New Feature In iOS 6: How To Use Guided Access
by Dom Esposito
September 23, 2012
Whether you’re new to iOS, or just want to pick up some useful tips and tricks, we're here to help. This is iOS Advice.
Guided Access is a new feature in iOS 6 that helps users with hearing, learning, vision, and mobility disabilities use iOS devices. With Guided Access, certain areas and features of any app can be disabled. You can also prevent a user from exiting an app by disabling the hardware buttons and touchscreen sensor. It’s a pretty nifty feature that can be useful in many different situations.
If you’d like to learn how to use Guided Access in iOS 6, watch the video or follow the steps below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=US6jrcZJlNs
Step 1: Go into the Settings app on your device and tap on General.
Step 2: Next, swipe down to the bottom and tap on Accessibility.
Step 3: Scroll down to the lower half of the Accessibility screen and tap on “Guided Access.” On the following screen, toggle the Guided Access switch to “ON.”
Step 4: Tap on “Set Passcode” and create a four digit code that will be used to disable Guided Access from within an app. You can also choose to turn on “Enable Screen Sleep.” This optional feature will allow the device’s screen to dim (and eventually lock) during a Guided Access session. After you’ve setup these options, exit the Settings app.
Step 5: Open the app that you'd like to use Guided Access with. Next, triple press the home button to invoke the Guided Access interface. In the bottom left corner, you can tap on the “Options” button to completely disable the touch or motion sensor.
Step 6: With your finger, draw a shape over an area of the app that you’d like to disable. Guided Access will automatically detect the area or feature you’ve selected and place a darkened shape over it. You can also delete the areas you’ve created by tapping the “x” on the side of each zone. Once you’ve selected all of the areas you’d like to restrict, tap on the “Start” button in the top right corner.
The device will now enter Guided Access mode. The zones you’ve selected within the app will not be functional until Guided Access is disabled. To disable this feature, triple press the home button and enter the passcode that was created in step four.
For a more in depth overview of Guided Access, watch the above video.
Now that you’ve learned how to use Guided Access in iOS 6, if there’s something else you’d like to see on iOS Advice, please let us know. Send us an email with your question or comment and we might feature your suggestion in a future article. If you need a little more advice, check out our other helpful tutorials.
