iOS 18.2 makes Camera Control the killer feature it was always meant to be

The iPhone 16’s camera controls have received mixed reviews; including mine. But iOS 18.2 upgrades the feature in a few key ways, making it what it is.

Visual intelligence unlocks new camera superpowers

The biggest change in camera control in iOS 18.2 is visual intelligence.

With a long press of Camera Control, iPhone’s camera can be launched into a special mode that provides key information about the world around you and shortcuts to take action based on that information.

Apple describes it like this:

Users can tap and hold the Camera Control to bring up hours or ratings of restaurants they pass, add events from flyers to their calendar, quickly identify dogs by breed, and more. Camera Control will also act as a gateway to third-party tools with specific domain expertise, such as when users want to search on Google to find where they can buy something, or benefit from ChatGPT’s problem-solving skills.

My colleague Fernando created a video outlining 10 different uses of visual intelligence. I highly recommend you check it out to see what your iPhone 16 can now do with iOS 18.2.

Faster camera launcher than before

Another key upgrade in iOS 18.2 is that you can use camera controls to launch the camera app faster than ever.

By accessing Settings ⇾ Display & Brightness you will find a new switch For camera controls: “Requires screen to be on.”

iOS 18.2 has this switch turned on by default, which makes camera controls work as usual. but if you switch it leaveyou can launch the camera even if your iPhone’s display is off.

Basically, this eliminates a step and allows you to capture images faster. No more pressing Camera Control once to wake your device, then pressing it again to launch the camera (or tapping the display first to wake it up).

Just pick up your iPhone, press Camera Control, and your camera is ready to shoot.

More new features and settings

iOS 18.2 also introduces a two-stage shutter feature, just like Apple demonstrated in September.

There is a new AE/AF Lock toggle in Settings ⇾ Camera ⇾ Camera Controls.

Enabling this feature means tapping Camera Control will lock focus and exposure, so you can tap to lock in those details and then press harder to actually take the photo.

There’s also a new option in Settings ⇾ Accessibility ⇾ Camera Controls to control the speed of double-click operations. You can choose from three options: Preset, Slow, and Slower.

iOS 18.2 camera control summary

Camera controls in iOS 18.2 were a feature Apple clearly wanted to offer with the iPhone 16 but failed to deliver. It makes the new dedicated button more useful than before, so it actually becomes the killer feature it was always meant to be.

Have you used camera controls in iOS 18.2? What do you think of these changes? Let us know in the comments.

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