This hidden iOS 18 feature could save your holiday road trip

It's the simplest way to help you, and other passengers, avoid motion sickness

News By Lance Ulanoff published 27 November 2024

I grew up getting motion sick in cars and am pretty sure I passed that predilection down to my children. I have vivid memories of my youngest vomiting on a laptop. I winched to a platform between the front seats so both children could watch videos while we were on a lengthy road trip.

While technology has improved, and now we're watching videos and reading emails, texts, and social media on our handheld smartphones, the nausea has not receded. That's because nothing has changed physiologically.

Scientists explain that motion sickness can occur when what you're watching does not match the motion your body feels. It's our vestibular system (the inner ear), and when that motion-sensing biology disconnects from the data coming in through our eyes, some of us get very sick. 🙋🏻‍♂️

this is the kind of life-altering feature I now think should get its own billboard in Times Square.

This is why I can't work in a moving car. The stops, starts, turns, and sharp curves all register as motion in my ear while I try to stare at an unmoving laptop or iPhone screen. At least when we road trip for the holidays, I'm usually the one driving, so I don't have to worry about how I'll navigate working and not getting car sick.

My 26-year-old, who was coming with us to Grandma's house for Thanksgiving, was lamenting how they would not be able to get work done while we were on the road. "I'll get sick," they reminded me.

I started to concur until I remembered a little discussed update to iOS 18 (and iPadOS 18): Vehicle Motion Cues. Released without fanfare or even a mention that I can recall at WWDC 2024 last June, this is the kind of life-altering feature I now think should get its own billboard in Times Square.

While hidden under Accessibility features, Vehicle Motion Cues is really for anyone who might suffer from motion sickness in moving vehicles. Turning on the feature (you can put it on or set it to start automatically when the phone detects you're in a moving vehicle).

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