tap. You will be led to a screen where two options – Double Tap and Triple Tap is shown. Tap on each to select the sort of tasks you would like the iPhone to perform each time the action is performed. The feature is said to work even with the back case on.
That said, the feature is still in development given that it is only the iOS 14 Beta that has been released so far. Also, while those who have installed the beta version are providing positive feedback, it is not clear at the moment how it is going to perform in real life conditions. Also, as James Vincent of The Verge speculated, there are chances of a false Back Tap getting registered when carrying the phone in pant pockets.
As such, it remains to be seen how the feature performs in real life though there is no denying it is a nice feature to have with your mobile device.
