disable iphone auto-pause

January 24, 2010 4:33 PM

When I am playing music on my iphone (3Gs) and the headphone plug is yanked out, the music automatically pauses. Can I disable this behaviour?

This annoys me because I am often jogging with my iphone in a wallet thing. If the headphones are accidentally pulled out, it is fairly easy for me to just stick them back in, but I also have to get the iphone out (maybe take off my gloves) unlock it and then restart the music. I don't listen to audiobooks so I am not worried about losing my place or anything.

I looked through the settings but can't see anywhere to turn off this "auto-pause" behaviour. I have a jailbroken phone so if there are any third party apps that help me turn this off, I'd be grateful to hear about it. Thanks.

posted by theyexpectresults to technology (17 answers total)

Um, when you stick the headphone jack back in, just click the mic button and it resumes play. Or at least mine does....
posted by strixus at 4:35 PM on January 24, 2010

This is default behavior for all modern iPod devices, and as far as I know it's just the way it works.
posted by pupdog at 4:36 PM on January 24, 2010

Wait, where's the mic button? Is that on the apple headphones you get with the iphone? I tend to break those apple headphones pretty easily so have been using AKG ones instead.
posted by theyexpectresults at 4:43 PM on January 24, 2010

Yeah the mic button is on the headphones.

Just tried it on my iphone 3gs.
posted by dfriedman at 4:45 PM on January 24, 2010

Yes, the mic on the apple earbud cord contains a center play/pause/skip button, and the later versions also have a volume control. Many 3rd party headphones also have these features, but you'll have to get ones that are designed for use with the iPhone.
posted by joshwa at 4:47 PM on January 24, 2010

This is a feature, not a bug. Before this, iPods and the iPhones would just keep playing along until the battery went dead or I think the iPhone would start blasting the music on the speaker which sucked in libraries and other areas where you're not supposed to be blasting music.

The easiest is using iPhone headphones (either the Apple ones or another) that have the little button on the mic that you can use to start playing music again. The added bonus is if the song you're on isn't doing if for you while playing, you can skip to the next one (or start a song over if you want).

You shouldn't need to unlock your iPhone to get the music started again after pulling out the headphones.

In the "home" section of the settings menu, make sure "iPod Controls" are set to ON. With this enabled when the headphones come unplugged, you just double click on the 'home' button and you'll see the iPod controls at the top of the screen. I don't know about if you can start if up again with your gloves on since I live where I don't need to wear gloves.

You can also save a step so by setting the double click behavior with the home button to fire up the iPod app when you double click the home button. This is done on the same screen as the above.

I had this great little $7 adaptor thingy that went from the headphone jack and had a little button on it and then another headphone jack to plug in non-iPhone headphones. I think I bought it an Apple store or a Best Buy. But that might be helpful.

Lastly, I'd be a little concerned the headphones are getting yanked out frequently enough this has become a problem. I say this because I've had to return two iPhones to get replaced because the headphone jack would stop working correctly. Generally, iPhones and other headphone jacks don't respond well to having the headphones yanked from the jack. You might want to figure a way to rig your iPhone/wallet thing so that it isn't becoming unplugged so often.
posted by birdherder at 5:09 PM on January 24, 2010 [1 favorite]

I don't know about if you can start if up again with your gloves on since I live where I don't need to wear gloves.

Pretty sure the laws of physics preclude that no matter where you live.
posted by floam at 5:14 PM on January 24, 2010 [1 favorite]

Not that I've done this, but you, er, can trigger the screen on the iPhone with your tongue, too. Not recommended.

I do recommend the Griffin TuneBuds Mobile as a nice pair of headphones that have the iPod control button built-in. Mr. F owns a pair and verifies that you can restart the music with the button.
posted by fairytale of los angeles at 5:20 PM on January 24, 2010 [1 favorite]

In addition to using the mic-button, there are gloves that have some kind of touch-compatible fabric on the fingertips. I bought the "echo touch" brand this year - they work, but, they're pretty sheer, so, if you're dealing with very cold windy weather you might want something sturdier.
posted by oh yeah! at 5:42 PM on January 24, 2010

Pretty sure the laws of physics preclude that no matter where you live.

OK. I checked. I've never tried to use my iPhone with gloves on before. I found some cloth gloves in my closet and I can unlock and control my iPhone with them on. So clearly my dainty gloves operate within realm of physics.
posted by birdherder at 5:45 PM on January 24, 2010

Good heavens! I had no idea the mic was also a button! This is awesome!
posted by the.carol.baxter.experience at 6:30 PM on January 24, 2010 [1 favorite]

As has been mentioned, you can't disable this behavior. However, you don't have to unlock the phone to start the music again; hit the home (or lock) button once to turn the screen on, then double-click the home button and iPod controls will pop up. You can just hit the play button there and get back to the jams.
posted by andrewcilento at 7:47 PM on January 24, 2010

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I was aware that it was a feature rather than a bug, it would just be nice to be able to turn it off in something like SBsettings or BossPrefs. I have trouble with the regular apple headphones since they always fall out when I am jogging, but it's good to see there are alternatives like those Griffin ones.
posted by theyexpectresults at 8:11 PM on January 24, 2010

With a quick google search, I found this adapter that would let you use your current headphones and still have a button. It's from a popular brand, meaning there are probably other products in the same vein.

I do think you should worry about the headphone-yanking-out thing. It's probably not that great for the life of your iphone, and a pair of headphones with a longer cord or a different way of holding the iphone or something should solve the issue, yeah?
posted by R a c h e l at 10:14 PM on January 24, 2010 [1 favorite]

I use those Apple in-ear phones and use voice control to select my music and the mic button to start and stop the tunes. That way my iPhone stays safe in my pocket and my hands stay warm in their gloves.
posted by firstdrop at 10:17 PM on January 24, 2010

If you use one of those adapters, you should be able to work out a way secure the adapter itself into the phone firmly enough that if there's yanking on the cord it comes apart where the earphones connect to the adapter instead of where the adapter connects to the phone. That would minimize the chances of damage to the phone's own earphone socket.
posted by flabdablet at 10:57 PM on January 24, 2010

Not that I've done this, but you, er, can trigger the screen on the iPhone with your tongue, too.

Yeah, I know someone who unlocks her iPhone this way. Very disturbing.

The double-tap on the home button is probably your best bet, because that gets you to the pause/resume button without the need to enter your passnumber. So it's double-tap the home button, press the big pause button in the middle of the screen.

Works with porous gloves (where your electricity can get through) but not with waterproof ones. Thin leather works.
posted by rokusan at 1:05 AM on January 25, 2010