How to Enable and Use Vehicle Motion Cues on iPhone

Apple’s iOS 18 brings an array of Accessibility features that can make a huge difference in your everyday life. One such feature is Vehicle Motion Cues, which will appeal to car passengers who suffer from motion sickness while using their devices in a moving vehicle. With this feature, you can comfortably use your iPhone or iPad when traveling. Read on to learn how Vehicle Motion Cues works on iOS 18 and how to enable it on your iPhone.

What is Vehicle Motion Cues, and How Does it Work?

Introduced with the latest iOS 18, Vehicle Motion Cues is an accessibility feature that can help reduce motion when you’re using your iPhone or iPad in a moving vehicle. According to Apple, research shows that motion sickness is usually caused by a sensory conflict between what your eyes see and what your body & head are feeling due to the physical movement of the vehicle. This conflict can prevent some users from comfortably using their iPhones or iPads in a moving vehicle. 

Vehicle Motion Cues helps reduce this sensory conflict by showing animated dots on the display that indicate real-time changes in motion, without interfering with the main content on your device. With the dots moving on your screen, your eyes can see the movement that your body is experiencing at the moment. The Vehicle Motion Cues feature in iOS 18 uses the built-in sensors on your iPhone and iPad to recognize when a user is in a moving vehicle and then respond accordingly.

How to Enable Vehicle Motion Cues on iPhone

Note: Vehicle Motion Cues is an iOS 18 exclusive feature. To enable it at the moment, your iPhone needs to run on iOS 18 which is currently available in Public and Developer Beta.

Apple says that you can set the Vehicle Motion Cues feature to show automatically on your iPhone, or you can turn it on/off in the Control Center. Below are the two ways to turn on Vehicle Motion Cues:

Method 1: Enable Vehicle Motion Cues from Settings

The first way to turn on motion sickness mode on an iPhone is to enable it in the Settings app. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open the Settings app and navigate to the Accessibility section.
2. Here, tap on Motion and choose Vehicle Motion Cues.

3. Now, turn on the Vehicle Motion Cues toggle. If prompted, click on Continue.
4. By default, the Automatically in Vehicle toggle will be turned ON. This will automatically put your iPhone into motion sickness mode when you’re in a moving vehicle.
5. If you turn off the Automatically in Vehicle toggle, you’ll see immediately dots near the edges of your iPhone screen. It’s a nice idea to keep the toggle ON.

Earlier this method wasn’t working due to some bug. That said, Apple might have fixed it in the beta version, and it’s working just fine now.

Method 2: Enable Vehicle Motion Cues From Control Center

Another way to use Vehicle Motion Cues on Apple is to add the feature in the Control Center. It offers a quick way to turn vehicle motion cues on and off on your iPhone.

1. Swipe down from the top-right corner of your iPhone screen to open the Control Center.
2. Now, tap on the plus + icon from the top left. The Control Center will now enter the customize mode.
3. Tap on Add a Control from the bottom.
4. Scroll down to the “Vision Accessibility” section and choose Vehicle Motion Cues.

5. You can also use the top search bar to find the feature quickly.
6. Next, tap anywhere on the screen to exit the customize mode.
7. Finally, tap on Vehicle Motion Cues and select On or Only in Vehicle option.
8. If you turn on the feature, you’ll see the little dots around the edges of your ‌iPhone‌ screen. If you’ve opted for the Only in Vehicle option, the motion cues will appear only when you’re in a moving vehicle.

That’s how you can enable and use Vehicle Motion Cues on an iPhone. So, next time you travel, enable this feature to comfortably use your iPhone or iPad in a moving vehicle without feeling nauseous. Try this feature and see if it works for you. If you’ve already tried it, don’t forget to share your experiences in the comments below.