How to set up Dwell Control in iOS 18

With iOS 18, an iPhone performs a selected action when you hold the cursor still on a screen element or an area of the screen.

1. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch > AssistiveTouch, then turn on Dwell Control.
2. Adjust any of the following:
   • Fallback Action: Turn on to revert the dwell action to the selected fallback action after performing an operation.
   • Movement Tolerance: Adjust the distance the cursor can move while dwelling on an item.
   • Hot Corners: Perform a selected action—such as take a screenshot, open Control Center, activate Siri, scroll, or use a shortcut—when the cursor dwells in a corner of the screen.
   • Time needed to initiate a dwell action: Tap the “-“ or “+” button.

Use simple sounds to perform gestures

With AssistiveTouch, you can have iPhone perform a gesture or other action when you make a simple sound, such as a mouth pop or an S-sound.

1. Go to Settings  > Accessibility > Touch > AssistiveTouch, then turn AssistiveTouch on.
2. Tap Sound Actions, then tap a sound.
3. Select the gesture or other action you want performed when you make the sound.
4. To perform the gesture or action, just make the sound.

Create custom gestures

You can add gestures you use often (such as touch and hold or two-finger rotation) to the AssistiveTouch menu. You can even create several gestures with, for example, different degrees of rotation.

1. Go to Settings  > Accessibility > Touch > AssistiveTouch > Create New Gesture.
2. Perform your gesture on the recording screen. For example:
   • Touch-and-hold gesture: Touch and hold your finger in one spot until the recording progress bar reaches halfway, then lift your finger. Be careful not to move your finger while recording, or the gesture will be recorded as a drag.
   • Two-finger rotation gesture: Rotate two fingers on the iPhone screen around a point between them. (You can do this with a single finger or stylus—just create each arc separately, one after the other.)

3. If you record a sequence of taps or drag gestures, they’re all played back at the same time. For example, using one finger or a stylus to record four separate, sequential taps at four locations on the screen creates a simultaneous four-finger tap.
4. If your gesture doesn’t turn out quite right, tap Cancel, then try again.
5. When you’re satisfied with your gesture, tap Save, then name the gesture.

To use your custom gesture, tap the AssistiveTouch menu button, tap Custom, then choose the gesture. When the blue circles representing your gesture appear, drag them to where you want to use the gesture, then release.

(This how-to is based on my experiences and info on Apple’s support pages.)