Filed under: iPhone 101
iPhone 101: Triple click to go to a previous song
When Apple first introduced the iPhone, they also announced a new set of earbuds to go along with it. These headphones sport a nice clicky button that allows you to pause/play/skip a song. However, they forgot to include a function to go to a previous song.If you are running the new 2.1 firmware, you are now able to triple-click the friendly button on your headphones to go to a previous song.
We here at TUAW understand that the feat of creating a single button that serves four purposes is not an easy one. Therefore, join us in giving Apple a quick, but much needed round of applause for finally adding this feature.
Want more iPhone tips like this? Visit TUAW's iPhone 101 section.

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Andy said 9:06AM on 9-16-2008
Shame the earphones sound so categorically awful that I can't bare to use them and therefore take advantage of the button.
Just like any real audio nut throws out supplied patch cords when they buy a cd player (or whatever), anyone that really cares about what their music sounds like should throw out (hell, send them back to apple in protest - I did) the standard apple earphones.
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Ksilebo said 10:08AM on 9-16-2008
Totally agree. I would love the mic/button but the headset sucks balls.
d said 4:17PM on 9-16-2008
I'm thinkng about getting the Shure SE110MPA kit - it's got the Shure SE110 buds, with modular cable, and a Shure remote/mic that replaces the bottom of the modular cable. You can also get the kit with some of Shure's better headphone. I haven't purchased these myself, so I can't vouch for quality, but I will when budget allows. It has a button with the very same functionality.
P. S. clap clap clap for Apple
brianallen said 9:12AM on 9-16-2008
It has always been triple click to go to the previous song!
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freshyill said 9:29AM on 9-16-2008
Then why did it never work?
Dom said 9:52AM on 9-16-2008
Nope. "Double click for next song" has always worked but "triple click for previous" is new with 2.1.
Jroy said 10:47AM on 9-16-2008
I've used triple click with my iPhone since it was originally released... its not new to 2.1.
freshyill said 9:28AM on 9-16-2008
In case anyone is wondering, this works for the Shure Music Phone Adapter too.
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Chris said 9:32AM on 9-16-2008
In fact, this button serves more than four purposes, because you can also accept and quit phone calls with it.
So: 6 purposes in 1 button -> Even more applause :D
Cheers!
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George Pyrgiotakis said 9:57AM on 9-16-2008
Ok not that I knew that thing was not only a mic... but after I was bitching at apple about making it hard to accept calls this comes as a thunder...
Plus all the other double and triple clicking...
Juan Manuel Schvartzman said 9:33AM on 9-16-2008
It's called morse code and it's been around for more than 160 years... Might as well add email functionality to the little button. 4 functions is hardly worth this sort of praise no?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morse_code
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Adonis said 9:44AM on 9-16-2008
And again Apple brings an ancient technology out and gets praise for it? WTF? Panasonic and Sony had the triple click feature in the 90's.
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Donat said 10:06AM on 9-16-2008
Ah the days of my panasonic walkman... before it got stolen :(
Miranda Kali said 10:01AM on 9-16-2008
Golf clap for Apple...yea! (you want frenzied cheering, and underwear flung at the stage, though, it's gotta be copy/paste and the ability to edit ID3 tags..)
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Robert said 10:10AM on 9-16-2008
There is a reason Apple supports multi-button mice. It's because sometimes one button just isn't enough to do everything you need it to at once. Since they added the volume up and down keys to at least one of the new headphones, hopefully we won't have to be quadruple clicking to perform something else.
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kenn said 12:50PM on 9-16-2008
no one has mentioned yet that quadruple click stops it playing.
Otto Kiessig said 10:23AM on 9-16-2008
Awesome, thanks! This is actually the first time these 101 tips have shown me something I didnt know, much appreciated!
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robogobo said 10:24AM on 9-16-2008
I have a pair of MacAlly in ear headphones for iPhone, and this works with them too. AND they sound great. AND they're only 20 bucks. AND- they're black.
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heydavila said 10:45AM on 9-16-2008
I thought it was a function of the new headphones coming out! Yay! Now I don't have to buy new ones!
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db said 11:02AM on 9-16-2008
I stop using apple headphone a while ago, for my iPhone i use Seinheiser in ear headphones with a mic . And it works the same as Apple headphone with and plus is sound amazingly great
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