iPhone 16 Camera Control is about to free up a lot of Action buttons

iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro introduce a new Camera Control button. As I’m thinking about this physical hardware button, it occurs to me that I’m sort of getting an Action button for the first time — despite currently being an iPhone 15 Pro Max user.

Action button appreciation

Apple replaced the classic mute switch with the configurable Action button last year on the iPhone 15 Pro. Since day one, the Action button on my iPhone 15 Pro Max has been assigned to launching the Camera app.

The Action button is by far the fastest way to open Camera and snap a photo for me. I’ve been sold on the iPhone having a dedicated camera button since Apple tested the waters with a version of its Smart Battery Case that had one years ago.

As satisfying as the Action button has been, its location as a camera button hasn’t been optimal for two reasons.

First, its position in the upper left corner when holding the iPhone 15 Pro Max in my right hand makes it a two-hand operation. You build the muscle memory over time, but it’s something you notice at first.

Second, the Action button is in the exact opposite corner of where you’d place a shutter button when shooting with the iPhone in landscape with the camera on the top rear side. You can shoot in landscape with the camera on the bottom rear side, but that’s a different technique that creates a specific shot. Again, you get used to it, but it’s not your first instinct.

iPhone 16 Camera Control

Enter Camera Control.

Its capabilities are far superior to both the Smart Battery Case camera button and Action button as a camera button. It launches Camera or your camera app of choice and snaps photos and videos. It will invoke visual search for Apple Intelligence. It will have specific behaviors in third-party apps like Snapchat. And it’s a full-on controller and not just a launcher with its trackpad-like surface.

Then the details. It’s positioned in the top right corner when shooting in landscape. Perfect. It’s easily reachable when holding the iPhone in one hand. Nice. And Apple (and Beats) are integrating a Camera Control as part of its iPhone cases? It’s impressive that this is even possible.

Action + Camera Control

So where does that leave the Action button for folks like me who have mapped it to launching their camera app of choice? I’m excited about the usefulness of the Action button all over again.

I briefly tested mapping it to ChatGPT Voice and found that useful, but not at the cost of losing a camera button. There were also a few awkward misfires when pressing it to launch Camera and having a chatbot start listening and responding instead.

Another option I would need to test to determine if it’s for me: using the Action button to launch video capture and the Camera Control for still image capture.

I currently use the Action button to launch Camera then swipe over to video when shooting. If I know I’m going to be capturing video primarily, I’ll temporarily reassign it to jump into video instead of photo mode.

A swipe between sections isn’t a big deal though, and the Camera Control supports that gesture as well.

What could be more interesting is the same approach but with third-party apps. For instance, assign the Camera Control to operate Halide for shooting photos and map the Action button to open Kino for capturing video. For Halide/Kino users, I think that’s the move.

For now, how best to use the Action button when the Camera Control unburdens the mute switch replacement is a fun problem to solve.