Video summary

I’ve Achieved Action Button Perfection

Main summary

Key takeaways

Technology

Main idea (technological concept/product analysis)

  • The creator has spent years refining iPhone’s Action Button by assigning it a Shortcuts folder containing up to 8 shortcuts. This “limited set” approach is claimed to make the Action Button faster and more reliable.
  • The setup uses Shortcuts app folders and iOS Settings → Action Button → Shortcut → Show Folder so that pressing the Action Button shows only the configured shortcuts.
  • The video showcases practical shortcut designs using:
    • Apple Intelligence
    • built-in Shortcuts actions (e.g., transcription)
    • app-to-app integrations Often avoiding third-party APIs or paid services.

Action Button configuration (guide)

  1. Create a folder in Shortcuts (example: “Action Button”).
  2. Go to iPhone Settings → Action Button.
  3. Choose Show Folder and select that folder.

Result: When used, the Action Button displays up to the top 8 shortcuts in the selected folder.

Shortcut designs (what each does)

1) “Smarter voice assistant” (Claude-driven dictation)

  • A shortcut that dictates what you say to Claude via the Claude app action.
  • Displays the answer in a quick view without opening the Claude app.
  • Requirements/claims:
    • Claude app installed and signed in
    • Claims to not use API keys.

2) “App settings” jump (context-aware settings navigation)

  • From any screen/app, triggers a shortcut that opens the current app’s settings pane immediately.
  • Useful when apps bury settings deep inside Settings (including some third-party apps like Capture).
  • Example: jump straight to Apple Music EQ settings.

3) “Quick voice memo” (short recordings → transcription → Apple Note)

  • Starts recording immediately and transcribes when you stop.
  • Intended for short voice memos (around 5–10 minutes or less).
  • Uses:
    • Built-in transcription
    • Apple Intelligence to create a note title, summary, and bullet points
    • Creates an Apple Note and attaches the audio file
  • Suggested organization:
    • Create a dedicated Notes folder (e.g., “Voice Memos”) during setup.
  • Customization mentioned:
    • Edit the Apple Intelligence prompt
    • Optionally switch destination behavior (e.g., from Create Note/Append Notes to Bear or other services)

4) “My Social Links” (clipboard population)

  • Provides a shortcut/menu to quickly copy one or multiple saved links (social accounts, addresses, phone, email, etc.).
  • Selecting an item copies the link(s) to the clipboard for easy pasting.
  • For multiple links:
    • Copies all selected links plus platform titles for clarity.
  • Customization:
    • Edit the first action to manage list entries.

5) “Wallpaper” (randomized wallpapers + home/lock + blur options)

  • Fetches multiple wallpapers from basicappleguy.com, randomizes selection, and applies them.
  • Changes:
    • Home screen
    • Lock screen
  • Uses visibility blur on the home screen (configurable).
  • Supports focus-mode-specific home/lock combinations and preview/toggle options.
  • Portability claim: works on Mac/iPad with correctly formatted wallpapers.

6) Sponsor: Monarch (finance product + features + claimed tech)

  • Positioned as a private, ad-free personal finance dashboard with:
    • Income/expense tracking
    • Widgets for recent transactions
    • A receipt scanning widget
    • A Shortcuts action for receipt scanning
    • Sync with 13,000+ institutions
    • Budgeting using flexible categories/rules
    • AI-powered insights based on your actual data
    • “Couples-ready” shared views
  • Offer mentioned:
    • Free trial and 50% off the annual plan via QR/link.

7) “Clipboard Manager” (built using Reminders list)

  • A “clipboard manager” implemented using Reminders as storage (no separate clipboard app).
  • Shortcut behaviors:
    • Save: copies clipboard contents by creating a new reminder in a special list
    • Retrieve: shows saved items and restores one to clipboard
  • Key requirements:
    • Create a Reminders list named exactly: “clipboard” (one word, no spaces)
    • No due dates to avoid clutter in inbox/due sections
    • Retrieves reminders sorted by newest (with configurable limits)

8) “Capture” (context capture → Apple Note with transcription/screenshot)

  • Creates an Apple Note using context from where you run it:
    • In Safari: captures a full URL (no share sheet needed)
    • Uses voice memo dictation
    • Pulls in on-screen content and includes a screenshot
    • Uses Apple Intelligence to summarize and title the note
  • Works across scenarios, including:
    • Saving Safari webpages (link + screenshot + memo + summary)
    • Capturing text message conversations (screenshot + recognized links)
    • Remembering social media posts (memo + screenshot + summary)
    • Saving YouTube via Share Sheet (URL + screenshot + summary)
  • Mentions optional customization to save to BearNotes or other platforms.

9) “Long recording” + “Process Long Audio” (multi-hour workaround)

  • Addresses limitations where Quick voice memo transcription can fail for long recordings or if the screen locks.
  • Long recording shortcut:
    • Starts an iPhone Voice Memos recording intended to run for hours in the background.
  • Process Long Audio shortcut:
    • Triggered from Voice Memos Share menu after recording
    • Transcribes the full memo, summarizes, and generates an Apple Note including full transcript
  • Reliability claim:
    • iPhone transcription may fail on very long audio; processing on a Mac enables 2–3+ hour transcription.

Additional Action Button alternatives (swap-in suggestions)

The creator suggests other shortcuts that can replace some entries in the 8-slot Action Button folder:

  • Flashlight toggle (press Action Button again to turn off)
  • EV actions (e.g., open charging port)
  • Home automation
    • Open/close garage door (toggle)
    • Rear trunk opening
    • Smart home scenes
  • Music quick play via “Choose from Menu” (DJ-like playlist selector)
  • Apple TV remote shortcut selection (wake/select multiple Apple TVs, open remote)
  • Podcast seek: seeks forward 3 minutes because Apple Podcasts skips only 60 seconds max (uses Dynamic Island timing context)
  • Search shortcuts via Bitly:
    • “shortcut.bot” style—uses an API to search a Bitly database of shortcut URLs by title keywords, then copies the chosen result to clipboard.

Product/course promotion & review-style info (tutorial/guide)

  • The creator promotes Shortcuts University:
    • A 13-video / 12+ hour series for building shortcuts from scratch
    • Mentions advanced approaches using APIs and Apple Intelligence
    • Includes access to a Shortcuts community with weekly live streams and “Shortcuts of the Week.”

Main speakers/sources

  • Speaker: The YouTube creator/host (unnamed in the subtitles).
  • Primary external sources/apps referenced:
    • Claude (Claude app)
    • Apple Intelligence / Shortcuts / Voice Memos / Apple Notes
    • basicappleguy.com (wallpaper source)
    • Monarch (finance sponsor)
    • Reminders (clipboard manager storage)
    • Bitly / shortcut.bot (shortcut search)
    • Apple Podcasts (seek limitation)

Original video