iPhone 15 Pro to Get Visual Intelligence in Future Update, Likely iOS 18.4

Apple's new iPhone 16e, announced on Wednesday, supports Visual Intelligence despite having no Camera Control button, and now Apple has confirmed that the Apple Intelligence feature is coming to the iPhone 15 Pro as well in a future software update.

Apple Visual Intelligence
On iPhone 16 models, Visual Intelligence lets you use the camera to learn more about places and objects around you. It can also summarize text, read text out loud, translate text, search Google for items, ask ChatGPT, and more.

The feature is activated via the Camera Control button that's exclusive to iPhone 16 models. It was thought that the extra button was necessary to activate the feature, but the new iPhone 16e lacks such a button. Instead, Visual Intelligence can be assigned to the device's Action button or enabled via Control Center.

Now, Apple has told Daring Fireball's John Gruber that Visual Intelligence is coming to the iPhone 15 Pro "in a future software update." Like the iPhone 16e, the iPhone 15 Pro doesn't have a Camera Control button, but Apple says the function will be able to be launched in the Control Center interface or via the Action button once the update drops.

Apple would not confirm whether the update in question is iOS 18.4, beta releases for which are expected any day now. But given that the iPhone 16e will become available to buy on February 28, iOS 18.4 seems like the most likely update that will bring Visual Intelligence to the iPhone 15 Pro. Following yesterday's debut of the iPhone 16e, Apple updated its website to indicate that iOS 18.4 will be released publicly in early April.

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Top Rated Comments

chfilm Avatar
8 months ago
To withhold this from the 15 pro was a classic upselling move in the first place..
Score: 47 Votes (Like | Disagree)
turbineseaplane Avatar
8 months ago

Apple doing what it can to leverage early adopter sales. Shady, and what we all knew that the device could do it already. The bar keeps getting set lower on what innovation from them.
The hilarious part is that folks were just defending the iPhone 16e getting it, but not the 15 Pro, due to "hardware limitations of the A17 Pro"
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BarrettF77 Avatar
8 months ago
Apple doing what it can to leverage early adopter sales. Shady, and what we all knew that the device could do it already. The bar keeps getting set lower on what innovation from them.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
surferfb Avatar
8 months ago
Apple now getting slammed for adding a new feature to older devices - I've seen everything. Do we seriously think people actually upgraded their iPhone 15 Pros to 16 Pros for Visual Intelligence?
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
turbineseaplane Avatar
8 months ago
When the differences between 15 Pro & 16 Pro are so minimal ... holding back something artificially and then advertising that same feature as one of the few "new" things you get when going 16 Pro...

Is just a bad bad look




Attachment Image
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CalMin Avatar
8 months ago
Wow. I’m glad I’m getting it but dang, they should have done this months ago.

The Apple intelligence roll out really is a cluster brought about by Tim feeling that he had to tell Wall Street that they were doing AI. He is all about the stock price and while I accept that is his job, if they get the products right, the stock price will follow.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)