The rumored iPhone 16 feature I hope becomes a reality

Just as the iPhone 15 inherited the iPhone 14 Pro’s Dynamic Island, the iPhone 16 may gain one of the iPhone 15 Pro’s standout features: the Action button. That’s according to Bloomberg’s often accurate Mark Gurman.

The Action Button is exactly what it sounds like: A hotkey that can be used to activate certain tasks. Apple introduces you to several customizations in the iPhone settings menu. Such options include turning off your phone, opening the camera, turning on the flashlight, turning on the magnifier, translating phrases, recording a voice memo, using an accessibility feature, or turning on Do Not Disturb (or another mode). Focus” of your choice).

As I wrote, you can do a lot more with the Action button — like order coffee from Dunkin’ or Starbucks — using Apple’s Shortcuts app.

Apple doesn’t add new buttons to the iPhone very often, so expanding the Action button on the iPhone 16 would be a big deal. This would make the iPhone experience more consistent across the board, while making it easier to multitask and switch between apps.

Read more: I hope these 2 iPad Pro features make it to the iPhone

Why the Action button belongs on all iPhones

The biggest reason why the Action button should come to the iPhone 16 is simple: it’s actually useful. You can program it to do almost anything you want in the iPhone’s Shortcuts app, opening up a lot of possibilities.

Beyond its usefulness, it also brings a level of customization we haven’t seen before on the iPhone. All iPhone buttons were designed for a specific purpose: adjusting the volume, turning off or locking the iPhone, activating Siri, navigating back to the home screen, unlocking the phone, or authorizing an Apple Pay purchase.

Apple is leaving the purpose of the Action button up to the user, within reason. Its role really depends on what you do most often on your phone. In addition to ordering my morning coffee, I’ve used the Action button as a shortcut to call my husband or FaceTime my sister, open ChatGPT’s voice mode, and start a timer.

Having that degree of customization is important because the iPhone lacks the multitasking capabilities found on Android devices. Aside from the Picture in Picture feature for using apps while you’re watching a YouTube video or on a FaceTime call, there’s no way to open more than one app at once on the screen like you can on Android or iPad. It’s also uncertain whether Apple will ever release a foldable iPhone with a larger internal screen for running more apps, like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold.

The arrival of the Action button on the standard iPhone, combined with Dynamic Island (which is coming to non-Pro iPhones in 2023) could make it easier to get things done without as much tapping and swiping or switching between apps as often.

Bringing the Action button to the regular iPhone would also create a more consistent iPhone experience across Apple’s lineup. One of the advantages the iPhone offers over Android is that the software and hardware functionality is largely the same, whether you’re using an iPhone from five years ago or a year ago.

The newer models will have longer battery life, more sophisticated cameras, higher quality screens and improved designs compared to iPhones of years past. The software and how you use an iPhone remains largely the same from year to year, with the exception of 2017 when Apple got rid of the home button with the iPhone X. Making the Action button the norm across iPhone models would further standardize The iPhone experience.

iPhone 16 is not expected to change much

Part of the reason the Action button is shaping up to be the iPhone 16’s most important addition is because it’s largely expected to be a modest upgrade over the iPhone 15. The iPhone 16 could get a new processor, likely called the A18 chip. according to the analyst. Jeff Pu, which MacRumors reported.

Other interesting iPhone 16 rumors that have surfaced so far seem specific to the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max. For example, Bloomberg reports that there will be a new video capture button, though it’s unclear if it will make it to all iPhone 16 models. According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the Pro versions will also have larger screens. large, according to Bloomberg and MacRumors, while the regular, smaller Pro is also expected to gain the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s telephoto tetraprism lens.

Apple seems to be very software-focused this year when it comes to iPhone upgrades. During the Worldwide Developers Conference in June, it announced Apple Intelligence, a set of new AI-powered features for iPhone, iPad and Mac. The feature pack includes an improved version of Siri that can understand personal context and take actions within apps, tools to rewrite and proofread emails, and the ability to generate images and emojis among other additions.

With that in mind, the rumored iPhone 16 Action button looks like it could be the most exciting new hardware addition for those who don’t want to settle for the Pro. From its telephoto camera to its titanium design, always-on display and additional 1TB storage option, there are already many things that separate the iPhone Pro from the regular iPhone. The Action button has proven its purpose and now deserves a place on all future iPhones.