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In iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, Apple has added a new Siri ability that means you can get the virtual assistant to read web articles aloud to you just like an audiobook, even if your device is locked. Keep reading to learn how it's done on iPhone and iPad.

iOS-17-Siri-Feature.jpg

If you tend to be put off by the thought of reading long-form articles on the web on a small screen, we have good news for you. In iOS 17, Siri can read them out loud for you, meaning all you have to do is listen.

How It Works

There are a few things to keep in mind when you want Siri to read web content out loud for you. First, you need to be using Apple's Safari when browsing webpages, otherwise it won't work. As it stands, Siri won't respond to read requests in third-party browsers.

Second, the webpage you want read to you needs to be compatible with Reader View. Almost all news articles on modern websites are compatible with Safari's Reader View, which strips away images, ads, and any other extraneous webpage content, leaving you looking at a clean page of legible text.

reader-available.jpg

You can tell which pages support Reader View by looking for the words "Reader Available" and the document icon that briefly appears in the address bar when a webpage is loading. If you tap the aA icon that eventually replaces it, the Show Reader option will also be available (i.e. not grayed out) to indicate compatibility.

The last thing to be aware of is that if the article you want read to you is just one of many articles in a feed, such as on the MacRumors.com front page, you need to tap through to the individual article in question. Then you can do one of two things.
Method 1:

One way to get Siri to read the selected article to you is to hold your iPhone's side button (or top button on iPad) which will activate Siri. Then say "Read this to me." Alternatively, simply say "Siri, read this to me," hands-free. (In iOS 17, you don't even have to prefix a command with "Hey" to invoke Siri any more.)

siri-read-article.jpg

Siri will then begin reading the article to you out loud, and a media player panel will appear in the upper section of the screen, allowing you to rewind, fast-forward, adjust the volume, and even AirPlay the spoken audio to another device.

Method 2:

Another way to get Siri talking is to tap the Aa icon in the address bar, then choose the Listen to Page option in the pop-up menu. Siri will immediately begin reading the page to you.

listen-to-page.jpg

The only difference with this method is that, unless you lock your device while Siri is reading, you won't see a media control panel on the screen. If the article is still open in Safari, you can stop Siri reading it by tapping the Pause Listening option that replaces the "Listen to Page" option in the Aa pop-up menu.

listen-to-page-safari.jpg

If you pause Siri, it will be replaced by a Resume Listening option, and the option will remain even if you navigate away from the page and return to it later.

So there you have it. With iOS 17, now almost any article on the web can be read to you via Siri while you're doing something else, even if your iPhone is locked and tucked away in your purse or pocket.

Article Link: iOS 17: How to Get Siri to Read Web Articles to You
 
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Does anyone know if this sounds better than having iOS read a web page through accessibility options? I tried that once and it sounded so bad I stopped before it got through the first paragraph.
 
"... looking at a clean page of legible text."

A necessary filter for web content overrun with jittering cat toy distractions.
 
You could already get iOS to read articles to you. I don't remember when this feature was introduced, but I would guess 6-7 years ago. All you do is:
1. Highlight the text in Safari
2. Touch the little context menu that pops up "Copy, Find Selection, Look up, >"
3. Touch the little continue arrow in the menu
4. Select "Speak"

Yes, you could have been using the Siri voice to read articles to you all along while you do the laundry / dishes / walk somewhere.
 
Just curious -- what use case do people find for this? I would vastly prefer to read an article in 5-10 minutes instead of spending 30 minutes listening to it being read (especially by an AI voice). I guess this is useful for driving?
 
Just curious -- what use case do people find for this? I would vastly prefer to read an article in 5-10 minutes instead of spending 30 minutes listening to it being read (especially by an AI voice). I guess this is useful for driving?

For me, background listing while I work of articles that I would like to read, but are not super essential or detailed so to save time I might as well listen to them.

For more important pages or stories I will definitely read them though.
 
You know that dystopian future that the movie Wall-E predicted? The one where everyone weighs four-hundred pounds and literally has everything done for them by computers? We are right on course, people. Right on course.
 
Does anyone know if this sounds better than having iOS read a web page through accessibility options? I tried that once and it sounded so bad I stopped before it got through the first paragraph.
That's what I was thinking. Voiceover in Accessibility can read nearly anything. It's a bit robotic, but just think -- with iOS 17, you'll be able to have your own voice reading stuff to you.
 


In iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, Apple has added a new Siri ability that means you can get the virtual assistant to read web articles aloud to you just like an audiobook, even if your device is locked. Keep reading to learn how it's done on iPhone and iPad.

iOS-17-Siri-Feature.jpg

If you tend to be put off by the thought of reading long-form articles on the web on a small screen, we have good news for you. In iOS 17, Siri can read them out loud for you, meaning all you have to do is listen.

How It Works

There are a few things to keep in mind when you want Siri to read web content out loud for you. First, you need to be using Apple's Safari when browsing webpages, otherwise it won't work. As it stands, Siri won't respond to read requests in third-party browsers.

Second, the webpage you want read to you needs to be compatible with Reader View. Almost all news articles on modern websites are compatible with Safari's Reader View, which strips away images, ads, and any other extraneous webpage content, leaving you looking at a clean page of legible text.

reader-available.jpg

You can tell which pages support Reader View by looking for the words "Reader Available" and the document icon that briefly appears in the address bar when a webpage is loading. If you tap the aA icon that eventually replaces it, the Show Reader option will also be available (i.e. not grayed out) to indicate compatibility.

The last thing to be aware of is that if the article you want read to you is just one of many articles in a feed, such as on the MacRumors.com front page, you need to tap through to the individual article in question. Then you can do one of two things.
Method 1:

One way to get Siri to read the selected article to you is to hold your iPhone's side button (or top button on iPad) which will activate Siri. Then say "Read this to me." Alternatively, simply say "Siri, read this to me," hands-free. (In iOS 17, you don't even have to prefix a command with "Hey" to invoke Siri any more.)

siri-read-article.jpg

Siri will then begin reading the article to you out loud, and a media player panel will appear in the upper section of the screen, allowing you to rewind, fast-forward, adjust the volume, and even AirPlay the spoken audio to another device.

Method 2:

Another way to get Siri talking is to tap the Aa icon in the address bar, then choose the Listen to Page option in the pop-up menu. Siri will immediately begin reading the page to you.

listen-to-page.jpg

The only difference with this method is that, unless you lock your device while Siri is reading, you won't see a media control panel on the screen. If the article is still open in Safari, you can stop Siri reading it by tapping the Pause Listening option that replaces the "Listen to Page" option in the Aa pop-up menu.

listen-to-page-safari.jpg

If you pause Siri, it will be replaced by a Resume Listening option, and the option will remain even if you navigate away from the page and return to it later.

So there you have it. With iOS 17, now almost any article on the web can be read to you via Siri while you're doing something else, even if your iPhone is locked and tucked away in your purse or pocket.

Article Link: iOS 17: How to Get Siri to Read Web Articles to You
Brilliant feature, if it works 👍🏻
However should have an age limit on it, over 16 years old, otherwise young kids will have another reason not to learn reading 😏
 
Very cool! I’ve been waiting a long time for this feature. Previously, I’ve had to laboriously select text from a page to have it read. This will be very nice.
You could already (since iOS 12 I believe) use the Speak Screen two-finger swipe down to have a complete web page be read in Safari (https://support.apple.com/en-us/guide/iphone/iph96b214f0/).

Speak Screen works regardless of Reader mode support, and you even get controls to skip paragraphs forth and back, and (limited) control over reading speed. It also continues speaking when the iPhone is turned off.

So I’m not sure why Apple is now introducing a separate feature with different trade-offs, instead of integrating/expanding the existing one.
 
Last edited:
You could already get iOS to read articles to you. I don't remember when this feature was introduced, but I would guess 6-7 years ago. All you do is:
1. Highlight the text in Safari
2. Touch the little context menu that pops up "Copy, Find Selection, Look up, >"
3. Touch the little continue arrow in the menu
4. Select "Speak"

Yes, you could have been using the Siri voice to read articles to you all along while you do the laundry / dishes / walk somewhere.
With Speak Screen (see my comment above), highlighting wasn’t even necessary.
 
A good step forward. Hopefully the next step is to allow Siri to read web pages returned from direct Siri queries — instead of only offering to open the page in Safari on iPhone.
 
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I wish they’d do this for books. I’m not a big audiobook fan, I prefer to read, so buying the audiobooks isn’t worth it for me (maybe if they were bundled with the text version), but *sometimes* I would like one read out just temporarily, such as while I’m doing a chore with my hands.

They may be worried it would cannibalise audiobook sales, but would it really? I expect people who use audio books wouldn’t be happy with the quality of reading from a machine (for now anyway - I’d be surprised if it’s not as good as humans in a few years).
 
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In iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, Apple has added a new Siri ability that means you can get the virtual assistant to read web articles aloud to you just like an audiobook, even if your device is locked. Keep reading to learn how it's done on iPhone and iPad.

iOS-17-Siri-Feature.jpg

If you tend to be put off by the thought of reading long-form articles on the web on a small screen, we have good news for you. In iOS 17, Siri can read them out loud for you, meaning all you have to do is listen.

How It Works

There are a few things to keep in mind when you want Siri to read web content out loud for you. First, you need to be using Apple's Safari when browsing webpages, otherwise it won't work. As it stands, Siri won't respond to read requests in third-party browsers.

Second, the webpage you want read to you needs to be compatible with Reader View. Almost all news articles on modern websites are compatible with Safari's Reader View, which strips away images, ads, and any other extraneous webpage content, leaving you looking at a clean page of legible text.

reader-available.jpg

You can tell which pages support Reader View by looking for the words "Reader Available" and the document icon that briefly appears in the address bar when a webpage is loading. If you tap the aA icon that eventually replaces it, the Show Reader option will also be available (i.e. not grayed out) to indicate compatibility.

The last thing to be aware of is that if the article you want read to you is just one of many articles in a feed, such as on the MacRumors.com front page, you need to tap through to the individual article in question. Then you can do one of two things.
Method 1:

One way to get Siri to read the selected article to you is to hold your iPhone's side button (or top button on iPad) which will activate Siri. Then say "Read this to me." Alternatively, simply say "Siri, read this to me," hands-free. (In iOS 17, you don't even have to prefix a command with "Hey" to invoke Siri any more.)

siri-read-article.jpg

Siri will then begin reading the article to you out loud, and a media player panel will appear in the upper section of the screen, allowing you to rewind, fast-forward, adjust the volume, and even AirPlay the spoken audio to another device.

Method 2:

Another way to get Siri talking is to tap the Aa icon in the address bar, then choose the Listen to Page option in the pop-up menu. Siri will immediately begin reading the page to you.

listen-to-page.jpg

The only difference with this method is that, unless you lock your device while Siri is reading, you won't see a media control panel on the screen. If the article is still open in Safari, you can stop Siri reading it by tapping the Pause Listening option that replaces the "Listen to Page" option in the Aa pop-up menu.

listen-to-page-safari.jpg

If you pause Siri, it will be replaced by a Resume Listening option, and the option will remain even if you navigate away from the page and return to it later.

So there you have it. With iOS 17, now almost any article on the web can be read to you via Siri while you're doing something else, even if your iPhone is locked and tucked away in your purse or pocket.

Article Link: iOS 17: How to Get Siri to Read Web Articles to You
I did not see clearly up until now … always thought aA is what you tap/click when you want to change the font size. Wonder now what UI stands for …
 
Just curious -- what use case do people find for this? I would vastly prefer to read an article in 5-10 minutes instead of spending 30 minutes listening to it being read (especially by an AI voice). I guess this is useful for driving?
Often times, many things can be happening at once, which can trigger sensory overload for me (I'm Autistic). On Mac, I usually highlight the text and use Option-Esc so that I can read along while it highlights the text. Allowing me to concentrate. Because of this feature, I should be able to do the same on my iPhone, all in one step. Furthermore, highlighting the text, then selecting "Speech" doesn't have the media controls: only the ability to start and stop the speech.

Yes, there is a "Spoken Content" controller in the Accessibility settings. However, my sensory overload isn't so bad that the controller must be there: only sometimes. So this feature is, I think, a good compromise for me. However, I can completely understand how this would be useless to others.
 
Funny: If the content isn’t in your Siri language, this feature isn’t available.

If you translate the page, it becomes available, but Siri will still read the original (with an accent) instead of the translation.
 
“Listen to Page”

I think this is a confusing description. They use website in all other options and here all of sudden it’s a page.

I’ve noticed this trend in the last few years where Apple is using confusing wordings for menus, settings and options. And then they add even more convoluted descriptions (often multiple lines) below.
 
I have been using the accessibility screen reader feature, as others here have mentioned, but I haven’t seen anyone mention the fact that you could just take two fingers from the top of the screen down to start the screen reading. It is quite a handy feature, and I would use it all the time.
 
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