How to Use Voice Dictation on the iPhone and iPad

If you find that the on-screen keyboard is a bit unruly when typing more than a line or two, use voice dictation instead of buying a wireless keyboard for the iPad. Voice dictation also makes the iPhone a viable alternative to a laptop when composing an email. Even if you need multiple paragraphs and punctuation, voice dictation can handle it. However, older devices may require an internet connection to do the heavy lifting.

One of the most powerful features of iOS is also one that is easy to miss: voice dictation. Siri may get all the press for being a great personal assistant, but it may be at its best when it's taking notes. Voice dictation is available for both the iPhone and the iPad.

Follow these directions to get your iOS device listening to you.

Voice dictation is available any time the on-screen keyboard is available, which means no hunting around for it when you really need it. You can use it for text messages, email messages, or taking notes in your favorite app.

To get the most out of voice dictation, use these keywords to add punctuation or line breaks:

• Period: The "." is the standard way to end a sentence.
• Question Mark: The "?" punctuation mark.
• New Paragraph: Starts a new paragraph. End the previous sentence before beginning the new paragraph.
• Exclamation Point: The "!" punctuation mark.
• Comma: The "," punctuation mark.
• Colon: The ":" punctuation mark.
• Semi-Colon: The ";" punctuation mark
• Ellipsis: The "..." punctuation mark
• Quote and Unquote: Puts quotation marks around words or phrases.
• Slash: The "/" symbol.
• Asterisk: The "*" symbol.
• Ampersand: The "&" symbol, which means "and."
• At Sign: The "@" symbol found in email addresses.

Other punctuation marks are also available, so if you need one of the rarer ones, say it. For example, say, "upside-down question mark" to produce an upside-down question mark ("¿").