Here's How iOS 11's Do Not Disturb While Driving Feature Works

[JPSaltzman]

"In an emergency, a person who is attempting to contact you via text while you're driving can break through Do Not Disturb by sending a second "urgent" message"
I imagine everyone will soon learn this workaround and every message they send to you will become that second "urgent" message.

 

[69Mustang]

i hate all this safety crap for cars now. cars have always had distractions. Screens make it even easier many times but crippling them makes them worse. Like CarPlay in chevy doesn't let you scroll through much music. None of this stuff takes any consideration for the passenger into play either. i want full control of the screen and phone at all times.... and no stupid warnings on my car screen telling me to operate it responsibly every time i start the car

Please read the article. It's optional for the driver and passenger. Read don't rant. Remember, only you can prevent forest fires.

Pretty sure GPS doesn't magically know if you're the driver or a passenger.

Pretty sure it's optional. Pretty sure the article specifically addresses the passenger.

 

[Shawn Llewellyn]

Are we that stupid nowadays that we need an app that will remind us that using a phone while driving can be dangerous?

I dont need this, I just use my common sense.

Unfortunately in this day and age stupidity is the normal and everyone thinks being in social media is a life... Get outside, you will then have a life..

 

[johnnygee1955]

They should disable imessage or any texting app while driving. If the drivers tries to do some hanky panky with messages, it should give a message," look at the road......now!"

Some of the new cars display the messages on the car's screen, and you can dictate a reply. It's a solution to what will soon be yesterday's problem.

 

[mkldev]

only Siri function are working when in this mode...

Disabling the screen while driving and deferring text messages while driving should be entirely separate features, because there are legitimate situations in which adults would want one without the other. If this feature really does prevent you from activating the screen, then it is fundamentally defective by design, as that would prevent a lot of things that you could otherwise do safely while driving, including:

• Using third-party navigation apps (glancing at traffic, using turn-by-turn, etc.)
  
• Listening to music or other content with third-party apps (pausing, skipping to the next song/program, etc.)
  
• Doing very nearly anything while stopped at a three-minute traffic light

Anyone who regularly does any of those things, assuming I'm understanding correctly, will be forced to disable this feature and will thus lose the benefits of its main behavior—auto-replying to texts and other messages and delivering them upon arrival.

What the heck is Apple thinking? What possible sane reason could they have for tying these two completely unrelated behaviors to a single setting?

 

[Kaibelf]

This is the biggest problem with this. Since the computer can't know if the device is being used by the passenger or driver, government will eventually force the phone to be disabled at all times while the device is in motion to "save the children".

So no, I don't and will never support this no matter how many crazy idiots claim it improves safety. There are lots of ways to die, and the only way to stop them all is for the government to lock each person in a padded room with automatic light based on time of day, no electric outlets, TV turned to the government channel, and finally to push liquid nutrients under the door. You would sleep on the floor so you don't fall too far. And even with all of this, I'll bet some people will find a way to die.

Dying is a perfectly normal way for nature to get rid of idiots. We should let nature do its job.

Any thoughts for the people who are killed by the actions of the irresponsible people? Or are you just going to blame them for leaving their homes at all?

 

[doelcm82]

Not sure what you mean, but there's no possible way for a phone to determine if you are the driver or a passenger.

For that, the phone would have to be as smart as a key fob. So obviously that's impossible.

 

[Paul Dawkins]

I dare you to say it's still in beta one more time.

 

[pat500000]

Not sure what you mean, but there's no possible way for a phone to determine if you are the driver or a passenger.

Driver or passenger shouldn't matter. It's the movement of the phone is what im talking about.

 

[Zirel]

Dying is a perfectly normal way for nature to get rid of idiots. We should let nature do its job.

When a truck crashes onto you or your sons and leaves you or your sons paraplegic, you will thank nature.

 

[gsmornot]

I do not text and drive but I also do not have a great way to tell people I am driving currently. This provides that. It will at least let them know I am busy and will get back to them.

The only part about this I find annoying so far is when I'm stopped and it does not recognize that but I want to adjust music.

 

[zachlegomaniac]

Dying is a perfectly normal way for nature to get rid of idiots. We should let nature do its job.

Holy smokes, while I agree with your concern for privacy and anonymity, as someone who was taken away from a car accident by ambulance, I can't agree with your last couple of lines. I was in the passenger seat of a work vehicle when someone texting while driving cut the driver off in a full line of moving traffic (taking a left into a parking lot from a stop) setting the vehicle on fire and us into the shoulder of the road. Glad it wasn't the way I went out.

 

[Olganech]

It has taken 10 years for Apple to come up with this?

Drip feeding or what!!

 

[cjgrif]

It has taken 10 years for Apple to come up with this?

Drip feeding or what!!

I get the feeling this is more a result of pressure on phone manufacturers to reduce distracted driving, etc., and not really an amazing new feature. It will make safe drivers that want to use it safer, and have basically no effect on the drivers out there causing the accidents...with maybe the exception of teen drivers that have parents tech savvy enough to enable it.

 

[omihek]

I love this

They should make it DEFAULT on all iphones thus reducing car accidents.

Many people just can't put down the iphone during drives.

Thank you Apple.

Except for when you are a passenger and not the driver. Then that "DEFAULT" Do Not Disturb mode will be pretty annoying.

 

[keys]

Disabling the screen while driving and deferring text messages while driving should be entirely separate features, because there are legitimate situations in which adults would want one without the other. If this feature really does prevent you from activating the screen, then it is fundamentally defective by design, as that would prevent a lot of things that you could otherwise do safely while driving, including:

• Using third-party navigation apps (glancing at traffic, using turn-by-turn, etc.)
  
• Listening to music or other content with third-party apps (pausing, skipping to the next song/program, etc.)
  
• Doing very nearly anything while stopped at a three-minute traffic light

Anyone who regularly does any of those things, assuming I'm understanding correctly, will be forced to disable this feature and will thus lose the benefits of its main behavior—auto-replying to texts and other messages and delivering them upon arrival.

What the heck is Apple thinking? What possible sane reason could they have for tying these two completely unrelated behaviors to a single setting?

It doesn't prevent you from unlocking and using your phone and apps. It simply prevents notifications from coming through similar to the current DND and auto-replies to messages to let the sender know you will reply to them after your drive. It will allow those in your 'whitelist' to reply with URGENT to still breakthrough if needed and send a notification. It allows you the option to auto-detect drives, manual control through control center, or you can turn it off completely. When it is set to auto-detect, it has an option to select if you are a passenger.

 

[DrumApple]

"For texts, there is an option to send your contacts a message that lets them know you're driving and will get back to them later."

THIS is key, didn't they included it since it wasn't mentioned in the keynote.

 

[miknos]

Apple should do a API so other messaging apps like Telegram, whatsapp, etc could reply "i'm driving".

 

[StyxMaker]

Unfortunately in this day and age stupidity is the normal and everyone thinks being in social media is a life... Get outside, you will then have a life..

Because everyone defines ‘have a life’ the same way as you.

 

[madsci954]

Are we that stupid nowadays that we need an app that will remind us that using a phone while driving can be dangerous?

I dont need this, I just use my common sense.

Unfortunately, common sense isn't that common these days.

 

[mantan]

But you can force it on a teen who doesn't always make the best decisions.

As a parent of two teen drivers, I think new drivers often make a lot better decisions about driving and texting than older drivers. It's when driving becomes routine and drivers are overconfident in their abilities (or minimize the impacted distracted driving has that becomes a problem.

It's similar to drinking and driving. EVERYBODY says they are against it and would NEVER do it. But then you see people doing it all the time. But then they'll go split a bottle of wine at dinner with their spouse and drive home afterward.

What people say and what they do often don't reconcile.

 

[m0pheu5]

I dont need this, I just use my common sense.

Sadly the thing about common sense, is that it is not common....

 

[iapplelove]

Are we that stupid nowadays that we need an app that will remind us that using a phone while driving can be dangerous?

I dont need this, I just use my common sense.

Maybe you don't need the app, but the person who hits you head on does.

 

[ny3ranger]

How are you connected to project fi on an iPhone?

iOS 11 introduces a new Do Not Disturb While Driving feature that's designed to block incoming calls, texts, and notifications while you're driving, with the aim of cutting down on distractions to prevent accidents.

Do Not Disturb While Driving was enabled in the second developer beta of iOS 11, and is available now for developers and public beta testers. We went hands-on with the feature to give MacRumors readers an idea of how it works.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.​

An extension of the existing Do Not Disturb feature that blocks incoming notifications during set times, such as while you're asleep, Do Not Disturb While Driving can be set to come on automatically, when connected to a car's Bluetooth, or manually.

With the automatic setting, Do Not Disturb While Driving will turn on whenever your iPhone detects the acceleration of a vehicle, an option that could be inconvenient when you're a passenger (though you can toggle it off in this situation). The Bluetooth setting turns the feature on whenever your phone connects to your car's Bluetooth, an ideal setting if you're the only person who drives your vehicle, and manually, as the name suggests, lets you turn it on from the Control Center.

While active, Do Not Disturb While Driving will mute incoming phone calls, notifications, and text messages, and your iPhone's screen will stay dark. For texts, there is an option to send your contacts a message that lets them know you're driving and will get back to them later. In an emergency, a person who is attempting to contact you via text while you're driving can break through Do Not Disturb by sending a second "urgent" message. The auto reply can be customized and turned on for all contacts, or specific groups like favorites or recents.

Phone calls are allowed so long as an iPhone is connected to a car's Bluetooth or a hands-free accessory, allowing you to respond without needing to pick up your phone. If not connected to Bluetooth or a compatible accessory, calls will be blocked like text messages and notifications.

Do Not Disturb While Driving is a fully optional feature that drivers can choose not to use or can toggle off at any time, but it's an important new safety feature that you should consider turning on to cut down on distractions.

For parents of teenagers, there's also a specific restriction setting (General --> Restrictions --> Do Not Disturb While Driving) that prevents Do Not Disturb settings from being changed, so you can make sure children are driving safely.

Article Link: Here's How iOS 11's Do Not Disturb While Driving Feature Works

 

[davie18]

Gps...,

You could be in a bus, in a taxi, a passenger in your friends car, on a tram etc etc etc. That doesn't indicate you're driving at all.

The way this feature is now it that you can disable it any time you like because of course you might not be driving and doing one of what I just mentioned. There's no way they can make it so it totally disables your phone because there's no way of knowing if you're actually driving or not.

Right now it's more of a 'hey, it looks like you might be driving so your notifications have been disabled but you can enable them any time you like if you're not driving'