We Took The Vehicle Motion Cues Feature In iOS 18 For A Spin; And Here's What We Think

Imagine sitting cross-legged on the backseat of your hatchback, hyperaware of the multi-hour drive and the wafting leather odour, but knowing you can look down at your device for as long as you want — without the unsettling urge to throw up. You can suddenly recline your seat back by more than two inches and not feel queasy, or even lie down on the backseat. But be careful — if you run out of battery (or want a break from the screen), this superpower dies with it, because Apple’s Vehicle Motion Cues feature in iOS 18, which, like any other technology, can be both revolutionary and fallible.

In a sign that the tech industry is doubling down on accessibility to enrich and make a positive difference in the physical world, Apple plans to release a travel-focused feature as part of its new iOS rollout. Named ‘Vehicle Motion Cues’, iPhone and iPad users will soon be able to use it to prevent motion sickness, similar to anti-nausea glasses or trusty anti-nausea pills. After the global launch, users can turn on Apple’s Vehicle Motion Cues from the Control Center and Accessibility settings. They will then get an option to turn the ‘Motion Cues’ on automatically, manually, or keep them turned off. I had the opportunity to test this out with the iOS 18 Public Beta and walked (drove?) away with mixed feelings, including a nagging headache and an unwavering sense of scepticism.

Also, check out our guide to keeping motion sickness in check during your next trip.

What is motion sickness?

Technically speaking, motion sickness can be categorised as an inner ear discomfort resulting from an imbalance between the eyes, inner ears, and spinal cord. The result is often nausea, dizziness, and even vomiting. “[When travelling] motion sickness often stems from a mismatch between what the user’s eyes see (still picture on screen) and what their body feels (motion),” says Dr Anil Thukral, Director and Head of ENT at Marengo Asia Hospitals. “This [feature] will address this by adding moving dots on the margins of the screen (along with the normal pictures being seen) that reflect the real-time movement of the vehicle, reducing this sensory conflict, and hence, avoiding motion sickness while using a mobile screen inside a moving vehicle,” he added. He also voiced potential concerns, including the need for data-based testing of the Vehicle Motion Cues in iOS 18 feature, before relying on its benefits.

How does the Vehicle Motion Cues feature work?

According to Apple’s official statement, “Animated dots on the edges of the screen represent changes in vehicle motion to help reduce sensory conflict without interfering with the main content. Using sensors built into iPhone and iPad, the Vehicle Motion Cues in iOS 18 recognises when a user is in a moving vehicle and responds accordingly.” The aim, in theory, is to give the brain a cue of what the vehicle is doing and how it is moving. Once the visual and inner ear communications are streamlined, the conflict, and in turn, the kinetosis, can be avoided.

Practically, once the feature is active, you will find a stream of little white and black dots plaguing your screen, mimicking the direction and turns of motion your vehicle is experiencing. These dots appear as long as you are moving, across all applications you use, even during calls and video recording.

A first try of the iOS 18 exclusive Vehicle Motion Cues function

Just for some background, in my really candid introductions, I am known to designate myself as a ‘motion-sick travel journalist’ and often joke about being in a ‘forever motion-sick era’. A school trip at the age of 10 marked the beginning of my traumatic relationship with the passenger seat of any closed vehicle, and even to this day, getting into a cab for a ride longer than 15 (or a maximum of 30) minutes is a big NO for me.

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Last month, I (bravely) spent 24 hours on the road from Durgapur to New Jalpaiguri (12 hours one way), West Bengal, and back, trying Apple’s latest iOS update, especially the Vehicle Motion Cues. In short, hilarity, a few episodes of headache, and the discovery of a possible blind spot ensued. After two sandwiches and a cautious ounce of orange juice, I crossed my fingers and cosied up on the backseat of my father’s car to see if this could indeed give me the superpower I have longed for all my life.

Also read: Explored West Bengal By Road? Now Uncover Its Secret Shores By Boat!

During the first six hours, including an hourlong journey through some winding turns, my eyes unfailingly tracked the motion associated with the large pixels on my screen, dancing over my Law & Order: SVU episodes, sometimes taking over the whole screen. During moments of acceleration, a “Vehicle Motion Cues active” sign would flash repeatedly and often announce the feature “inactive” even when we were not at a stop. If not an isolated problem, a ‘bug fix’ for the same can be expected before the official iOS launch to pinpoint exactly when the vehicle is moving or not.

I found the graphics and accuracy of the visuals impressive, especially how they were effective in engaging my eyes without distracting me from what I was doing on the phone. But somewhere between hours four and five, when I decided to rest my eyes, I realised how it could be almost impossible to benefit from the feature during long rides.

After almost eight hours, when I locked my phone and tried to engage in a conversation without looking at a screen, expectations were high for the queasy feeling to slowly invade my mind and body. A slow-building headache predictably crept up, followed by some lightheadedness, which I imagined would be the precursor to nausea. Curious as to whether the Vehicle Motion Cues could interrupt early symptoms of kinetosis, I went back to focusing on the moving dots, quickly discovering their limitation as only a preventative method. Once a sense of nausea has settled in, they are hardly any help.

By the end of the 24-hour ride, which was broken down into 3-4 hour stretches, and an inevitable anti-nausea pill later, two questions stood out to me. First, can a passenger use their devices (with the feature enabled) sporadically and keep the travel sickness at bay? Second, how worrisome should users be about the continuous location and motion detection draining their battery capacity, sometimes only leaving them with a few hours of screen time?

The three to four hours of battery life is fine for one thing — shorter, quicker rides, for example, to the airport or commuting within the city.

This is the parameter on which I would base my decision when using the feature. Apple, too, hasn’t yet detailed how the Vehicle Motion Cues in iOS 18 can be used during long trips. However, the company did include a more obvious niche in its target list: users who experience travel sickness during train and air travel. In addition to providing access to accurate motion reflection on the road, the feature will work even when catching a cross-country rail ride or boarding a flight.

None of this — a first impression that Apple’s iOS 18 Vehicle Motion Cues update will be great for those who don’t want to skip car rides at all — is a bad thing. The fact that a visual feature that doesn’t cost you or needs a prescription from the physician can potentially help alleviate some of the complications associated with being prone to motion sickness means accessibility in technology has come a long way. For the near future, consider the growing possibilities to be the only reason to rely upon or invest in technology.

You can learn about the Vehicle Motion Cues or try it out with the Beta update at apple.com.

(Feature Image Credit: Tim Samuel/Pexels)

Related: I Used ChatGPT To Plan My Trip To London — Here’s How It Helped And Where It Failed

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