Apple consistently updates its designs and features. So, the news that the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro will have new design features is not surprising. But the latest revelation from an industry insider includes juicy details. A new button is coming, and video capture may be its function.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in his latest Power On newsletter, the delightful Action Button, which has replaced the Ring/Mute switch on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro, will come to all models of iPhone 16.
As will a new hardware button. Gurman puts it like this and spills the beans on what the new button will be for: “Lower-end models will get the Action button, and there will be a new dedicated button for taking video.”
Interesting, though I’m not sure he has it quite right. While I believe a new button—called the Capture Button in previous rumors—will shoot video, I blieve it is likely that it will also be for photo capture. Let me put it more strongly: I don’t believe a capture button will be for video only and photography will be part of its function. For sure.
Gurman also goes on to say that while the overall design of the iPhones will be the same as this year, for the Pro models only, bigger display sizes are expected. This is good news and raises the question of whether Apple can accommodate bigger screens in existing hardware. I’d say not. After all, the bezels on the Pro models just got smaller, so we can expect the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max to be very slightly bigger in size than current models. The main question is, will our pockets be able to handle it?
If slightly bigger screens and a new capture button for video (and stills photography!) sound like moderate updates, Gurman says that’s because the focus next year will be on the all-new Apple Vision Pro, updated iPad and improved Apple Watch models. While I’m sure all the above are correct, I’d find it unlikely that Apple will in any way diminish the importance of its most central product. I suspect the next iPhones will have more to offer than a bigger screen and better range of buttons.
As to where the new capture button will sit: you know that oval that rests on the iPhone’s right-hand edge, on U.S. models? That’s the 5G mmWave panel, and that’s where it will go. There’s no such panel on iPhones outside the United States, but the capture button will go there anyway.
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