Latest iPhone 16 leak reveals updated camera and new buttons

Updated June 23 with new case and charger details: Article originally published June 22.

New iPhone 16 leaks have suggested several upgrades, including support for visionOS tools, the arrival of a popular iPhone Pro feature, and an addition to the UI. Now, a set of iPhone 16 cases supports these suggestions.

A closer look at the iPhone 16 cases has been published by the TechNetBook team, and you can see how the updated features have impacted the external design.

The first is the orientation of the camera lenses. these have moved from the iPhone 15’s diagonal layout on a square camera island to a vertical layout on a more diamond-shaped island. This shouldn’t impact normal photos and videos taken on the iPhone, but the lens arrangement will allow lenses to be side by side when recording in landscape mode: this is the orientation that you would need to take stereoscopic videos that would allow 3D playback. on the Apple Vision Pro headset.

Then you have a covered button area for the action button. This programmable physical button debuted on last year’s iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Max. It allows users to assign a shortcut or action when the button is pressed, such as when the camera app opens so that a photo can be taken quickly. The button was not available on the vanilla iPhone 15 or 15 Plus handsets.

The action button will now be a universal offering, appearing on vanilla iPhone 16 models alongside iPhone 16 Pro models.

Finally, you have a new button. Presumably based on positive feedback from the iPhone 15 Pro, Apple will add a Camera Butto. The body features a full cutout for the button, which makes sense because the button is supposed to be pressure sensitive and allow multi-step pressing (allowing, for example, focus lock selection with a “half-step”). pres. » ” before taking the photo with full support).

Updated: Sunday June 22: Reputable tipster Ice Universe released a preview of another iPhone 16 case over the weekend. Their video shows the case rotated to show the back and edges of the case. Just like in the TechNetBook images, the vertical arrangement of the camera lenses, the actuation button for the action button, and a space for the capacitive camera button are all visible.

The cases add to the discussion around another feature, namely Apple’s inductive charging system. The space for the MagSafe ring is clearly visible, but the charging ring is also thinner than on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro handsets launching in 2023. While the two different ring widths will offer interconnectivity, the new iPhone 16 family will come with the thinner and lighter option.

These three features bring the vanilla iPhones in line with the Pro models. As Apple looks to clear the water in terms of specs between the vanilla and Pro models, it will take several upgrades to the Pro models to close that gap and create a desire among consumers to purchase the more expensive model. Dear.

One suggestion is that the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will update their own camera hardware, with the ultra-wide camera quadrupling the sensor size from 12 to 48 megapixels, new optical coating to reduce glare of the lens and greater optical zoom available on the 16 Pro Max thanks to a larger periscope-style telephoto lens.

Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 16 family in early September 2024.

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