Live Photos Shown Off In New Hands-On Video

One of the brand new features for the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus is Live Photos, which captures an additional 3 seconds of video around a still image and plays it through when a user 3D Touches the photo. We went hands on with the new feature and experimented with it.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.

To use Live Photos, a user just has to take a normal photo when the "live" icon in the upper center of the screen is lit up. The iPhone automatically captures 1.5 seconds of video before and after the photo and stitches it all together. Because Live Photos combines video and still images, the new format takes up double the space a regular photo would.

While reviewers were largely positive on Live Photos, first impressions from users haven't been as kind. MacRumors forum member kungxpao said that he turned the feature off after a few test shots. However, some users see potential in the feature, like fellow forum member Conan86.

Live Photo is a great feature when you create them intentionally. I hope Apple would allow us to remove accidental "live" portions of a photo as I probably wouldn't hold 3 seconds to take a photo every single time.

Only the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus can create Live Photos, but they are viewable on all iOS 9 devices and Macs running OS X El Capitan. Eventually, Live Photos will also be shareable on social media services like Facebook and Instagram.

Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

macfoxpro Avatar
112 months ago
Live Photos are cool, but 3D Touch will change the whole game from here on out.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
greytmom Avatar
112 months ago
My dogs are going to be so sick of me taking photos of them.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
b3ats Avatar
112 months ago

Live Photo is a great feature when you create them intentionally. I hope Apple would allow us to remove accidental "live" portions of a photo as I probably wouldn't hold 3 seconds to take a photo every single time.
If you did it by mistake you can just go to edit and turn the Live Photo off by pressing the icon. Also, if you try to crop the photo it removes the live element permanently.

I think it's a great feature. I got a photo of a pint of Guinness settling for my lock screen. It's pretty cool - the bubbles go both up & down.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
east85 Avatar
112 months ago
Seems like one of those features I'd turn off as soon as I got the phone.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
swingerofbirch Avatar
112 months ago
Only Apple could get away with moving pictures as a tentpole feature.

Moving pictures=motion pictures=movies.

I've never used Vine, but I'm guessing that's what inspired this. I think if it were any other company, the press would be calling it a Vine-like feature, and there would be headlines like, "Do 6-second Vines need to be even shorter? Samsung says so!" And John Gruber would be writing some tripe about Samsung being out of ideas and copying everyone.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Otis Bagotis Avatar
112 months ago
there are a few things I don't like about the implementation. For one the pic is taken with 1.5 sec delay. So you might miss the right time point for the pic although the movie captures that.

Also I don't get the blurry first half second on replay. Why is it blurry? It looks like the movie captures the focussing of the camera.

And the click and hold to make them play in the photo app is also not very intuitive.

The idea itself is good and fun however.
I think you're mistaken on how it actually works. When the camera app is open it is continuously recording whatever you're pointing the camera at. Once you click/press the shutter button it saves the 1.5 seconds of video before and after the click and discards the rest.

There is no wait time from when you click/press the button and when the picture is taken.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Delta Feature

Delta Game Emulator Now Available From App Store on iPhone

Wednesday April 17, 2024 9:58 am PDT by
Game emulator apps have come and gone since Apple announced App Store support for them on April 5, but now popular game emulator Delta from developer Riley Testut is available for download. Testut is known as the developer behind GBA4iOS, an open-source emulator that was available for a brief time more than a decade ago. GBA4iOS led to Delta, an emulator that has been available outside of...
iOS NES Emulator Bimmy Feature

NES Emulator for iPhone and iPad Now Available on App Store [Removed]

Tuesday April 16, 2024 11:33 am PDT by
The first approved Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) emulator for the iPhone and iPad was made available on the App Store today following Apple's rule change. The emulator is called Bimmy, and it was developed by Tom Salvo. On the App Store, Bimmy is described as a tool for testing and playing public domain/"homebrew" games created for the NES, but the app allows you to load ROMs for any...
iPhone 15 Pro Action Button Translate

All iPhone 16 Models to Feature Action Button, But Usefulness Debated

Tuesday April 16, 2024 6:54 am PDT by
Last September, Apple's iPhone 15 Pro models debuted with a new customizable Action button, offering faster access to a handful of functions, as well as the ability to assign Shortcuts. Apple is poised to include the feature on all upcoming iPhone 16 models, so we asked iPhone 15 Pro users what their experience has been with the additional button so far. The Action button replaces the switch ...
maxresdefault

Hands-On With the New App Store Delta Game Emulator

Wednesday April 17, 2024 12:19 pm PDT by
A decade ago, developer Riley Testut released the GBA4iOS emulator for iOS, and since it was against the rules at the time, Apple put a stop to downloads. Emulators have been a violation of the App Store rules for years, but that changed on April 5 when Apple suddenly reversed course and said that it was allowing retro game emulators on the App Store. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel ...
iOS 18 Siri Integrated Feature

iOS 18 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Friday April 12, 2024 11:11 am PDT by
iOS 18 is expected to be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. iOS 18 is rumored to include new generative AI features for Siri and many apps, and Apple plans to add RCS support to the Messages app for an improved texting experience between iPhones and Android devices. The update is also expected to introduce a more...