Save Time with Siri Shortcuts
Apple added a powerful new timesaver to iOS 12: Siri Shortcuts. Shortcuts automate multiple-step tasks that you do regularly on your iOS devices, from getting directions to the next event on your calendar to letting your spouse know when you’ll be home. Tons of third-party apps offer Shortcuts integration. (See iMore’s 62 apps that work with Siri Shortcuts for a list.) Better yet, you can activate shortcuts with a simple phrase on your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or HomePod. (Fair warning: shortcuts that open an app on your iOS device probably won’t work on the HomePod or Apple Watch.)
Add a Suggested Shortcut
Siri learns your routines as you use your iOS device and makes suggestions for shortcuts as you go. Go to Settings > Siri & Search to see its current top three (Figure 78).
To see a complete list of suggestions, organized by app, tap All Shortcuts (Figure 79).
You might already have an easy way to trigger a suggested action. For instance, since I gave my 6:45 A.M. alarm a name when I created it, I can use Siri to turn it off and on already. (See Set an Alarm.)
If you see a shortcut you want to add, tap it and then tap the red button to record a Siri trigger phrase. In this case, I chose “Solve the Mini” to trigger a shortcut that launches my New York Times Crossword app and opens it to the little daily crossword (Figure 80).
Get Shortcuts from the Gallery
Shortcuts can be much more complicated than that, combining actions from multiple apps, but you don’t have to make them yourself. Open the Shortcuts app on your iOS device, tap Gallery, and browse categories like Around the House, Explore Apple Music, Photography, Stay Healthy, Put It on the Calendar, Tools for Making Music, and more. Here’s a sampling of ones you might find useful:
Convert Photos to GIF: Use this shortcut to select multiple photos and turn them into an animated GIF.
Heading to Work: This shortcut estimates how long it will take you to get to work, reads out your first calendar event, starts a pre-selected Apple Music playlist, and then charts the fastest route to work, accounting for traffic.
Share Availability: Trigger this shortcut, enter a date, and it combs through your Calendar for available time slots. Then, it shares that information with the person of your choice.
Time Machine: This shortcut scans the Photos app for images taken on this day one year ago and then displays them.
Where Next?: This shortcut gets the address of your next event in Calendar, estimates your travel time, and then calls up the directions in Maps. Choose between walking and driving directions.
When you find a shortcut you like in the Gallery, tap it and then tap Get Shortcut to add it to your library
Add a Siri Trigger Phrase
Once a shortcut is in your library, it’s easy to add a Siri trigger phrase. Tap Library, and then tap the shortcut you want to activate by voice. Tap the switch 
icon and then tap Add to Siri (Figure 81).
Tap the red record button and say your personalized phrase. When you activate Siri and say the phrase, the shortcut runs.
Set Up the “Text Your ETA” Shortcut
Let’s walk through setting up the Text Your ETA shortcut, so you can see what’s involved. This Siri Shortcut sends a message to your spouse, child, or roommate to let them know when to expect you home, based on your location and traffic conditions. (You could also set it up to let a partner or coworker know when you’ll arrive at work.)
Here’s how to add it to your library and customize it:
Open Shortcuts on your iOS device and tap Gallery.
Type
Home ETAinto the Search field and then tap the Home ETA shortcut in the results (Figure 82).
Figure 82: Tap the Home ETA shortcut in the search results. Tap Get Shortcut.
Tap the Line 1 field and enter the destination address (home or work). Tap Continue.
Type the name of your city in the City field. Tap Continue.
In the Recipients field, enter the phone number or email address for the person (or people) you want to update about your arrival. If you tap the plus sign, you can select from a list of your contacts. Tap Done.
Now it’s time to customize the shortcut further. Tap Library and then tap the More
icon on the Home ETA shortcut to see its steps (Figure 83).
Figure 83: You can customize many parts of this shortcut. Scroll down to see any remaining steps. By default, the shortcut assumes you’re driving. To choose another type of transportation, tap Transportation Mode. If you usually ride the bus home, for instance, tap transit. Or, tap Ask When Run if you want the shortcut to ask you what type of transportation you’re using after you trigger it (Figure 84).
Figure 84: Choose the transportation you usually take home, or tell the shortcut to ask you. If you want to change the default text—“I’ll be home at ETA!”—do so in the Text field. Be careful to leave the ETA variable alone.
Tap the switch
icon in the upper-right corner and then tap Siri Phrase. Tap the red record button and say the phrase you want to use to trigger the shortcut. For instance, use the suggested “Home ETA” or try something more whimsical, like “Home again, home again, jiggety jig.” Tap Done.
To run this shortcut, activate Siri and say your phrase.
Go Beyond the Gallery
As soon as Apple released iOS 12, people began creating and sharing shortcuts for an amazing range of tasks. Many have made their way to the Shortcuts app’s Gallery, but you’ll find even more online, on sites like ShortcutsGallery.com, Sharecuts, and Reddit. Here are a few favorites for you to check out.
Remember, you can always customize shortcuts to better fit your needs and Add a Siri Trigger Phrase if the shortcut doesn’t have one already.
Check a Price on Amazon
Many a time I’ve wandered the aisles of Best Buy or Costco, wondering if a gadget I’ve got my eye on sells for less on Amazon. This Siri Shortcut makes it easy to scan a barcode to see Amazon’s price. By default, you trigger it by telling Siri to “Search Amazon.” Download a U.K. version made by Redditor EthanV2 or a version modified for use in the United States by Macworld.
Download from Social Media
ShortcutsGallery.com user Wirexia9’s Social Media Download shortcut lets you download photos and videos from YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Dailymotion, and Instagram right into Photos, saving loads of time if you want to look at something offline or keep an archive, for example of a school board meeting or a friend’s awesome creation. You even get to choose the video quality. Copy the URL of the page with the video or photo to your clipboard before triggering the shortcut.
Prepare Your Phone for a Flight
Breeze through your preflight checklist with Rosemary Orchard’s Flight Time shortcut. It enables Airplane Mode, Low Power Mode, and Do Not Disturb in one fell swoop so you comply with airline regulations and reach your destination with battery life to spare.
Monitor Police Stops
Redditor RobertAPetersen found himself all over the news after he posted a Pulled Over By Police shortcut for monitoring police stops. If you trigger it, for instance, by saying “Hey Siri, I’m being pulled over” it pauses your music, turns down your iPhone’s brightness and volume, puts it in Do Not Disturb mode, sends a messages to an emergency contact to let them know you’re being pulled over, and then begins recording video. Once you stop the recording, it sends a copy to your emergency contact, returns brightness and volume to normal, turns off Do Not Disturb, and gives you the option to upload your video to iCloud Drive or Dropbox.
Delete or Rename a Siri Shortcut
The quickest way to delete a Siri shortcut or change its trigger phrase is to go to Settings > Siri & Search and tap My Shortcuts. To delete a shortcut, swipe left over the shortcut and tap Delete. Or, tap the shortcut and tap Delete Shortcut. (If you didn’t give a shortcut a Siri trigger phrase it won’t appear in this list; you’ll need to delete it in the Shortcuts app.)
To change the trigger phrase for a shortcut, tap the shortcut, then tap Re-Record Phrase.