{"id":45161,"date":"2024-09-30T14:52:53","date_gmt":"2024-09-30T18:52:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=45161"},"modified":"2024-10-01T10:19:12","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T14:19:12","slug":"iphone-action-button-uptake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2024\/09\/30\/iphone-action-button-uptake\/","title":{"rendered":"iPhone Action Button Uptake"},"content":{"rendered":"

Adam Engst<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

Although the poll received relatively low participation because it was limited to TidBITS readers who own one of the iPhone 15 Pro models, the results still suggest that the Action button hasn’t been a runaway success. The most common use was to recreate the function of the Ring\/Silent switch, garnering 33% of the votes. Even then, some people aren’t happy with the Action button as a replacement for the Ring\/Silent switch because you can’t tell at a glance which state it’s in.<\/p>\n

[…]<\/p>\n

Another 21% of respondents use the Action button to open the Camera app, which I doubt iPhone 16 users will do, and 20% said they don’t use the Action button at all, like me. That’s a total of 74% who either use the Action button like the switch it replaces, don’t use it at all, or use it in a way that Apple is, in essence, deprecating in future iPhone models by adding the Camera Control.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I really<\/em> like using the Action button to open the camera. It makes it fast and easy to take out my phone and snap a photo one-handed.<\/p>\n

The more I learn<\/a> about<\/a> Camera Control<\/a>, the less appealing<\/a> it sounds. I think I would have rather seen a second regular button, so we would have both Action A and Action B, or perhaps one that was global and one for use within apps.<\/p>\n\n

Juli Clover<\/a>:<\/p>\n

With the iPhone 16 lineup, Apple brought the Action Button to all four devices, expanding it from the Pro-only limitation last year. At the same time, there’s a new Camera Control button that eliminates the need to activate the camera with the Action Button, which was one of the major useful functions. At the same time, there are new Control Center options that you can set to the Action Button, expanding what’s possible.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n

I kind of wonder whether this is going to be another Touch Bar situation where the hardware’s full potential is never realized because Apple proscribes how it can be used without fully opening it up to third parties.<\/p>\n\n

Previously:<\/p>\n