If you usually leave silent on your iPhone, you know perfectly well how complicated it can be to find your phone without using the “Ring ring” function available with the Apple Watch or using the similar function integrated into iCloud’s “Where is” (for example from your computer). Without these, the risk of spending the entire afternoon rummaging through cushions and drawers to find your smartphone is real. However, there is a trick that, if set in advance, could save you in any situations of this type that may arise in the future, as it allows you to ring the phone at maximum volume even when it is silent, and you can configure it in a few minutes via the iOS Quick Commands app. This is the same app that serves as an iPhone anti-theft device, where you will find instructions for setting up an automation that allows you to trace the geographical position of your iPhone in the event of theft or loss. But let’s now return to the automation for iPhone which allows you to find it again even if it is set to silent by practically seeing how to create it.
- The first step is to open the Shortcuts app and tap the Automations tab, which you find at the bottom center of the screen.
- From here, press the + symbol at the top right and scroll through the list until you select the Message option.
- At this point you must define the so-called trigger, i.e. the condition that will trigger the automation. Tap the Message Contains item and in the Any Item text field, type a unique and uncommon keyword, such as “FindPhone”. It is better to avoid generic terms such as “Hello” or “Good morning”, which would clearly trigger the command by mistake during a normal conversation. Once this is done, tap Done.
- In the Sender field you can leave the Any sender option, so that you can also use the phone of a friend or family member in case of emergency, or you could decide to narrow the field to specific contacts you trust. The choice is yours.
- Now, as the fifth step, select the Run immediately option and press Next.
- Now move on to configuring the actions, i.e. what your iPhone will have to do automatically once it receives the message with the keyword you have designated. Tap Create a new shortcut (at the top) and look for the Set volume item in the bottom bar: select the option in question, so that the action appears in the command you are creating. Then touch the currently set value (e.g. 50%) and, using the appropriate slider, bring it to a maximum of 100%. This way the phone will emit a high volume sound that will allow you to understand if it is nearby and regardless of whether the iPhone was set to silent or low volume.
- Immediately afterwards, look for the Play ring action and tap the check mark at the top right. Once everything is set, tap Done at the top right: the automation is ready and will remain active in the background, ready to fire whenever you need it.
If you want to try it, via another phone, send your number an SMS containing the keyword you have chosen to trigger the automation and, as you will notice, the iPhone (despite being silenced) will emit a clearly recognizable sound.
