Tag: Shortcuts

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
October 3, 2023

This is for the iPhone. Screenshots are from iPhone 14 Pro running iOS 16+

Since the release of iOS 13, the Shortcuts app has come preinstalled on compatible devices, hosting useful automation and timesaving techniques ranging from automating texts to organizing your photos.

Making the most of these shortcuts can, however, feel a little foreign to first-time users. A lot of Apple device owners do not even know what the app is. It comes with a fairly extensive library of pre-existing shortcuts, but beyond this lies a world of user-generated shortcuts.

In principle, iOS Shortcuts are fairly simple, considering they are based on IFTTT (If This Then That) automation; trigger results in an action. However, in practice it is not always so simple; there are multitudes of triggers, and the debugging is entirely nonexistent.

The learning curve is staggeringly high. To help you get started, here are some of the most useful, easy-to-use Shortcuts you should have on your device, plus they are free.

How to Install Shortcuts on iPhone

Installing shortcuts has become simplified over the years. Previously, you had to go to the Settings app on your iPhone and allow to install shortcuts from third-party links. Now, there’s no such need. Just click on the download links we have provided and use the Add Shortcut button to add the shortcut to your library. You may be asked to set certain options for the Shortcuts to function, if so, just follow the shortcut instructions. Not mentioned in this post, is another favorite, Charge Time shortcut which can be opened in the link below.

Related

Charge Time

1) Super-Low Battery v2.0

If you do not want your iPhone or iPad to die at the most unfortunate times, Super-Low Battery v2.0 is the shortcut you should use. While the low-power mode on iOS devices does well enough job for normal days, sometimes you need that extra hour or two of usage off your iPhone, and the low-power mode does not cut it. Enter the Super-Low Battery v2.0 shortcut.

Using the Super-Low Battery v2.0 shortcut you can enable super low-power mode. When run, it not only stops background processes and activates native low-power mode, but also turns off WiFi, and Mobile Data. It also turns on Airplane Mode and sets both Brightness and Volume to 0.  It’s best to use when your iPhone’s battery falls below 10%. After running it, you should have a few hours left. If you want, you can make a call or send a text, deactivate it by running the shortcut, make that call or send a text, and run it again. Click this link to Download Super-Low Battery v2.0. Refer to the below image:

2) Dark Safari

Another favorite to share is Dark Safari. Since the introduction of Dark Mode on iOS 13, it’s helpful at night. It reduces strain on your eyes and ensures you are not blinded by bright light when you open an app. That said, when reading articles on Safari, the dark mode fails. This shortcut will help you solve this problem.

It creates a black background with bold white text to make reading easier on the eyes. Unlike other similar shortcuts, it does not invert the colors, but rather actually changes the colors of a website. This will improve your late-night reading. Click this link to Download Dark Safari. See the below image:

3) Apple Frames 3.0

Another powerful shortcut created by Federico is Apple Frames. It allows you to apply frames to your iOS screenshots. I know most people will not need it, but if you are a writer, blogger, or content creator using screenshots, this is for you. (As for our blog posts, we use a subscription-based third-party screen capture program on the desktop). Click this link toDownload Apple Frames. See the following image:

4) Water Eject

The iPhone has become water resistant since the iPhone 7, but your iPhone can get water damage. Sometimes water can get stuck inside the speakers and microphone grills of the iPhone, compromising the audio quality of the microphone speakers. You can solve this issue by using the Water Eject shortcut. When you tap the shortcut it plays a series of sounds that can eject water from the speaker grills. Click this link to Download Water Eject. Refer to the below image:

5) Calculate Tip

Calculating the tip on a bill is always harder than it should be, especially if you are in a hurry at the end of the meal. After running this shortcut, you simply enter the bill and choose the tip percent, such as 12%, 15%, 18%, or 20%. You will immediately see the tip amount and final bill total including the tip. Click this link to Download Calculate Tip. See the below image:

6) Shazam ++

Ever since Apple integrated Shazam into iOS, it has been easy to find the name of whatever song is playing around you. But Shazam++ takes that a step further; this shortcut will use Shazam to identify the song and then offer you a menu of options that include sharing the song or playing it in your favorite music player such as Spotify or Apple Music.

Shazam++ presents a small yet significant addition to the tool, presenting you with various actions once it’s identified the song, including sharing the song or playing it directly in the music streaming service, from where you can easily add it to your playlists. Click this link to Download Shazam ++. See the following image:

Open your Shortcuts app and head to My Shortcuts gallery where your six shortcuts will be displayed as shown below:

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

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Seith Godin

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RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
August 9, 2022

Typing things out on an iPhone keyboard can be tiresome, but it does not have to be that way for everything. You can make custom text shortcuts to automatically be replaced with longer words or phrases. It’s a super handy feature. Let’s explore how to set up text shortcuts.

This is for the iPhone. Screenshots are from iPhone XR running iOS 15.6+

There’s a lot you can do with the iPhone’s Text Replacement feature. One example is included on every iPhone by default; omw is automatically replaced with On my way. You can use that same idea for anything. All you need is a shortcut and a phrase to go with it.

Note: The Text Replacement feature only works with the default iPhone keyboard, not third-party keyboards from the App Store.

First, open the Settings app on your iPhone (this is also available on iPad). Refer to the below image:

Next, go to the General section. See the below image:

Now, select the Keyboard settings. See the following image:

Next, go to Text Replacement. Refer to the below image:

Now, tap the “+” icon in the top right-hand corner. See the below image:

Next, enter a Phrase and a Shortcut. The Phrase will replace the Shortcut. Tap Save when you are done. See the following image:

Now, your shortcut will be added. Refer to the below image:

Next, you are ready to use it! We are using the Notes app for our example. Simply type the shortcut and you will see the full phrase appear above the keyboard. You can tap the phrase to insert it or continue typing by tapping the spacebar or return and it will automatically be inserted. Tap Done to finish in the Notes app. See the below image:

This is a great time-saving feature for typing out longer phrases. One handy tip is to use your name as a shortcut for your entire address.

Quote For the Day

Technology should improve your life… not become your life.

Billy Cox

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I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-book

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