With the help of Spotlight you can search for all kinds of information on your device on your iPhone or iPad (and also Mac). That can be documents, agreements, apps and so on. However, you can also use Spotlight to perform certain tasks without having to open an app for this. Such as changing system settings.
Since iOS 17, iPados 17 and MacOS Sonoma, it is possible to change system settings directly from Spotlight such as enable WiFi, break Bluetooth connections or open your passwords quickly.
Open spotlight
If you don’t know Spotlight yet, you open this function by wiping down from the access or home screen on the iPhone and iPad. Above the keyboard a search field is shown in which you can type a search or instruction. On a Mac you can open this with the key combination command + space Or via the magnifying glass in the menu bar.
Adjust system settings with Spotlight
With the help of the Spotlight search field it is possible to adjust a number of system settings. That can be useful, because you don’t have to open the settings app and look for a certain settings.
For example, if you want to adjust the ‘silent mode’ of your iPhone, you type ‘Stil’ in the Spotlight search field, this is supplemented by Spotlight to ‘Silent Modus’. At the top of the screen, the switch now appears to activate the quiet mode.
This also works with, for example, aircraft mode, Bluetooth, energy -saving mode, etc. If there is no direct switch available for a function (for example Focus) then a shortcut will be displayed, it will take you directly to the setting. Handy for opening your passwords immediately.
Good to know: the searched switches remain in the recent search results, so that you quickly get access to it again if you open Spotlight again at a later time.