Apple-owned Shazam has released an updated version of the app that supports iOS 18’s new Music Haptics feature, also called Music Haptics by Apple.
When enabled, iPhone’s Taptic Engine taps and vibrates to the sound of a song playing in Apple Music, Apple Music Classical, and now Shazam.
Shazam is more accessible
As previewed during the official announcement of iOS 18’s accessibility features, ahead of the WWDC 24 presentation, tactile music allows the hearing impaired to enjoy the rhythm of songs.
To do this, you need an up-to-date device, but that’s not all. The conditions are quite specific since the device must be connected to a Wi-Fi or cellular network (to download the associated sound profile). In addition, the iPhone 12 minimum is required, which may seem strange given that all iPhones have been equipped with a haptic motor since the iPhone 7. Except that this component has evolved over time, allowing for finer and more diverse vibrations. Note that the iPhone SE is not supported, even the latest 2022 model.
Touch Music can be enabled in the Settings app under Accessibility > Touch Music. There’s a “Play Sample” button to help you understand how it works. There’s also a setting to quickly enable it from Control Center.
Apple owns Shazam
Apple acquired Shazam in late 2017, and has been gradually bringing the app closer to Apple Music since then, offering trials of the streaming service through the app and the ability to sync Shazams directly to Apple Music. Incidentally, today’s new feature doesn’t work in Shazam for songs linked via Spotify.
Shazam is available for free on the App Store. Even if you don’t have Shazam installed on your iPhone, iOS 18 supports music recognition, which is an optional button that can be added to Control Center since 2020.
Download the free app Shazam: Identify Music
