iPhone 15 Ultra: First iPhone that "never" runs out of battery is killing the Mute switch

Since the Action Button will be able to sense pressure, it’s pretty much surefire that you’ll also be able to hold it down to perform even more actions. Really, the sky's the limit here, and it’s all on Apple to decide what features to enable via software. In that line of thought, “Magic Button” would probably be another suitable name for this new button (the name is currently unconfirmed, but knowing Apple, there will be one).

A special microprocessor in the Magic Buttons of iPhone 15 Pro to make sure your iPhone “never runs out of battery”?

Now, the functionality of the iPhone 15 Pro’s state-of-the-art buttons doesn’t stop here, as the anonymous leakster is telling us (again, with absolute certainty, according to them) that the new pressure-sensitive buttons will be powered by their very own micro-processor (similar to the one in AirPods). That applies to both the Action Button and new volume buttons.

The great benefit of switching to this microprocessor is supposed to greatly improve power consumption during those down-times. The new buttons on iPhone 15 Pro will be taking over this “life-saving” functionality thanks to their own microprocessor that will manage contactless transactions, UWB, and Bluetooth connections no matter whether your iPhone is on or dead…

Now, technically, Apple isn’t introducing (at least as far as this leak goes) anything brand new here - at least in terms of functionality. Current iPhones can already perform some important functions even when they are dead. One of them (perhaps the most important one is Find My, which allows your dead iPhone to stay connected to Apple’s Find My network so you can… find it, in case it was lost.

The “catch" is that this functionality is only available for a certain amount of time after your iPhone dies, as stated by Apple’s engineer above (they don’t specify how long). Now, with the new solid-state buttons running on a microprocessor, Apple will be able to give the iPhone “a longer second life”.

For instance, right now, I’m sitting at a coffee shop where I work from time to time, and somehow (exactly the day I’m working on this iPhone 15 Pro button story), I forgot to charge my iPhone 13 mini. I don’t usually carry cash or cards when I’m in town, solely relying on Apple Pay for transactions, which means… I couldn’t pay for my coffee (I was told I could do it next time I’m here; bless up, Hope Cafe).

The leakster also sums up what the microprocessor in the buttons of iPhone 15 Pro will do while on or off...

While powered on:

• Capacitive volume, power and action buttons

While powered off:

• Capacitive volume, power and action buttons
• Drives NFC, LE Bluetooth, LE-UW chips, etc
• Possibly; Taptic Engine feedback

While battery is dead:

So, in a nutshell, Apple is rebuilding the way the iPhone’s buttons work, and while doing so is expected to add a whole world's worth of new functionality to iPhone 15 Pro series. That doesn’t happen that often, but I think, for once, we can all agree that Cupertino is pushing the envelope here.

I expect the new “buttons” on iPhone 15 Pro to be the “Dynamic Island” of Apple’s 2023 September event, with the difference that the new buttons might bring a great deal of real functionality/usability to the iPhone 15 Pro and Ultra. Then again, "innovation" is a relative term - some find the Dynamic Island innovative too.

Again, such a change to how a smartphone works doesn’t happen often - whether we’re talking iPhone or Android, so I’m truly excited to see what Cupertino has in mind, and I would expect surprises. As I said in my initial story about the iPhone 15 Pro’s new buttons, I keep dreaming of a two-stage camera shutter key, and the new “Action” or “Magic” button (as I like to call it), seems to be capable of giving us that.