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In iOS 14, Apple pared down the Siri interface so that it no longer takes over the whole of your iPhone's screen when you issue a voice command or query. Instead, a small Siri orb pops up at the bottom of the screen without obscuring what you're looking at.

ios14compactsiri.jpg

It's not just the interface that's been improved, though. Siri also picked up several new features, one of which is the ability to record and send audio messages to contacts.

When you send an audio message using the audio interface in the Messages app, the record audio option only appears when the intended recipient is an iMessage user. But Siri can also send audio messages to Android phones. The following steps show you how it's done.

  1. Invoke Siri on your iPhone or iPad with the usual "Hey Siri" voice command or through a physical button.
  2. Now say "Send an audio message to [contact's name]." (If Siri is unsure which contact you're referring to, it will ask you to choose one from a selection displayed on the screen.)
  3. After Siri responds with "OK, recording," say whatever it is you want to include in the audio message. Siri will transcribe your speech in real time at the bottom of the screen to show that it can hear you clearly, and there doesn't appear to be a limit to how long you can record for.
  4. To end the audio message, simply stop speaking for a few seconds, and Siri will recognize that you're finished.
  5. When you're done, Siri displays the waveform of the recording on the screen along with options to Send, Cancel, and a play button to play it back to yourself. At this point, Siri is still activated, so if you want you can just ask to play it back, re-record the message, cancel, or send.
record-audio-message-siri-ios-14-e1594827548406.jpg


If you open the Messages app, you should see the recording show up in a conversation thread, indicating it's been sent.

Note that audio messages are automatically deleted after a couple of minutes unless they're saved, but you can change this default behavior and keep them permanently: In the Settings app, select Messages -> Expire -> Never.

For more details on iOS 14's new compact interface and communication features, be sure to check out our iOS 14 roundup.

Article Link: iOS 14: How to Send an Audio Message Using Siri
 
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Of course in typical apple fashion, they went from too much to not enough. Now its too small.
 
I wish that when you describe something that's coming up in an as yet unreleased version of the OS, you wouldn't use the past tense when describing it, as if it's available to everyone. Yes, it's done for people with the betas, but for the rest of us, just say something like, "In the upcoming release, Apple is reducing the size of…" and then go on to describe the feature.
 
I’m slightly fed up with hearing about how things work in iOS 14. I’m not going to be able to use it for several months yet. 🙄
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And while I’m having a moan, how the heck does the “quote” function work. Tried to quote Threbus, but it didn’t work. Double drat.

And harrumph.
 
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I was too until I realized you can’t use anything underneath the Siri UI when it’s up.

There was an interview with Craig Federighi and MKBHD discussing the new Siri UI, and it sounded like Craig was open to feedback. Apparently, Apple wasn't sure at what point to dismiss Siri, like would the orb stay on the screen until manually dismissed somehow, or would it go away after a set amount of time, etc.
 
As long as you can continue to ignore Siri completely, I don't care what Apple does to its on-screen presence. I assume you can still turn it off in iOS 14.
 
How to use siri to record message without sending to others?
I just want to record personal messages when driving a car....
 
I wonder whether it works with all languages that supports dictation. And wonder why Siri needs to transcribe message. How it can understand slang or message even human can have problem to understand? Waste of CPU power.
 
"4. To end the audio message, simply stop speaking for a few seconds, and Siri will recognize that you're finished."

That's an issue in general with Siri when dictating something that requires thought and pauses are needed...
 
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I wish that when you describe something that's coming up in an as yet unreleased version of the OS, you wouldn't use the past tense when describing it, as if it's available to everyone. Yes, it's done for people with the betas, but for the rest of us, just say something like, "In the upcoming release, Apple is reducing the size of…" and then go on to describe the feature.
Point well taken. After a while when reading about upcoming features you get used to that format
 
Wait until software has been released to the general public before discussing its feature set please. Most of us are not interested in being ’s beta testers.
 
Wait until software has been released to the general public before discussing its feature set please. Most of us are not interested in being ’s beta testers.
That's not really what a lot of what on sites like this is about.
 
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