The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models have an Action Button. This is a physical button on the housing
This is the Action Button of the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max
The Action Button on the top-of-the-line iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max is an innovation already found on the Apple Watch Ultra. The bottom line is that it is a physical button that can be programmed, rather than a software solution such as the Home Button, which has, after all, been part of the touch display for several generations.
- The Action Button enables various programmable actions that can be used even when the device is locked, so you can access them quickly.
- Classic options for the button would be to turn on the torch, create voice memos, mute, operate the camera, activate the screen magnifier or launch the translation app.
- When you press the action button, you receive haptic feedback from the device. In return, the familiar mute button from the top iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max models is omitted.
These are the limits of the Action Button
The Action Button is a new addition to the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, but not a groundbreaking innovation. A programmable switch has already existed in various forms on other devices such as the Apple Watch Ultra. And the competition has also already worked with programmable buttons or button combinations.
- With the handy mute button gone, the question is how the action button can compensate for this and how it is ergonomically placed.
- With the crown of the Apple Watch, there are certainly some users who activate the functions by mistake. A button that is inconveniently placed or too sensitive could quickly become annoying.
- It therefore remains to be seen how the switch performs in practice.