What is the Action Button on iPhone 16? (And How to Use It)

• The Action Button replaces the mute switch on the iPhone 15 Pro and 16 models, serving as a customizable button for daily tasks.

• Enabling silent mode simplifies tasks like recording a voice memo or recognizing music more easily, taking much less time than performing them manually.

• Users can create custom shortcuts and map them to the Action Button, allowing creative uses beyond predefined tasks.

Over the years, iPhone owners have become accustomed to the silent switch that turns silent mode on and off. With the iPhone 15 Pro, Apple replaced the key with a customizable Action Button. Now the button is a feature available on all iPhone models, so how does it work?

What is an Action Button?

Action Button is a programmable button It can perform a variety of tasks that would otherwise require a few taps and swipes. So you can set it up to do everything from enabling Focus mode on your iPhone to recording a voice memo or recognizing music playing in the background.

Yes you can do these Tasks via Control Center or wherever they are located on the iPhone, but the main purpose of the Action Button is to simplify action by reducing the time it takes for you to trigger them. Set the button to the task or action you want to perform and press it whenever you want.

To me, the value of the Action Button lies in its ability to do almost anything you set it to; switching between ring modes (this is what the silent switch used to do).

Which iPhones Have an Action Button?

Action Button is a relatively new addition to the iPhone. Currently, only six iPhone models have this button; iPhone 15 Pro models and all four participants in the competition new iPhone 16 series.

On push-button models, it is located just above the volume keys on the left panel, in the location of the mute switch. It also has a texture similar to aluminum and Titanium frames on related iPhones.

How to Use the Action Button?

Using the Action Button is pretty simple: hold the button and it will perform the assigned action. Note that on older iPhone models, instead of sliding the mechanical mute switch, you have to hold down the Action Button for it to work. Upon execution of the specified task, iOS provides haptic feedback.

Action Button by default toggles between ring/silent modes So you won’t miss the ringtone. But there are more than a dozen possible ways to customize and use the Action Button. By changing the action it triggers, you can change the way you use the Action Button and, as a result, the way you use your iPhone.

Customizing the Action Button

On iPhones with an Action Button, you get a dedicated settings option that includes all the stock options (the ones Apple provides). There are a total of 12 different actions to choose from out of the box.

These include silent mode, Focus modesCamera, Flashlight, Voice Memo, Music Recognition, Translation, Magnifier, Controls, Shortcut, Accessibility and No Action. While the first few are obvious, Shortcut and Accessibility may need some explanation.

To check all available options, go to Settings > Action Button. You will see all the actions listed here along with the name and task they perform.

If an action has multiple consequences, you will see a menu at the bottom to control them. For example, it lets you choose from different modes, including Focus, Business, Sleep, Personal, or any other modes you may have created.

Accessibility options; lets you enable color filters, classic inversion, increased contrast, magnifier, VoiceOver, and other features Accessibility features built into iPhone.

What Else Can the Action Button Do?

While Apple’s predefined Action Button tasks are a bit tedious, you can bind a custom Shortcut to the programmable button and get much more out of it. In the Action Button menu, go to Shortcut > Select Shortcut, and then choose from the list of available options.

For some ideas, check out my favorite Action Button shortcuts. I accomplished tasks like unlocking screen rotation, dictating a quick note to your iPhone, controlling smart home devices, or returning home with a single button press.

If you don’t know how to set a status shortcut that can do two different things, you can only set one Action Button shortcut at a time. To do this, download the Double Tap Action shortcut. Jordan ZelenyAdd it to your shortcuts library and customize it to do what you want.

By default, the shortcut allows you to open the photo camera with one press, but you can open the video camera with two presses. If you want, change what the shortcut does by editing the shortcut and replacing “Photo in Camera” and “Video in Camera” with others. Once you’re done, map the shortcut to the Action Button and you’re good to go.

Do More with the Action Button Menu

If you want to do more with the Action Button, you can create a shortcut menu and connect it to the button. Although you can download the shortcut here, you will need help setting it up and changing the menu to your preference. First, get the shortcut and add it to your Shortcuts library.

Then open the Shortcuts app, tap the three dots in the upper right corner of the shortcut and start editing. creator this shortcutStephen Robles designed the menu to only invoke when there is no Focus mode active. The menu has a variety of options, including mute, rotation lock, camera, podcasts, setting up home automation, opening a specific app, or opening the Shortcuts app.

Basically, this Action Button menu includes most of the options provided in the default settings section, making it much more useful. If you don’t like such a detailed menu, you can create your own menu by creating a shortcut and adding the “Choose from Menu” option. You can then edit the menu and add relevant actions to it.

I created something a little simpler Action Button menuOpening the Uber app, activating Low Power Mode, and returning to your home (provided you’ve entered a home address).

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Confused about iPhones with Action Buttons? Check out our comparison between: iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Proor iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro.