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iPhones come with gorgeous, high-resolution screens that are capable of playing super high-quality videos. They also have a sufficient battery backup to power video playback for several hours at a stretch. This is also true in the case of iPads, which have bigger screens, bigger batteries, and an overall better video-viewing experience. Thanks to these qualities, these iOS devices make excellent portable video players that enable you to watch your favorite movies, TV shows, music videos, or recipes just about anywhere.
It’s very common to see an iPhone or iPad being used in the kitchen to watch recipe videos, on a train or plane while traveling, or while taking dance or yoga training from watching videos saved from YouTube. In many such scenarios, you may have found yourself wishing for the ability to control video playback without touching the screen because your hands may be dirty or too occupied.
If you’ve ever wished for the ability to control video playback on your iPhone or iPad by simply waving your hands in the air, I’m here to grant you your wish. Okay, I’m no genie, but the new Air Gestures feature in Documents surely feels magical.
Get Documents for Free from the App Store →
How to control video playback on an iPhone using hand gestures?
You’re here to learn how to start/stop video playback on your iPhone or iPad without touching the screen, isn’t it? This magical ability to Play or Pause a video by just waving your hands in the air and similarly, to fast forward and rewind any video using gestures is made possible by the latest update in Documents by Readdle. Download Documents for Free from the App Store and let’s learn how you can control video playback on iPhone and iPad using Air Gestures.
- Open any video that you want to control using Air Gestures in Documents. You can do this by using the ‘Copy to Documents’ option in iOS share sheet from any third party app, or use the “+” button inside the Documents app.
- Tap on the video you’ve just copied to Documents to start viewing — the first time you do this, you’ll see the following screen that briefly explains the Air Gestures feature and the benefits it offers.
- With Air Gestures, you can show an open hand gesture to Play/Pause any video in Documents, and swipe with two fingers in the air in either left/right direction to fast forward or rewind the video by skimming through the video timeline.
- You can also enable Air Gestures in Documents by tapping on the control center icon at the top right corner of the video and then tapping on the toggle switch next to Air Gestures.
- Now, you can just use hand gestures in the air to control video playback. Try it, it’s a magical experience.
Apple may be readying big things for the Apple Vision Pro, but you can get a taste of what it’s like to control things on the screen without actually touching the screen by using the Air Gestures feature in Documents. The next time you have your hands full while cooking in the kitchen or when changing your baby’s diapers, don’t worry about how you’re going to pause the video or skip forward — Documents will have you back. And you get all this for Free; just download Documents from the App Store to get started.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Air Gestures in Documents
Q: Do I have to pay to use Air Gestures?
A: No, Air Gestures in Documents is a Free Update to all customers.
Q: Does Air Gestures work with all videos?
A: Documents supports a wide range of video formats, and the Air Gestures feature works with any video that can be played in Documents — practically all popular video formats.
Q: Why do I need to give Camera Permission to Documents to use Air Gestures?
A: Documents requires the camera permission to detect your hand gestures during video playback. We deeply value your privacy, and this data is only used to provide the Air Gestures functionality during video playback.
Q: Does using Air Gestures affect my battery life?
A: The Air Gestures feature consumes additional battery to process your gesture commands to play/pause or skim video playback, so we recommend you turn off the feature when you no longer need to use it.
Q: How can I use gestures to control my video in the Photos app?
A: You will first need to copy the video to Documents, and you can do this by tapping on the Share button in the Photos app and then choosing the ‘Copy to Documents’ option. This will copy the video to the Documents app and then begin playback of the video.
Q: I have more questions about Air Gestures feature in Documents. Can you answer them?
A: Sure, please reach out to our support team at rdsupport@readdle.com, and we’ll be glad to help you out.