Hidden iPhone timer turns off music or podcasts after you fall asleep

May 10, 2022

By Kim Komando

Sleep doesn’t come as easy for some as it does for others. While the National Sleep Foundation recommends that adults get between seven and nine hours of shuteye a night, that’s often impossible.

You could try this military sleep hack to help you fall asleep in two minutes. Tap or click here to see a viral video that includes a tip to help you get some much-needed rest.

Some people like to listen to podcasts or music to drown out all the noise while falling asleep. But that could keep you from getting into a deep sleep. If you have an iPhone, there is a simple solution. Keep reading to find out how to turn your music off when you fall asleep.

Here’s the backstory

Many people enjoy listening to a podcast or music while falling asleep. Some might even turn to YouTube for light entertainment while they drift away. Podcast apps let you set the length of playtime, but YouTube or Apple Music doesn’t afford you that luxury.

A sudden change in content or volume can rip you from your deep sleep, and then you’ll be back to square one in your nocturnal struggle. Of course, you could use meditation or sleeping aid applications, but that’s not what you want to listen to.

However, if you have an iPhone for your nightly routine, a nifty trick will guarantee the music or YouTube video will stop after you fall asleep.

What you can do about it

There are no built-in controls for the Apple Music or YouTube app that regulates when playback stops and the iPhone screen locks. As a result, you either need to choose a long video for you to fall asleep (while turning off auto-play) or create a unique music playlist.

But by using the iPhone’s clock app, you can set up a timer to turn off whatever you’re listening to. Here’s how:

• Open the Clock app on your iPhone.
• At the bottom, tap Timer.
• Set the length of the timer. This should ideally be the time it takes for you to fall asleep. For most people, this will be between 15 minutes and 30 minutes.
• Before hitting Start, tap When Timer Ends.
• This will bring up a list of all the sounds available on your phone. Scroll down to the bottom and tap Stop Playing.
• Tap Set in the top right corner.
• Tap Start.

You are then free to open whatever app you use to fall asleep. When the time hits the specified length, it will automatically stop playback and lock the iPhone’s screen.

But as Life Hacker points out, you must be aware of one thing. “iOS remembers the last selected timer ‘sound’ for future timers. So if you absent-mindedly set a timer without changing ‘Stop Playing,’ the timer won’t make a sound when it goes off.”

Keep reading

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