iPhone 6 iOS 8 Voice Control comes on randomly while using headphones, how do I disable??

Been dealing with this issue since getting new iPhone 6 a few weeks ago. None of the settings has worked for me. The issue seems to be in the use of headphones that have a toggle feature built into the headphone that allows you to control the play/pause settings on the phone. I currently use Skull headphones and any slight movement around the phone jack (without pushing the button) creates an issue. Anything from the speed of voice, automatically turning on voice control and the static on the line all appear to originate from the interface with the headphone.

I switched to another set of headphones that don't have this feature and I can swing the headphones all day and doesn't replicate any of these other issues.

This appears to be more of a hard wear issue and not in the IOS. Maybe they can turn off this control interface but none of the current setting options address this issue. Upgrading to a new set of headphones rather than waiting for Apple because theee are the main features I want from my phone other than phone, web, and business apps.

I really have found the quality of Apple products to be getting worse over time. I should get compensated with free iPhone bucks for the cost of the new headphones

So I think I found a solution.. I was having the same problem and isolated that it had to do with my third party headphones... Put some tape around the top of the headphone plug so that the metal part doesn't contact the top of the iPhone headphone jack. After I've done this I haven't had the issue any longer... It seems like the metal part touching the outside of the iphone jack is triggering Siri/Voice Control.

For some people, like me, it seems to be a hardware issue. The iphone headset works for me but I had two that did not work. After careful examination I realize that BayviewBadger and ShaneLK7 were spot on. It seems that the metal part of my third party earphones were touching the aluminum (highly conductive) body of the iphone 6. This probably caused the iphone to read some sort of electrical signals. Iphone without the extra metal at the end of the plug

My other earphones with a metal bulge at the end.

If this is the reason that is causing problems for you, all you have to do is to cover the extra metal part with liquid rubber/electrical tape. I didn't have any on hand so I used liquid bandaid which also worked.

Since the remote on your headphones work as a trigger for Siri or Voice Control, check if the headphones are working as they are supposed to do. In quite a few cases this issue has been resolved by replacing the headphones. Especially third-party headphones can cause problems like this.

In addition you can check you settings on your iPhone: Settings > Touch ID & Code > (when Passcode set) toggle Voice dial off. Voice Control for music is always active though.

hope this helps.

I Figured out the problem. I got the app trivia crack and ever since then siri/ voice control was out of control. I deicided to delete the app and it turned out to be the problem! Nothing wrong with the iphone just the app had some bug. I know trivia crack crashed some other phones as well so im glad i figured it out. Phone is perfect now. apple should still make something to turn off voice control though

I found this thread last week and refreshed this morning to see ShaneLK7's post. It's been frustrating to say the least, good headphones are not cheap and I wasn't interested in replacing mine.

After seeing it I compared the plug on my problematic headphones to Apple's. I noticed on Apple's the metal in the plug continues into plastic, with none going 90 degrees to the pole/plug metal itself. However, on my problematic headphone plug (and all the audio cables I have) the metal expands out a bit at the very end, 90 degrees to the main pole/plug.

After seeing ShaneLK7's post, it made me wonder if that metal was coming into contact with the phone and changing the signal to trigger voice control.

I cut a small piece of electrical tape and just pushed the metal plug through it (punching a hole), essentially creating more insulation since there's enough metal to make the required contacts. Since doing that, my headphones are working great again no matter what I do. No one has noticed when I've been on phone calls.

I'd rather Apple allow us to shut off voice control again, but for now this might just do the trick.

Thanks for your observation,

I've just looked at all my non-Apple ear buds and all types except Apple have a metal collar at the join to the plastic body of the pin, which touches the metal edge of the phone (ip6). I noticed like you, that the problem occurred whenever the cable was moved in any way. I cut an adhesive plastic tape collar to slide down over the pin & hey presto , problem gone without disabling Siri, Voice control, or resetting.

iOS 8, or the hardware of iphone 6, must be sensitive to the metallic contact at this spot; which Apple will probably correct without notification or apology sometime in the future; (or won't, as they want us to use Apple buds).

It doesn't seem to happen on the iPad Air 2 using the same iOS.

I think you need to separate the issues of "Siri" from "Voice Control." I have an iPhone 5S with iOS 8 (now 8.3) and disabled Siri long ago with no issues, but like the majority of the folks here, had the same issue with headphones and Voice Control. Without having tested it yet, it appears the problem involves 3rd party headphones having metal on metal contact at the iPhone jack causing Voice Control to trigger randomly which as reported by others can be fixed with electricians tape preventing the metal contact.

Yes!! This is what it was. A thin buffer for that spot where the metal of the headphones comes in contact with the phone resolves this. thank you. iPhone 6s Plus still has this issue, but this hack fixes it. Again the problem comes from the metal of the headphone connection contacts the phone. A thin buffer resolves it. I used a thin piece of rubber

My wife was having this same problem with her iphone 6s which we just got from Gazelle a few days ago. At first I thought the phone was defective, but with a little trouble shooting I figured the problem was with the Apple head set. Our house has a few cats and they have been known to chew on wires, and this is where our problem was. I found the wire is cracked just below the volume controls and I think the head set was shorting out the voice control. I will buy a new head set and reply to this post later to see if it fixes the problem. I realize this is kind of a unique scenario but I posted it to add the possibility of other headset problems due to bad or broken internal wires, if someone is having this problem I would suggest trying a different head set.

I have had the same exact problem while working out.

I called Apple and they had me reactivate Siri. You will either have Siri or Voice Control enabled at any given time.

Siri, for me, was much more tolerant and has not ruined my workout thus far - Voice Control was an absolute nightmare to deal with!

Same problem for me. I swapped out headsets and the problem went away. Must be the jacks.

Go to passcode and put it in and then scroll down and turn off Voice Dial

Tap Settings, tap General, tap Passcode Lock, tap Turn Passcode On. When that is enabled, below there is an option to toggle Voice Dial on or off (note: Music Voice Control is always enabled). Unfortunately, if you do not want Passcode Lock on, you cannot disable this feature. I found the solution.

Spoke with Apple Support. No grins. Here's where things stand.

1. They are aware of the problem and are looking into a solution.

2. They asked that I do a full Restore to isolate whether it's a hardware of software issue. I explained that since this problem affects both 5S and 6 phones, and that since the problem didn't occur until the update was released, that pretty much puts the focus on the IOS update. They agreed.

3. They recommended that I don't listen to podcasts in my headset until they come up with a solution, and that if I need to listen to podcasts while driving, find another way to listen.

4. They'll let us know when they have a solution.

I also said that I don't mind passing along what I learn but that I really didn't intend to be an Apple spokesperson, so would they post something on this forum addressing the problem? They said... well, nothing, really. Not no, yes or maybe. So this is probably the only time you'll hear what Apple has to say.