In iOS 16, Apple has expanded the reach of its Live Text feature, which can recognize text in not just photos, but also videos now, too. Keep reading to learn how to use it.

ios 16 live text
In iOS 15, Apple introduced a feature called Live Text that can recognize text when it appears in your camera's viewfinder or in a photo you've taken and let you perform several actions with it. In iOS 16, this ability now extends to videos as well.

Rather than just being able to select text in photos, you can now pause a video and interact with the text like you would in an image. Text in any paused video frame can be copied and pasted or translated, plus it works with Apple's Look Up feature.

Live Text works across the operating system in Photos, Camera, Safari, and other apps. Note that Live Text features require an iPhone with an A12 Bionic or later. The ‌‌iPhone‌‌ XR, ‌‌iPhone‌‌ XS, and ‌‌iPhone‌‌ XS Max from 2018 are equipped with an A12 Bionic, so if you have one of these devices or newer you can take advantage of Live Text. Here's how to get it working on video.

  1. Pause the video at the frame that has text showing.
  2. Touch and hold on a word in the text.
  3. Use the two blue markers to narrow or widen your selection.
  4. Next, press and hold to see options including Translate and Copy.


If you opted to translate the text, the translation will appear on the screen automatically. Live Text works with Japanese, Korean, and Ukrainian text in addition to English, Chinese, French, German, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese.

If you chose to copy the text, switch to an app that supports text input, press and hold your finger where the cursor is located, then select Paste from the popup menu.

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Here Are Apple's Full iOS 18.5 Release Notes

Tuesday May 6, 2025 2:17 pm PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate version of iOS 18.5 to developers and public beta testers, giving us a look at the final version of the update that will be provided to the public next week. With the release candidate, Apple provided release notes, so we have a more complete look at the new features that are included in the update, including those that weren't found during the beta...
siri glow

iPhone Users Now Able to Submit Claims in $95 Million Siri Spying Lawsuit

Wednesday May 7, 2025 11:40 am PDT by
If you owned a Siri-compatible device and had an accidental Siri activation between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024, you could be eligible for a payment from Apple as part of a class action lawsuit settlement. Apple in January agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit involving Siri spying accusations, and a website to distribute the funds has now been set up and...
iOS 18

Apple Says iOS 18.5 Coming Soon, Here is What's New

Monday May 5, 2025 8:19 am PDT by
In its press release for the new Pride Band today, Apple said that iOS 18.5 is "upcoming," following more than a month of beta testing. We expect the iOS 18.5 Release Candidate to be released this week, and this should be the final beta version, barring any last-minute bugs or changes. The software update should then be released to the general public next week. iOS 18.5 is a relatively...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17: What's New With the Cameras

Friday May 2, 2025 3:52 pm PDT by
We've still got months to go before the new iPhone 17 models come out, but a combination of dummy models and leaks have given us some insight into what we can expect in terms of camera changes. Apple is adding new camera features, and changing the design of the camera bump for some models. You might be skeptical of dummy models, but over the years, they've proven to be a highly accurate...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Foldable iPhone Said to Have Two Key Advantages

Monday May 5, 2025 6:41 am PDT by
Apple plans to release its first foldable iPhone next year, according to several reporters and analysts who cover the company. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the foldable iPhone will offer two key advantages over other foldable smartphones. First, he said the foldable iPhone will have a "nearly invisible" crease when unfolded. This means the device's...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Tuesday April 29, 2025 1:30 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

iPhone 18 Pro Already Rumored to Have These Seven New Features

Tuesday May 6, 2025 8:25 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro models are still around a year and a half away from launching, there are already several early rumors about the devices. Below, we recap some key iPhone 18 Pro rumors, as of May 2025. Under-Screen Face ID In April 2023, display industry analyst Ross Young shared a roadmap showing that iPhone 17 Pro models would feature under-display Face ID. In May 2024,...