{"id":747300,"date":"2026-06-19T19:21:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T19:21:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/747300\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T19:21:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T19:21:13","slug":"i-found-a-hidden-chatgpt-setting-that-changes-how-hard-the-ai-thinks-and-the-difference-surprised-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/747300\/","title":{"rendered":"I found a hidden ChatGPT setting that changes how hard the AI thinks \u2014 and the difference surprised me"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, I was using the ChatGPT<\/a> app on my iPhone when I accidentally held my finger down on the send button (the blue upward arrow) a bit too long, and I was suddenly taken to a new options screen I hadn\u2019t realized existed before, which I use all the time now.<\/p>\n

The option screen gives you three different intelligence settings for the answer you’re going to get back from ChatGPT: High, Medium, or Instant.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What\u2019s going on here is that ChatGPT is asking you to choose between three different flavors of ChatGPT-5.5 that change how long the chatbot<\/a> thinks before answering. These options are easily visible in the web-interface version of ChatGPT, but the reason why I\u2019d never seen them before in the iOS app is that there\u2019s nothing that indicates they exist, and I bet a lot of you haven\u2019t found them either.<\/p>\n

Latest Videos From\"\"\"\"<\/p>\n

So, fire up ChatGPT and try it now – you\u2019ll be surprised. The workflow goes like this:<\/p>\n

Type your promptLong-press the blue send arrowChoose a model – e.g., ThinkingSendFor paid users only<\/p>\n

What\u2019s nice is that having the freedom to choose ChatGPT\u2019s intelligence level like this means that you can choose differently for each prompt you enter.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

So, if you just need a quick answer to a simple question, then choose Instant. If you\u2019ve asked something more difficult and you want to make sure you get the full benefit of the AI thinking about it properly, then choose High. The Medium setting gives you a balance of both approaches.<\/p>\n

If you’ve never used the High option before then it can be quite surprising how long ChatGPT will take to think about its answer, but the benefit is that you get a much more in-depth response.<\/p>\n

Sadly, this feature only works for users on paid ChatGPT plans. If you\u2019re using a free ChatGPT account, you won\u2019t get these options.<\/p>\n

Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.<\/p>\n

Android alternatives<\/p>\n

Since the feature isn\u2019t prominently documented, many people aren\u2019t aware it exists. And if you\u2019re on an Android phone, well, it doesn\u2019t actually exist, because this hidden feature is unique to iOS, but there is an Android equivalent.<\/p>\n

On Android, when you long-press an answer text (not the send button), a new menu will be available for you. At the end of the menu, you can see a Change model option \u2014 you can use this to select a thinking or instant variant of your current model.<\/p>\n

I love finding hidden features in tech I own, and often it’s like this one \u2014 the hidden setting turns out to be something I\u2019ll use all the time, once I\u2019ve discovered it. Let’s hope you do, too.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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