Following a rumor that Apple was already planning to cancel its Camera Control functionality with next year’s iPhone 18 device, Weibo leaker Instant Digital has revealed that they believe otherwise. Instead of removing this feature entirely, Apple wants to streamline it to save on costs.
In a post on Weibo, Instant Digital says the contrary of the other Chinese leaker OvO. According to them, Apple is currently in its regular trial and proofing phase of next year’s iPhone 18 device. In order to reduce costs, the company is reportedly considering removing the pressure sensing capacitor and using only the capacitive one.
Currently, the Camera Control uses capacitive and pressure sensors. While the first one detects touch gestures, the other recognises different pressure levels. Apple wants to get rid of the latter, similar to what companies like Oppo and Vivo have been doing with their latest smartphones.
The rumor says the capacitive sensor could be enough to get the gestures right. However, this might hint that the Camera Control functionality hasn’t lived up to the hype in this past year.
Lacking AI features has made it difficult to justify the Camera Control
Like other Apple products that have reportedly been delayed due to the lack of proper Apple Intelligence features, it seems that Camera Control could soon meet its fate due to its high production costs and no added value.
According to the leak, since Apple hasn’t been able to release all of the intended Apple Intelligence features to Camera Control quickly, customers haven’t found a proper use for it. For example, only a year after the iPhone 16 launched, the company is adding an upgraded Visual Intelligence search, similar to Google’s Circle to Search feature.
Not only that, but the button placement has also been a complaint from customers and BGR itself. Navigating through the Clike the 3D Touch functionality wasamera Control tool can be confusing, take longer than tapping the display, and if the user isn’t holding the iPhone properly, the photo or video might end up being shaky.
While it seems Apple will give the Camera Control another go next year, it could end up being discontinued, like the 3D Touch functionality was. If that ever happened, we already know the Visual Intelligence feature can go to the Action Button, as the company already does with the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16e.
