Apple fans loved the new iPhone 15’s rumored “action button” feature

Apple fanatics are eagerly awaiting the company’s September 12 unveiling of the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max amid rumors of a new feature – an action button.

Software experts said Apple’s iOS beta 4 release contains code that could hint at plans for an action button that would “allow users to quickly access various features and settings without necessarily unlocking the device or navigating to an app.” according to Apple fan site MacRumors.

The site speculated that the new physical button could share similarities with the Apple Watch Ultra’s action button “but with more phone-centric options.”

Apple introduced the concept of the physical “home” button on its iPhones, but scrapped that concept with the introduction of the iPhone X.

The functionality of the rumored action button includes an accessibility option that gives users access to features like VoiceOver, Zoom, AssistiveTouch, and others.

According to MacRumors, the button also offers options like shortcuts to the app, silent mode, the camera and video app, the flashlight, and the translate app.

“If the rumors are true, the action button could be one of the key new features that sets the ‘iPhone 15 Pro’ apart from its predecessors,” the site wrote.

Apple’s “Wonderlust” event on September 12 includes the unveiling of the iPhone 15 as well as the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Ultra version of the watch.

The event will be held at the company’s Steve Jobs Theater at its headquarters in Cupertino, California, at the company’s invitation.

The new iPhone will feature a USB-C standard charging port – the same charger used for Android devices – after the European Union enacted new rules obliging the company to use the port on its phones, laptops, offer iPads and other devices.

Apple has long resisted the change, preferring to stick with its proprietary Lightning charging port.

Apple saw iPhone sales fall 2.4% in the fiscal third quarter — a rare drop for the product that’s fueled the company’s growth for years.

In the three-month period ended July 1 – Apple’s third quarter – it was recorded revenue of $81.8 billion, down 1.4% from the second quarter and down 3% year over year.

Shares of Apple, which became the first company to surpass the $3 trillion market cap barrier but has since declined, fell nearly 3% in early morning trading on Wall Street on Wednesday.

According to Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International Securities, the most expensive variant of the new generation iPhone will feature a periscope camera that could improve zoom capacity by five times or more.

The Cupertino, California-based tech giant is also planning to release its The Vision Pro mixed-reality headset is launching in early 2024 — more than six months after it was announced in June — and it’s reportedly spending more on artificial intelligence to win back sales.