iOS 9: Control Siri's Sounds

One of the things about Siri that has always bugged me is just how freaking loud it can be, embarrassingly so at times. Of course, you can adjust Siri’s volume pretty easily—just invoke the voice assistant by holding down the Home button, and then use the volume buttons on the side. The secret there is that Siri needs to be active when you turn the volume up or down.

In any case, though, what if you sometimes need to silence Siri completely and make it give you a visual response only? You can do that now, and I’ve been loving the feature ever since I turned it on. Check it out within Settings > General > Siri.

That “Voice Feedback” option is the one we’re looking for, so tap that.

You’ve got a few choices under there, but “Control with Ring Switch” is what I’m talking about. As the text underneath it describes, this’ll mean that if you’re not using “Hey Siri” or a Bluetooth/CarPlay device, Siri’s audio will be controlled by the ring switch on the side.

So when you want Siri to respond to your requests, make sure your device isn’t muted. When mute is on, Siri will answer with onscreen text only. Neat! Now you won’t have to hear “IT’S CURRENTLY 45 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT!” shouted at you when you’re in Starbucks. After all, I admit that talking to my phone is pretty dorky, but nothing takes it to the next level of social horror quite like that top-volume robot voice.