How To: Make Your iPhone's Volume HUD Less Annoying in iOS 8

Back in iOS 7, Apple decided that it was actually a good thing to make the volume controls HUD translucent. This, of course, means that whatever you're watching on your screen will be obstructed temporarily whenever you adjust the volume.

Apple never fixed this issue in iOS 8, so it's still a huge annoyance.

We've previously shown a few fixes for this nuisance, like the workaround of using Safari to watch YouTube videos or the jailbreak tweak that moved the HUD to the status bar instead. While the workaround for YouTube videos still works, it's inconvenient, and that jailbreak tweak is a little buggy in iOS 8.

However, there is another jailbreak tweak that's been updated to work in iOS 8, and instead of moving the HUD to the status bar, it completely removes it. You can also just adjust the opacity of it, if you still want to see it there.

Step 1: Jailbreak iOS 8

If you haven't already done so, make sure to jailbreak your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Apple recently patched jailbreaking in iOS 8.1.1, so if you've updated already, you won't be able to jailbreak until someone releases another tool to do so. If you're still running iOS 8.0 to 8.1, use our easy jailbreak guide to get started.

Step 2: Install TransparentVolume8

On your jailbroken device, enter the Cydia app and search for and install the free tweak called Transparent Volume8 from developer Mordred666. Once the tweak installs, you'll need to restart your springboard for it to take effect.

Step 3: Adjust Opacity (Or, Remove Completely)

In your device's Settings app, tap on the TransparentVolume8 preferences towards the bottom of the page. Using the "Opacity Value" slider, adjust your volume HUD's look. Placing the value to zero will make your HUD completely invisible (i.e. transparent), but if you want to still see it a little bit, just make sure it has a low opacity level.

From now on you can enjoy games or videos without having the volume HUD obstructing your view. It may be difficult to see, but take a look at my adjusted volume HUD in the screenshot below, which has a very low opacity.

Hopefully, one day, Apple will realize how crappy their frosty, translucent volume indicator actually is and give us some options or change it altogether. Until then, jailbreaking is the only real cure.

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