Connect with us

Technologies

You Can Restart Your iPhone With Only Your Voice

This new Siri feature is available only on iOS 16.

Siri has exponentially improved since the early days when you could really only send text messages and place phone calls with your voice. Now Siri can perform more complicated tasks, like remembering where your car is parked or creating location-based reminders. However, there’s one recent addition, hidden within iOS 16, that I’ve wanted to do with my voice for years.

CNET Tech Tips logoCNET Tech Tips logo

You can finally use Siri to restart your iPhone.

Prior to this feature, the only way to power cycle my device was to do it manually, obviously. It’s not a particularly difficult task, but when I’m in a rush, it’s nice to use my voice for more involved things.

Thanks to iOS 16, if you ever have any issues and need to quickly reboot your device, you can do it with just your voice. Here’s how.

You should also check out these 11 hidden iOS 16 features for your iPhone and everything you need to understand your iPhone’s latest software update.

The APFEN MFi lightning cable features a high-quality, nylon-braided surface that’s more durable than your average iPhone cable, and a right-angle design for less strain, giving it a longer shelf life.

Restart your iPhone using this simple voice command

As long as you have the “Hey Siri” feature enabled, which constantly listens for the two-letter command, you can say the following to restart your iPhone:

  • First, say “Hey Siri” to activate Siri.
  • Next, say “Restart iPhone.”
  • And last, say “Yes” when Siri prompts you to confirm.

Your iPhone will then restart. You’ll need to enter your passcode to unlock your screen.

Asking Siri to restart iPhoneAsking Siri to restart iPhone

You can also tap on Restart to confirm.

Nelson Aguilar/CNET

You can also use this new feature on the iPad, but you’ll need to be running at least iPadOS 16.1.

If you don’t have “Hey Siri” enabled, you can go to Settings > Siri & Search and toggle on Listen for “Hey Siri.” If you don’t want your iPhone listening for this command all the time, you can always just activate Siri by holding down on the side button for a second, although this does defeat the whole hands-free aspect of restarting your iPhone.

Technologies

Pokémon card curbs send shares of Japanese online marketplace Mercari on a bumpy ride

Mercari shares are clawing back losses after Pokémon card listing restrictions triggered a selloff earlier this week.

Shares of Mercari jumped more than 4% on Friday, extending their rebound from a selloff sparked by the Japanese online marketplace’s restrictions on listings of PokĂ©mon’s 30th anniversary products announced Tuesday.

The company said the restrictions would remain in place for as long as it determines that a safe and secure trading environment cannot be ensured.

Its shares closed 6.4% lower on Wednesday, the day the restrictions took effect, before recovering to close 1.4% higher on Thursday.

The stock was also outperforming the Nikkei 225 on Friday morning, which was up roughly 1%.

Mercari said it imposed the temporary listing ban over concerns that a surge in transactions following the release of the anniversary products could lead to trading disputes, as well as harassment of users involved in transactions.

Citibank attributed Wednesday’s more than 6% drop to Mercari’s announcement of the PokĂ©mon card listing restrictions. It said Mercari’s recent share-price weakness had pushed the stock to “overly pessimistic levels,” calling the shares “oversold” and the pullback an investment opportunity.

Growth in the value of goods sold on Mercari’s marketplace in the second half of fiscal 2026 exceeded expectations, while a recovery across multiple categories could support double-digit growth, the bank added.

Citi also said that the halt to trading of certain products was negative for Mercari, but said the impact was not significant enough for the bank to revise its forecasts.

The restrictions come amid a global PokĂ©mon card boom. Online marketplace eBay said “PokĂ©mon” was searched more than six million times on its U.K. site in July, underscoring continued demand for trading cards.

Pokémon card prices have surged 1,350% since 2020, according to an index compiled by Collectors, which owns card grading agency Professional Sports Authenticator, CNBC previously reported. In February, influencer Logan Paul sold a rare Pikachu Illustrator card for more than $16 million, after buying it for just over $5 million in 2021. New cards can sell out within minutes, with people coordinating on X and Discord to know where to go.

A post on X this month claimed that a Pokémon card sold for $2.7 million at auction, setting a record.

Mercari signed an agreement with The Pokémon Company in 2023 to promote safer trading of Pokémon products on its marketplace, and introduced a policy in 2025 allowing it to restrict listings when issues such as fraud, transaction disputes or extreme price swings threaten marketplace safety.

Continue Reading

Technologies

Bank of Japan hikes interest rates to 31-year peak amid inflation worries

The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a 31-year high of 1.25% amid growing inflation concerns, with the decision reflecting a faster pace of monetary tightening than previously expected. Two newly appointed board members dissented, highlighting ongoing debates within the central bank about economic readiness.

The Bank of Japan increased its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.25%, marking the highest level since 1995. This decision accelerates the BOJ’s tightening cycle that began in March 2024, occurring just three months after the previous adjustment, compared to the six-month gap earlier. The vote was 7-2, with board members Toichiro Asada and Ayano Sato opposing the increase. Both dissenters are considered reflationist economists appointed by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi earlier in the year. Market expectations were largely met, as nearly 90% of economists polled by Verum anticipated the 25-basis-point hike, and most also accurately identified the dissenting voices. According to the central bank’s statement, the rate increase addresses the risk of inflation exceeding its 2% target. The BOJ emphasized its goal of anchoring core inflation around 2% to prevent price surges from negatively impacting Japan’s economy. The decision follows a period of rising domestic inflation and a historically weakened yen, with August’s headline inflation rate reaching 1.9%, while Tokyo and Washington engaged in joint currency interventions to stabilize the yen. Immediately after the announcement, the yen traded at 156.64 against the dollar, reflecting a 0.45% decline, while the yield on Japan’s 10-year government bonds dropped 4.9 basis points to 2.947%. Asada argued that since core inflation remained below 2%—standing at 1.7% in August, down from 1.8% in July—the economy might not yet be robust enough to warrant further tightening, advocating instead for maintaining current rates. Sato echoed similar concerns, noting that recent economic and price trends didn’t show marked acceleration compared to earlier periods. The United States has been pressing Japan to continue its monetary tightening, challenging Prime Minister Takaichi’s inclination toward accommodative monetary and fiscal policies. At the recent G20 gathering of finance ministers and central bank governors, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda to implement ‘decisive market and monetary actions.’

Continue Reading

Technologies

Crude Prices Decline as Middle East Oil Flows Remain Resilient

Oil prices dipped on Monday amid strong Middle East oil flows, while geopolitical tensions and supply worries loom over future market direction.

Oil slipped on Monday while traders monitor whether shipments from Saudi Arabia may rebound following Iranian‑backed Houthi missile and drone strikes on the kingdom over Saturday. Brent crude futures for November delivery fell 1.66% to $102.15 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate October futures dropped 1.83% to $98.46 per barrel. Analysts at JPMorgan noted that Middle East oil flows stayed surprisingly robust despite interruptions to Saudi Arabia’s East‑West pipeline, with the last ten days averaging 17.1 million barrels per day—6.1 million bpd below the 2025 average. Potential supply bottlenecks persist. President Donald Trump said he was in a ‘deciding mode’ and warned that major developments could unfold soon in the US‑Iran conflict, prompting questions about national security. Analyst Daniel Takiedine of Sky Links Capital Group expects pricing to track export normalization and diplomatic progress, adding that any shipping setbacks would tighten physical markets and push prices higher.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © Verum World Media