iPhone 15 Pro Low-Energy Chip to Allow Solid-State Buttons to Work When Device is Off or Out of Battery

[Smartass]

Home buttons did fail a lot in earlier iPhones (so people had to use that assistive touch thing because a new home button was pricey). Replacing the physical button with the taptic engine solved that and it also made trackpads on MacBooks infinitely better.

Honestly buttons on iPhones can feel cheap, especially on a $1000+ device. It sucks when they rattle, get a bit stuck from grime or the silent switch not having that satisfying click like on day 1.

In all years that i had iphones(since 2007 onwardS), not once have any button failed me.

 

[Smartass]

i'm more concerned about how this works with cases.

will case makes be able to make buttons that simulate a finger touch? i mean like know how you get those gloves you can wear to use your phone without taking your gloves off? maybe they can put a new material inside so that the button recognises the press?

i'll tell ya one thing, if i can't use a case with the new iPhone then i ain't buying an iPhone.


i never use the mute switch so being able to change it to something useful would be cool.

Well, Tim doesnt need to wear gloves in California, so you shouldnt wear them as well! You're holding it wrong!™

 

[Smartass]

Is this about making the device watertight or something?

I'm actually quite surprised about this constant talk among all analytics/people/media about removing the buttons to make iPhone watertight. One would think that we live in waterworld and we constantly have to swim with our phones

 

[jonnysods]

I'm actually quite surprised about this constant talk among all analytics/people/media about removing the buttons to make iPhone watertight. One would think that we live in waterworld and we constantly have to swim with our phones

Its not important to me either - I'm just trying to think through their reasoning for even attempting something like this.

 

[Gengar]

From a human factors perspective, touch on a phone would be different than in a car. A phone’s button locations are fixed, so you can locate each one by touch. Even with the current buttons, how often do you simply grab your phone and operate one without looking at the phone? Other than the loss of tactile feedback, assuming no haptic device, the action is the same with touch controls.

In many car implementations, such as CarPlay, there is no fixed location for controls nor tactile feedback, so you have to look at a screen to identify where to touch to get the desired effect; which is frustrating and unsafe.

I wasn’t talking about touchscreen controls. I was actually talking about capacitive touch controls in newer cars that control things like the AC, heated seats, etc. Those are in fixed locations and are still terrible compared to physical buttons.

But yeah, a lot of newer cars are moving to mostly touchscreen based controls, and that too is terrible.

 

[I7guy]

I'm actually quite surprised about this constant talk among all analytics/people/media about removing the buttons to make iPhone watertight. One would think that we live in waterworld and we constantly have to swim with our phones

It’s not important to me either - I'm just trying to think through their reasoning for even attempting something like this.

Waterproofing, while maybe not important to an individual is a good feature to have and benefits both consumer and manufacturer. It has nothing to do with “swimming” per se.

 

[Denzo]

Home buttons did fail a lot in earlier iPhones (so people had to use that assistive touch thing because a new home button was pricey). Replacing the physical button with the taptic engine solved that and it also made trackpads on MacBooks infinitely better.

Honestly buttons on iPhones can feel cheap, especially on a $1000+ device. It sucks when they rattle, get a bit stuck from grime or the silent switch not having that satisfying click like on day 1.

Maybe I've been lucky, but all my iphones are built top notch. Even old ones are great, no rattles

Let's just say, a change in buttons isn't an upgrade reason for anyone iPhone 11 onwards

 

[Denzo]

No buttons is cheaper to make. Like my car with digital screen dash.. It's cheaper than analogue tachs

 

[JM]

I think Android does this better but I think I'd rather have a quick launch to flashlight with a button. I feel like I use that infinitely more. AS is the case with everything, I am sure, different usage cases for different individuals. There's a solid argument to be made for having the camera app ready to go by the time it is out of your pocket.

The flashlight button is nice, I agree. Use it all the time.

The camera button makes it really slow to pull up camera. A dedicated camera button would be awesome.

 

[_Spinn_]

I'm really not sure that I will like the solid state buttons. I really don't like the mute switch going away.

 

[maxoakland]

I'm very skeptical about that. Like, when it's fully out of battery? I doubt it

 

[Tagbert]

I'm very skeptical about that. Like, when it's fully out of battery? I doubt it

They said that it could respond for up to 24 hours after the battery was exhausted, probably meaning that there is enough residual power available to respond after the battery indicates zero level. After that, you would need to plug it into a charger which is better than the current mechanical switches which don't do anything if the power is drained. Either way, if you don't have power, the buttons won't do much good for you.

 

[Wanted797]

I mean, suppose you toggle it on to initiate an action. It’s in the on position now because it’s a physical switch. How do you toggle the same function again? You’d have to toggle it off, then back on. It can be done, sure, but it’s awkward for repeat actions. Mute makes sense. Flashlight might too. But most of the things a programmable action button could do wouldn’t make sense in a physical switch.

What are “most things?”

 

[StyxMaker]

Sounds like the story of " NASA developed a high tec pen to write in the space; russians used a pencil".
Too much tec for a simple swtich!, use that man power to develop a calculator for the ipad and a Decent dial pad for iphone, at least!.

NASA did not pay for the development of the ‘Space Pen’. The pen company, I believe it was Fisher, developed the pen with their own money.

 

[bushman4]

Solid state buttons………what’s the big deal??
Mechanical buttons work fine
While this is an improvement I don’t see the benefit. The solid state buttons will not make the iPhone waterproof
Time will tell

 

[I7guy]

Solid state buttons………what’s the big deal??
Mechanical buttons work fine
While this is an improvement I don’t see the benefit. The solid state buttons will not make the iPhone waterproof
Time will tell

Solid state buttons clearly can make the phone more water resistant. Water proofing is an entirely different matter.

 

[MacOSExustio]

"iPhone 16 to power every single function using new low-energy microprocessor".

"iPhone 16 never needs to be charged, ever!" says insider.

Wifi power harvesting anyone? I don't know if that can be used with *any* Wifi signals, or just ones sent from a special base station. And this "Wi-Fi Power Harvesting | Center for Functional Fabrics" iJacket, anyone?

 

[MacOSExustio]

Solid state buttons………what’s the big deal??
Mechanical buttons work fine
While this is an improvement I don’t see the benefit. The solid state buttons will not make the iPhone waterproof
Time will tell

"If huts are better, why did you once live in caves?" (Picard, Star Trek TNG, "Who Watches the Watchers")

 

[Apple_Robert]

Yeah and as was revealed in a NavySEAL podcast, If necessary they can listen in on your phone even if it’s Off. this is just in your face proof.

That is not even close to reality.

 

[MacOSExustio]

for sure, less mechanical elements...more rock solid device
I have the eqs for 13 months now...and i hated all the touch input buttons..

Forgive my ignorance, what is "eqs"?

 

[bobthebuilderissus]

mk, but how repairable is it? i'm not going to deal with another item inside of a iphone that isn't replaceable, face id is already a nightmare for people trying to fix their own phone

 

[bobthebuilderissus]

Cases are quickly becoming irrelevant. Not quite yet, but soon they’ll be completely unnecessary. The current model is rugged enough where you really don’t need one.

they would already be irrelevant if apple went back to either the 5/2016 se design or the 7 design because i never needed a case on my 7+ or my SE
also i would never trust a new iphone with a glass back without a case, its not even worth risking

 

[bobthebuilderissus]

I'm actually quite surprised about this constant talk among all analytics/people/media about removing the buttons to make iPhone watertight. One would think that we live in waterworld and we constantly have to swim with our phones

i think they just don't know how to make a waterproof case, so instead of letting other companies make waterproof cases, lets just make the entire phone waterproof! more profit for us!

 

[bobthebuilderissus]

No buttons is cheaper to make. Like my car with digital screen dash.. It's cheaper than analogue tachs

a car and a phone are very different first of all
also yes a phone with no buttons what so ever is the cheapest option
a phone with normal buttons is the mid range option
and a phone with a fake buttons, with a new microprocessor, a entire new set of commands and new settings and software for not only a solution looking for a problem, but also not very cost effective either