Outside of developing its own silicon for its iPhones, Apple has not been really innovative with its iPhone releases in recent years. However, the new Camera Control feature that’s available on all iPhone 16 models this year could be one of the best features it has introduced in recent years. And in typical Apple style, it’s simple, useful, and it combines recent technological advancements.
Unlike the Action Button they introduced last year, the Camera Control isn’t exactly a button. It’s a small touch-capacitive area with pressure-sensitive sensors and haptic motors beneath that produce haptic feedback to imitate the actual clickiness of a button. This is basically the same technology used in today’s MacBook’s Force Touch touchpads. And it’s covered with sapphire glass, so it should be durable, too.
With a quick press of the button, you can now instantly launch the camera and, with a second press, capture a photo. A long press will start recording a video.
Depending on the camera setting or mode you’ve chosen, it provides easier controls through swiping. For instance, you can zoom in or zoom out, adjust the strength of the faux bokeh in Portrait mode, adjust the exposure in pro mode, etc.
Since this is a capacitive touch area that’s also pressure-sensitive, different actions can be assigned to it depending on how hard you press on the button. A double-press is also utilized to select certain modes from the camera menu.
A two-step shutter release feature is also in the works, but it will be released later this year. It would allows you to lock focus and exposure and recompose your shot before you take the final photo with a stronger press down.
Third-party developers are already working on making use of the Camera Control button in their apps as Apple is allowing the new button to be used in any app. Snapchat will be one of the first to use it as demoed on the stage last nigh.
Moreover, the Camera Control button makes Apple’s Visual Intelligence features easier to use. Click and hold the Camera control to start Apple’s Visual Intelligence feature. You just have to point at a certain object, be it a restaurant, landmark, a dog in the park or even a festival flyer, tap on the button to take a photo and AI will pull out relevant information and even add that festival to your calendar.
Visual Intelligence via Camera Control
You can even start a complex conversation with ChatGPT about your work or university notes. Just point with your camera, click and wait for a result.
On-demand visual search using Visual Intelligence
Apple says the system uses on-board computing and cloud resources to give you relevant search results from the web. And don’t worry about the images you share, the company ensures that no images are stored on its servers.
Notably, all those AI-related features won’t be available at launch. In fact, even iOS 18 won’t be coming with the said feature set and will arrive with another software update, probably by the end of this year.
Still, the Camera Control button sounds like a promising new feature and you can still make use of it, with or without AI.