I had a different IFOD ready to go for today but it will have to wait because based on an informal survey I have found out that some (maybe most) people don’t use “Do Not Disturb” on their iPhones (or Androids).
Do Not Disturb At Night
Here’s how Do Not Disturb works on the iPhone (I believe Android is similar). If you enable it your screen won’t light up and no sound notifications will occur if you receive texts, alerts or other notifications. Also, you will only receive phone calls in the following two circumstances (you can alter this via the settings though):
- A person on your “favorites” list calls you – that call will ring through.
- A person calls you twice in succession – that call will ring through.
Why this important: When you go to bed, if you put on Do Not Disturb you won’t get woken by texts, alerts, notifications or non-essential calls. HOWEVER, if you have your parents, siblings, children, key co-workers (or whatever) saved as a favorite their calls will ring through. That means if a family member calls in the middle of the night with an emergency you’ll get the call.
This is a much better situation than turning your phone off or putting it on silent because you will be able to get urgent calls. It’s also superior to leaving your phone on because you won’t be disturbed by late-night texts or alerts or non-essential calls.
Do Not Disturb While Driving
This is a VERY important safety feature which has been available on iPhones since iOS 11 and is also a feature of Android. What it does is make your phone unable to send or receive texts or notifications or otherwise be used while you are driving. Note that you will still receive ALL phone calls and can make calls. The phone knows you are driving either because you’ve hooked into your car’s bluetooth or if you are moving at a car-like speed (so, it can kick in while skiing if you go fast enough).
Here’s what your screen looks like when you have it on. (You can easily turn it off while driving – like if you are a passenger or at a stoplight):
I set Do Not Disturb While Driving to send a response text saying that I’m driving and will get back to them when I’m no longer driving. This is a standard feature.
I love the Do Not Disturb While Driving feature. No longer do I have to use willpower to not look at a text (or occasionally sneak a look).
This is an amazing safety feature! USE THIS!
To set this up go to: Settings > Do Not Disturb > Do Not Disturb While Driving (close to bottom) and choose for it to activate “Automatically” or “When Connected to Car Bluetooth.”
From Apple on Do Not Disturb: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204321
From Apple on Do Not Disturb While Driving: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208090
This IFOD may get you a Nobel Peace Prize Nomination, John. (Future IFOD “Why are humans so attracted to hyperbole?”).
Great stuff and spot on.