iPhone 15 could get an action button and here's what it can do

The attention of Apple fans is now firmly focused on the launch of the iPhone 15 range. That's expected in September, and should bring a lot of exciting new features to the line-up.

One of those is rumoured to be an action button, similar to the one found on the Apple Watch Ultra. That's said to replace the volume/mute rocker which can be found on older iPhone models.

Now, source code spotted in the latest iOS 17 update may have given us some indication of what the button will be capable of doing. There are nine things which were found: Accessibility, Shortcuts, Silent Mode, Camera, Flashlight, Focus, Magnifier, Translate, and Voice Memos.

Some of those sound really useful. Obviously the Silent Mode option should give users a handy way to mimic the volume rocker of old. I would expect that the be the default option, allowing users to carry on as if nothing had really changed.

Having quick access to the Flashlight could be handy, too. I use mine fairly regularly, and it's slightly lethargic having to pull down the Control Centre and find it from there. The Action button would make it instantly available.

I also think the Focus option would be really useful. While I've yet to personally delve into them in any great detail, I know people who use them fairly religiously. Having a quick access button to flip-flop between options could be really handy there.

As someone who takes a lot of photos, the Camera option could also be handy. Assuming it's just a launcher, rather than a shutter button, it could give quick access to the camera. That could be useful for snapping those moments that might otherwise pass you by.

It's a good upgrade. I'm excited by the prospect of the Action button, which should be much more useful than the mute switch of old. I am a little sad that it looks set to be limited to a set number of features, though. There are some third-party apps, for example, which I use enough to warrant having a dedicated launch button for.

Hopefully that's something which can be adjusted further down the line with a software update. For now, we'll just have to count down the remaining few weeks until the devices launch.