The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max version features a brand new, customizable button known as the Action button. MacRumors There has been plenty of evidence that Apple is planning to add an Action button to the entire iPhone 16 lineup.

The design and plans for the Action button date back to at least 2021, as the button is planned to be released alongside the haptic volume and power buttons on the iPhone 15 Pro. While the haptic volume and power buttons were abruptly canceled due to unresolved technical issues, the Action button remained and eventually made it into the final mass-produced ‌iPhone 15 Pro‌ and Pro Max units.

On the ‌iPhone 15 Pro‌ and Pro Max, the action button replaces the mute switch previously found on all iPhone models. Unlike the mute switch, which only serves a single purpose, the Action button provides “iPhone” users with a variety of uses. It can be configured to perform a number of functions such as:

• silent mode: Turn on silent mode, which turns the ringer and notifications on and off, similar to the ringtone switch on older ‌iPhone‌ models.
• Flashlight: Turn the ‌iPhone‌ flashlight feature on or off.
• Cell: Launch the camera app in photo, selfie, video, portrait or portrait selfie mode.
• shortcuts: Open a shortcut in the Shortcuts app that provides a set of powerful features.
• voice reminder: start or stop voice memo recording.
• Focus: Enable or disable a specific focus mode.
• Accessibility features: Enable or disable any of several accessibility features and settings for users with visual or hearing impairments.
• screen magnifier: Use your ‌iPhone‌ camera as a magnifying glass with the Magnfier app.
• Translator (on iOS 17.2): Quickly switch language between two languages.

Apple plans to add more functionality to the Action button in the “iPhone 16” series, turning it from a mechanical button to a capacitive button. The redesigned Action button, codenamed Atlas, is expected to work similarly to the Touch ID Home button on older iPhone models or the Force Touch trackpad on newer MacBooks.

According to internal documentation, the updated Action button will feature a “thinness change function” as well as a force sensor that detects changes in pressure, although it’s not yet clear what the latter means. The new Capture button planned for the ‌iPhone 16‌ series is also set to have the same features as the improved Action button.

As with the “iPhone 15 Pro,” even the earliest known designs and prototypes of the base model “iPhone 16” had an action button. The presence of the “Action” button remained constant across different stages of development and even different hardware configurations.

Apple also experimented with different sizes of the Action button; certain hardware configurations have made the Action button larger than currently found on the “iPhone 15 Pro” and more similar in size to the volume buttons. The action button was seen on many iPhone 16 prototypes and was also included in internal documentation for the new devices.

The action button is also set to appear on the next iteration of the budget fourth-generation iPhone SE, reportedly planned for 2025, effectively eliminating the dedicated mute key on all future iPhones currently in development.

While Apple’s plans are unlikely to change, it’s important to keep in mind that the information presented here is pre-production information and may not fully reflect what will happen in mass production units as hardware design is still a long way off. It was finalized. moon