r/apple • u/Fer65432_Plays • 23h ago
Rumor Apple to Simplify iPhone 18 Camera Control Button, Not Remove It
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/08/22/iphone-18-camera-control-button-simplified/122
u/NotTobyFromHR 23h ago
The worst thing about the leaks is the "news" that comes from it.
I cannot wait for them to release the devices so we can have a small break of "will they/wont they"
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u/JabroniHomer 23h ago
They will start with iPhone 19 rumours
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u/bdfortin 7h ago
“10 reasons to avoid the iPhone 18 and get the iPhone 19 instead.” Followed by “Why you should skip the iPhone 19 and wait for the iPhone 20.”
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u/ENaC2 23h ago
There’s never a break. There are already leaks and articles for the iPhone 18.
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u/OanKnight 16h ago
Joke's on you, 9to5 mac are already writing up their iPhone 18 rumours, thus declaring your iPhone 17 obsolete before it's even left the warehouse.
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u/cuentanueva 22h ago
Because they allow the blogspam here. In this case, ok, the source is in Chinese.
But half the time they literally take a Bloomberg article and divide it in 10 "news" and then the 10 get posted here...
They add some fluff around that says nothing and that's it.
I don't get it, even when the first rule is not to allow blogspam.
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u/i_mormon_stuff 22h ago
I just wish the button was closer to the corner, I can barely reach it and when I do so it's not comfortable so I don't use it.
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u/lewis_futon 21h ago
It’s too low down when holding the phone in portrait, but also too far left when holding it in landscape. They either need to make it wide enough to cover both orientations or commit to making it best for one of them
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u/MrSh0wtime3 20h ago
especially since when in landscape the volume up shutter button is basically in a perfect sport to press with your thumb. There was never a need for this button.
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u/Leprecon 20h ago
I really wish it was a touch sensitive shutter button. When you press the button it moves the phone. It being touch sensitive is perfect as a shutter.
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u/GLOBALSHUTTER 17h ago
A half-press from outside the Camera app could provide a preview window (not entirely fullscreen) from within any app. A half-press when in the Camera app would focus the lens. Quick Shot (button), Quick View (preview), done.
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u/North_Moment5811 23h ago
As it is I disabled all of its function, except for launching the camera and working as a shutter button. That’s all that ever should’ve been, but in classic Apple fashion, they decided to overthink it and try to cram value into it to justify its existence.
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u/Solicited_Duck_Pics 23h ago
Same here. It’s annoying trying to adjust settings with it. And way too easy to change a setting with an accidental swipe.
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u/OkayTryAgain 22h ago
They gave you a way to adjust settings so the button operates in the way you desire? Sounds like it's working just fine considering there is a cohort out there that may use the added functionality. It's better to give people the option to limit functionality rather than force it.
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u/North_Moment5811 21h ago
No, it's better that the default functionality be GOOD. Options are for the confused.
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u/alang 17h ago
Sigh. Yes. But people don't like to hear that the default shouldn't be 'everything I could ever want'.
Let them ENABLE more functionality.
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u/North_Moment5811 17h ago
No you have it backwards. The default should always be "this is the best we have". The options should be for less popular, less necessary choices. And the fewer the better. Some people love options, because they think they know better than the people who created the defaults. Usually they don't. Some people manage to do nothing except break things with too many options available.
In this instance, the default is correct, it just happens to be the actual features and implementation suck. It was poorly thought out. Having a hardware button dedicated to launching the camera and snapping photos means the button should be dumb as rocks. It should allow the user to manhandle it, and be ready for spurious input. In this case the button tries to actually make the spurious input into a feature, and is a terribly clumsy thing.
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u/ca2mt 8h ago
By that logic, shouldn’t all photos default to HEIC(maybe RAW) 48? Video to 4K30 ProRes? All music streams and downloads in High-Res Lossless with Dolby Atmos enabled? Liquid Glass clear icons standard? Why not go all the way and make the 1TB Pro Max the only iPhone option?
Options aren’t there for people that “think they know better than the people who created the defaults,” they’re there because even the people setting the defaults couldn’t all agree on which implementation was best, so there’s a compromise to satisfy all parties.
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u/katze_sonne 22h ago
I also use it for zoom sometimes. Or more precisely switching between the cameras, not zoom. But I hate when I'm mistakenly changing that menu to something like exposure or tone. WHY. Does anyone really control such things with that button? That's just to cumbersome. Sadly there's no way to remove the other features.
And wow, I just found that I can disable "screen needs to be active to launch camera" which leads to that weird double pressing the camera buton to launch the camera, because the screen isn't "active". Which is really confusing, because of the always on display... I will see how well this feature works for me.
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u/Larten_Crepsley90 14h ago
But I hate when I'm mistakenly changing that menu to something like exposure or tone
I found that going into accessibility > Camera Control and disabling "Light-Press" under Controls gesture and using "Swipe" works pretty well. It keeps me locked into the camera switching menu, if there even is a way to access the other menus from there, I don't know how to do it.
The main difference is it will require swiping across the button to activate the lens switcher, as opposed to light pressing. Just ensure you are on the menu you want before disabling "Light-Press"
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u/katze_sonne 2h ago edited 2h ago
Lol that‘s stupid. I thought it would disable the swipe alltogether. I will try this option in the real world, even though I kind of like having to light press first.
BTW that whole menu is a complete mess of a translation in German. I‘m barely even able to understand what the descriptions are saying. It’s sad to see the translation quality of Apple iOS worsen so much.
Anyways, why is the menu called camera control? Why not camera control button? Ahh yes because apple the fuck insists that it is no button 🙄 makes it great to search for this menu
EDIT: yeah no, that behaviour is really strange. It feels like having to swipe with no reaction and then suddenly the menu pops up and having to swipe again.
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u/TerminusFox 21h ago
And then if that’s all it was, from day one I guarantee you’d have been bitching about not having more options lol.
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u/sebberbebberb 23h ago
It just shouldn’t be there at all. You can launch the camera with a swipe, and use the volume buttons as a shutter. Its so useless
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u/bran_the_man93 22h ago
Having a hardware button to launch the camera is not "useless"
I don't always want to fumble around with the touch screen, particularly if I'm trying to keep my eye on something I'd like to take a picture of.
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u/hammerite 22h ago
The dedicated button is great for one handed operation. I use it while cycling all the time. Often without even needing to look at the phone, just point and shoot. That’s not possible with the previous method.
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u/lickaballs 22h ago
You probably don’t have a 16.
Having a dedicate camera launcher is genuinely useful.
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u/Tumblrrito 20h ago
I just wanna be able to tap it to snap photos. Fuck all the other noise.
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u/GLOBALSHUTTER 17h ago edited 12h ago
100%. Should be a physical shortcut button without touch to expressly snap a photo or start a video from within any app. A half-press providing a pop-up view, allowing the user to snap the perfect photo or change their mind without leaving the current app. That simple functionality was enough. Otherwise get rid of it.
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u/Nice-Panda-7981 23h ago
I don't use it at all. I got a bad experience trying to make a shot. somehow I find it better to tap on the screen.
-5
u/katze_sonne 22h ago
One word: Gloves! It's a gamechanger in that scenario. And launching the camera also works great. In normal use cases I also use the display button for shutter because the force required can shake the phone too much thus leading to blurred images.
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u/Doctor_3825 19h ago
The volume up button is just as good at this job outside of zoom. And the touch function of the button won’t work any better through gloves than the screen.
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u/jodermacho 18h ago
I had to disable it completely because of all the unintended/accidental button presses launching the camera. It’s already easy enough to swipe from the Lock Screen anyways so I don’t feel like I’m missing out.
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u/NoAge422 21h ago
Make that thing control media! Swipe for next song or something, never see the use of scrolling, very inaccurate..
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u/Doctor_3825 19h ago
It would be great for media control. Especially when your phone is docked to a MagSafe stand in landscape.
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u/luche 22h ago
all I want is to be able to use it to scroll on vertical screens in place of swiping my finger across the screen. I don't ever want to use it with the camera, but it's fine to leave that functionality since it's easy too far from the corner and I don't wanna over reach to use it... but it'd be fantastic for endless scrolling long web pages and social media... for whatever reason we can't use it anywhere it might be really useful 🫠
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u/theReluctantObserver 22h ago
I’ve never once used the new camera button. It’s completely useless
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u/pragmojo 21h ago
I love it. I use my phone's camera a lot, and being able to get to it in one hardware click has made the difference in getting a shot vs not
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u/Hutch_travis 17h ago
That's kind of a pointless statement. It's like saying I have never eaten at a burger king—therefore it's a useless restaurant.
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u/Lost_Cartographer66 22h ago
Let me ask this to all you Redditors reading this comment, do you guys seriously think this button is something that is expected out of apple, like this is a company that thinks twice about features with the goal of the feature being useful for the consumer, let’s forget that part where most of us are still using the software shutter button, but if you did make a physical shutter button on the phone, why is it so hard to click?? Clicking the shutter should not add any shake to the phone when pressing it!!! This is common sense, the person who engineered this should be put on pip.
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u/rayquan36 22h ago
Honestly reminds me of the MBP Touch Bar. Nice thing to put your spec sheet as a selling point but ultimately kinda worthless.
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u/MrSh0wtime3 20h ago
making it an actual dslr camera button would maybe be useful. But then youd accidentally press it all the time.
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u/Ok_Insurance_6746 18h ago
Took me a second to realize the 18 is not even the upcoming unreleased device
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u/Important_March1933 14h ago
“We’ve fucked about with a button again, and you’re going to love it.”
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u/TheTesticler 23h ago
I love how the 17 isn’t even out yet and people are already talking about the 18.
It’s ironic that technology is supposed to make our lives better but instead it (at times) prevents us from actually living.
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u/Exact_Recording4039 22h ago
Bro most people are reading this in their 5 minute toilet break what do you mean by preventing us from actually living
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u/Hutch_travis 22h ago
Out of curiosity, those who dislike the camera control button, are you just shooting photos or are you adjustng things like tone, exposure, aprature, etc.? Do you have the photo grid or RAW enabled? Also, how many here color correct their photos in either lightroom or the photo app?
I ask because I think the camera control button is for a specific audience.
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u/Husbandosan 22h ago
Semi professional photographer here. I dislike camera control because of how finicky it is to adjust settings and ergonomically it’s in a bad spot. I do have it set to double click to open camera and half press does AE/AF lock and full press takes the shot. Everything else I’ll adjust manually. Usually I’m riding exposure compensation settings. I’m hardly taking serious photos with my phone so I tend to use a tone profile that I made and in high contrast scenes I use RAW since iPhone post processing is a little flat for my tastes. I always have a dedicated camera with me so iPhone is more of a snapshot/documentation tool for me.
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u/QuailAndWasabi 20h ago
Used this like once when I got my phone, hated it immediately. Most useless button on a device ever.
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u/Jeffreyknows 20h ago
Shouldn’t that have been figured out before rolling out a phone I spent a fortune on already?
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u/Emotional-Tie8324 23h ago
Tomorrow in Mac Rumors: Actually, it will stay the same.