iPhone’s Driving Mode silences incoming notifications and also sends automatic replies to contacts who text you while you’re driving. But this feature can also be a distraction.
Fortunately, you can disable Driving Mode if you want to continue using your phone while driving. Here’s how to do it. First, open the Settings app.
Do Not Disturb While Driving
Do Not Disturb While Driving is a handy feature that silences your phone’s notifications while you are on the road. This can be a great way to avoid distractions and prevent accidents on the road. However, there are times when you might not want your phone to turn on this mode and it can be annoying to have to manually deactivate it each time. Luckily, you can disable this feature in just two steps.
When enabled, Do Not Disturb While Driving disables incoming calls and other notifications on your iPhone. This includes messages, apps, and other sounds. It also allows you to choose who receives an auto-reply while in this mode. You can select a contact group from Recents, Favorites, or All Contacts. You can also choose whether or not you want to allow Siri (via Apple CarPlay) to read incoming text messages.
To enable this mode, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open your iPhone’s Control Center. If you are driving, it will display a car icon on the top right of your screen. If you are not driving, it will say “Focus.”
In addition to turning off all notifications, the Driving Mode also allows a contact to text you with an auto-reply message that lets them know you are on the road and can’t respond immediately. This can be useful if you have a friend or family member who you do not wish to interrupt when they text you while you are on the road.
If you are using an iPhone with CarPlay, you can set the Driving Mode to activate automatically when you connect your device to your car’s Bluetooth system. The iPhone can also detect when you are in a moving vehicle without a Bluetooth connection, thanks to its accelerometers and GPS sensors.
When Do Not Disturb While Driving is turned on, your battery life will decrease slightly. This is because your phone will be constantly searching for available wireless networks. To save your battery, you can disable this feature by going to Settings > Cellular Data.
While Do Not Disturb While Driving is incredibly helpful and can help you stay safe while driving, it’s not a foolproof solution. There are times when your iPhone can mistakenly think you’re in motion even if you are not driving, and there may be other situations where you might not want the feature to activate at all.
If you are a passenger in a car and Do Not Disturb While Driving is activated, all you need to do is tap the lock screen and then either select I’m Not Driving or X. This will deactivate the feature and resume normal phone functions. If you are a driver and see that your iPhone is activated in this mode, make sure to turn it off before the next trip to the road. This will ensure you don’t miss important texts, emails, or callers while on the road.
Driving Focus
Apple’s Driving Mode (or “Do Not Disturb While Driving” on Android) lets you keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel while limiting distractions by blocking calls, text messages, and notifications. It’s activated automatically when your phone detects you are moving in a vehicle or when you use a CarPlay device, and it can be turned off manually from the iPhone’s Control Center. If you’re using an Android phone, it works differently; Google Assistant can determine whether you’re in a vehicle and disable notifications, but the settings for the feature are managed through the app itself.
If you’re having trouble with your driving mode turning itself off, there are a few reasons why that might be happening. First, check if the feature is enabled in your iPhone’s Settings. If you have the feature enabled, you’ll see a car icon in the status bar and on your lock screen when it’s active. It will also appear in the quick settings menu when you swipe down from the top of the screen.
Another thing you can try is resetting the feature to its default settings, which is typically off by default. You can do this by tapping the car icon in the status bar, then tap “Settings” and then “Focus.” On the “Focus” settings page, you’ll find three options: Automatically (your phone will decide for itself when you’re driving and turn DNDWD on or off based on accelerometers and proximity to Bluetooth devices), When Connected to Car Bluetooth, and Manually.
Depending on the option you choose, you may also be able to select which contacts you want to receive notifications from while in Driving Focus. You can also enable an auto-reply to let people know that you’ll silence their notifications but will reply to them if they need to contact you urgently.
While in Driving Focus, your phone will still display an alert that a call or message is coming in and will direct the incoming call or text to your car’s speaker system. You’ll still be able to access your Messages app and use Siri as normal.
You can enable or disable the feature as needed, and you can set it to automatically turn on or off based on your location. You can also change the settings for Driving Focus so that it’s activated when you manually select it in the Quick Settings menu or in the Control Center. You can also set it to activate only when connected to a CarPlay device, and you can change the notification sounds for this mode as well. You can even delete the driving mode completely from your phone if you’d like to prevent it from activating accidentally in the future. All in all, it’s an easy-to-use and effective feature that helps you stay safe on the road.
How to Turn Off Driving Mode
It’s no secret that texting and driving are dangerous. In fact, multiple studies have shown that it causes more accidents than drunk driving. The iPhone’s Driving Mode is designed to help you avoid distractions by automatically silencing incoming calls, text messages, and notifications while in motion. The feature can be activated automatically by detecting your movement or manually in the Control Center, and it can also send an automated reply to contacts that lets them know you’re driving and can’t respond right away.
However, this feature isn’t perfect. Sometimes it will turn on when you’re not in a moving vehicle, and it can be annoying to have to disable it every time you get in your car. Plus, if you’re a passenger, it can be frustrating to miss important notifications that your iPhone has automatically silenced.
Fortunately, it’s fairly easy to turn off the Driving Mode feature on your iPhone. You can do this by opening the Control Center and tapping on the Driving Mode icon. Then, you can select the option to “Notify Me When I’m Not in a Moving Vehicle” or “Activate When Connected to Car Bluetooth.” Once you’ve selected your preferred option, you can close the Control Center and turn off the Driving Mode feature on your iPhone.
On Android devices, you can open the quick settings menu by swiping down on your screen with two fingers. This will prompt a drop-down menu, and you can find the Driving Mode notification in this menu. From here, you can tap on the button that says “Driving Mode.”
You can also access the Driving Mode settings from your phone’s Settings app. Open the settings, and then tap on the “Do Not Disturb While Driving” option. You can then select the option to either turn it on automatically or manually by tapping on the toggle switch next to each option.
The Samsung Galaxy device offers a similar feature called Driving Focus. This feature can be activated or disabled manually by tapping on the Driving Mode switch on your phone’s Settings app. It can also be activated or disabled using the vehicle button on your infotainment system in some vehicles. However, it’s not as automatic as the iPhone’s Driving Mode feature.