Dictation and audio playback are intermittent

Question

Level 1

14 points

Dictation and audio playback are intermittent

A maddening issue I've been dealing with for awhile: my iPhone's speech-to-text and audio playback are either defaulting to off, or surreptitiously routing the output somewhere else. I've installed Cylance on my phone, and it sees no untrusted profiles or other signs of compromise. Alarms, timers, and phone conversation work consistently. But audio playback from the Music app or video playing through any browser or social media/messenger app defaults to off, and doesn't work until I toggle mute, change volume, or something else. I'm trying to screen record a song for a friend, and playback is mute. Sound starts when I tap the recording icon, and it asks me if I want to stop recording or cancel. When the prompt comes up, audio begins. Hit cancel, and the audio is gone again.

Also, I am having this problem with dictation. When I hit the microphone in Notes, Facebook, Messenger, Zoom, Telegram, or any browser submission box, the microphone LED turns orange, and the soundwaves spike as I talk. But there is no text output. The phone knows there's audio, but seems to be confused as to what to do with it. I have experienced this issue on an iPhone 11 Pro 256 GB, and iPhone 12 Pro 256 GB after I upgraded. It would be nice if this issue could be squashed, without having to do a new restore and start from scratch. Has anyone encountered this anomaly, and does anyone have any idea how to fix it?

iPhone 12 Pro

Posted on Apr 24, 2021 12:08 PM

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Answer 1

CarlAVII

Community Specialist

Apr 25, 2021 4:32 PM in response to santuccie

Thank you for those additional details santuccie,

With the Dictation and Audio issue on websites it may be data related. Are you connected to Wi-Fi at the time you're having issues, or cellular data? Have you verified that with either connection you have strong signal? The reason we ask is this can influence performance such as video playback, and occasionally dictation.

Additionally, have you restarted the iPhone using the steps previously linked? If not, restart the iPhone next to see if the issue continues.

Take care!

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Answer 2

ryane77

Community Specialist

Apr 26, 2021 6:10 AM in response to santuccie

That's completely understandable santuccie.

We're glad you had the chance to restart your iPhone. If you haven't already do confirm that you have strong Wi-Fi and/or cellular service as this can impact internet speed and these features. If you continue to have issues with good service the next step would be to reach out to Apple. You can find their available contact details via the Get Support website.

Have a great day!

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Answer 3

SnickZ.

Community Specialist

Apr 25, 2021 10:18 AM in response to santuccie

Hello santuccie,

It sounds as though you're having a couple of issues. You're noticing that audio content such as songs in Music aren't being recorded when doing a Screen Recording on your iPhone 12, and also having issues where Dictation isn't typing text as expected.

With Screen Recording you may notice that some apps won't record the screen or audio. This is applicable specific, and this information can be found in the following article.

Record the screen on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

In reference to the issue you're facing with Dictation are you following the steps outlined in the following article? If not, this may help with resolving the issues you're facing.

Use Dictation on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

If you're using those steps and information, have you attempted to restart the iPhone since having this issue? If not, restart the iPhone using the steps in the following article.

Restart your iPhone

Have a great day!

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Answer 4

santuccie Author

Level 1

14 points

Apr 25, 2021 4:02 PM in response to SnickZ.

Thank you for your response. The part about screen recording with the Music app makes sense. I forgot about anti-piracy protection; how silly of me. Same thing with the TV app. However, the issue with dictation, or playback of sound in a browser, social media app, or messaging app; is a separate issue. This happens whether I’m recording the screen or not. Of course, screen recording actually will capture audio here, but I digress.

When playing a YT video in Safari, for example, you load the page, and probably have to tap an unmute button in the upper-left corner. The video plays right away. But audio is muted every odd time I load the page, and unmuted every even time I load the page (despite the speaker icon not having a slash through it), if that makes sense. Same with dictation: the orange LED is lit, and the soundwaves spike as I talk. But the iPhone types nothing every odd time. So I hit the keyboard to stop dictation, then hit the mic to start it back up again. Every even time, it works.

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Answer 5

santuccie Author

Level 1

14 points

Apr 25, 2021 4:42 PM in response to CarlAVII

I did restart the phone earlier. It didn’t fix the problem. Restoring the iCloud backup solves the issue for a day, but then it comes back. The only other thing I can think of is to restore as new, and start over. But that’s invasive, and I’d like to avoid that if I can.

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Answer 6

santuccie Author

Level 1

14 points

Apr 27, 2021 8:52 AM in response to ryane77

Yeah. I’m pretty sure my connection is fine, because it works for a day when I restore the phone, and HD video plays fluidly even when the audio doesn’t. Also, I use Siri constantly, with no issues.

I will share what I’ve learned with AppleCare, and see what they can come up with. Thank you for your help.

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Dictation and audio playback are intermittent

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