For anyone who depends on the Reminders app daily, this might quietly be one of the most useful additions in iOS 26: you can trigger a compact reminder-entry panel with a long-press of the Action Button, giving you one of the fastest ways to capture thoughts before they disappear.
Before Apple introduced this, custom shortcuts and entire third-party apps existed purely to offer faster ways to create reminders – proof that this is something users have been clamoring for. Here’s how it works.
Setting up the control
The Action Button first appeared on iPhone 15 Pro models, and it’s now standard across the entire iPhone 16 and 17 lineups. To use it for reminders, head to Settings > Action Button, swipe across to the Controls section, and tap Choose a Control. Search for Reminders and pick New Reminder. From then on, a long-press of the Action Button opens a lightweight Reminders overlay wherever you are in iOS.
Creating a reminder from anywhere
This mini panel is surprisingly capable. Enter a title, add notes if needed, and tap the Reminders label to file it into a specific list. Along the bottom you’ll find quick controls to set a time or location alert or flag the task as important. Tap the tick to save and it’s immediately added to your Reminders app.
More ways to trigger it
Because this feature is part of Apple’s universal Controls system, you don’t actually need an Action Button at all. You can add the same Reminders control to Control Center or the Lock Screen by editing your controls layout, putting the quick-entry panel just a tap away.