Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 29
Apple Adds iPhone Motion-Sickness Dots, Offering 24-Hour or Auto-On Relief
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 29

Apple Adds iPhone Motion-Sickness Dots, Offering 24-Hour or Auto-On Relief

1 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jul 29

Summary

  • Apple’s iPhone includes a little-known “Vehicle Motion Cues” setting that places animated dots along screen edges to reduce motion sickness while users look at phones in moving vehicles.
  • The dots use the iPhone’s accelerometer to mirror vehicle movement, giving visual feedback that researchers say can ease the sensory disorientation linked to nausea.
  • Users can enable the feature in Settings > Accessibility > Motion, leave it on continuously or trigger it automatically; Android apps offer similar tools, and Pixel support is rumored.
  • Reviews are mixed, but some users describe the feature as a “game changer,” while others say it helps only when phone use itself is what triggers their motion sickness.
  • The feature also highlights a broader shift: smartphones are adapting to remove yet another barrier to screen use, even during commutes that once forced people to look away.

Insights

Could Apple’s motion-sickness feature reshape how phones adapt to the body, from iPhones to Vision Pro in moving vehicles?
Can Apple’s moving screen dots really stop motion sickness, or are they just a clever placebo for riders reading on the go?