Apple's new iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max pack a few neat and interesting features, but there's one that might make a bigger impact than the rest. These latest smartphones feature an Action Button instead of a mute switch, which has been a staple on the iPhone since the very first one. If the Action Button sounds familiar, that's because it is. The company first introduced it on the Apple Watch Ultra, but now a tweaked version is coming to the iPhone 15 Pro series. The button is completely customizable, so while it is set to mute and unmute by default, it can do just about anything.
There are eight preset actions that you can trigger with the Action Button right now, and that doesn't include the fact that you can make the Action Button do nothing if you choose. However, since one action allows you to map the Action button to a shortcut, the possibilities extend far beyond its eight default uses. We've rounded up 10 of the best uses for the Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro, which includes some of Apple's default options but also features custom ones via the Shortcuts app.
1 Silent mode
A classic use for this button is to turn silent mode on or off, and I'm sure a lot of iPhone 15 Pro users will leave this as its default action. It's nice to know that you can still mute and unmute your iPhone, so people who prefer the mute switch can keep a physical button, and it's a solution for people who prefer the mute switch. If you like to leave your phone unmuted but frequently need to silence it for meetings or classes, this is the Action Button mapping for you.
2 Rotation lock
If you're not a longtime Apple user, you might not know that the company put a mute switch of sorts on early iPad models. It could be programmed to adjust silent mode or change your rotation lock setting. It was a great tool, as you could quickly switch the rotation lock off to change your orientation and then turn it back on. Apple removed it from recent iPad models, and the feature was never available on iPhone. Now, with iPhone 15 Pro, you can create a shortcut to change your rotation lock setting and map it to the Action Button.
3 Focus modes
Apple introduced Focus a few years ago, which allows you to create notification profiles for work, school, personal, sleep, or just about anything else. Changing this previously required journeying to the Settings app or the Control Center, but you can now map the Action Button to this function. This preference doesn't cycle through your Focus modes, though. It simply turns a specific Focus mode on or off. For example, you can set the Action Button to turn do not disturb on or off if you want to silence incoming notifications for a brief time.
4 Camera
I'm not sold that mapping your Action Button to the Camera app is the best use of its customizable nature because there is already a shortcut for it on the lock screen. However, for people who might want to get to it a split-second faster, it might be worth it. For those individuals, this shortcut will undoubtedly be the absolute quickest way to launch the Camera app. Similarly, you can launch the flashlight with the Action Button, but we won't be including it as a standalone option on this list because it can be triggered in many other ways.
5 Voice memos
I have to record a handful of interviews and conversations in my line of work, and that's why programming the Action Button to start recording a voice memo is particularly interesting. If you need to record a voice memo in a pinch, there isn't really a quick solution to help you out. The quickest way to do so would be to create a shortcut and add it as an app on your home screen, but that's an involved process. Instead, using the Action Button as the start button for your voice memos can save you time and ensure you capture all that you need.
6 Accessibility features
One of the default Action Button uses is to enable or access an accessibility feature. This might not be the flashiest use of the new button, but it can be a critical improvement for those who need these tools. Similarly, you can map the Action Button to open the Magnifier app, which is great for people who have a hard time seeing. Since many accessibility features and tools can be used by everybody, you might find a use case in this section that is worth mapping your Action Button to.
7 Low Power Mode
Battery life was a concern with the iPhone 14 series. Although all iPhone 15 phones have larger batteries than the last generation models, and a bigger battery and a more efficient A17 Pro chip might make a slight improvement, you will probably still need to use Low Power Mode. With a shortcut, you can program your Action Button to turn it either on our off. While you might not want this on all the time, it might be useful for traveling or anytime you want to switch it on or off frequently.
8 Apps
If you'd rather have quick access to an app than a feature, you'll be happy to know that your Action Button can be mapped to open your favorite app. It works the same way as creating custom app icons on iPhone via the Shortcuts app. However, instead of adding the app shortcut to your home screen, along with a custom image, you just have to choose the app's shortcut on the Action Button. With this setting, you can open apps quicker than ever on iPhone 15 Pro models.
9 Shazam
Apple acquired Shazam, a music discovery app, back in 2018. Since then, the service has had pretty deep integration with Apple products and services. You could already add a Shazam shortcut to the Control Center or use it with Siri. Now, if you want to identify songs in an instant, you can program the Action Button to run Shazam via the Shortcuts app. For music lovers who can't stand the thought of missing out on the name of a good track, this is the Action Button mapping for you. I've used it with my Apple Watch Ultra for the past year, and it's more useful than you might think.
10 Personal hotspot
If you frequently use your iPhone's hotspot to give your other devices access to cellular data, this Action Button mapping is for you. The personal hotspot on the iPhone is great, but the phone can automatically turn off your hotspot after a period of inactivity. So, if you frequently use the feature, it might be worth having quick access. You'll have instant cellular data when you need it, but you won't waste your data when you don't.
What I'm using my Action button for
Out of all the use cases for the Action button I've detailed here, I'm using my iPhone 15 Pro Max's button to activate my hotspot. To my surprise, even many of the best laptops today don't have 5G support. Since I frequently use my laptops and tablets on the go, I use my iPhone's hotspot more often than most people. I needed to launch it quickly and disable it when I didn't want to waste my high-speed mobile data. Luckily, since the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max have a customizable Action Button, you can make it your own based on your personal preferences.
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- SoC
- Apple A17 Pro
- Display
- 6.1-inch OLED Super Retina XDR
- RAM
- 8GB
- Storage
- 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB
- Battery
- 23 hours
- Ports
- USB-C
The iPhone 15 Pro delivers upgraded performance with the Apple A17 Pro chip, plus a new camera system with enhanced stabilization and other improvements. It's also one of the first iPhones with a USB-C port.
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Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max
- SoC
- Apple A17 Pro
- Display
- 6.7-inch OLED Super Retina XDR
- RAM
- 8GB
- Storage
- 256GB, 512GB, 1TB
- Battery
- 4,422mAh
- Ports
- USB-C
The iPhone 15 Pro Max introduces an all-new, customizable Action button, a titanium chassis with round edges, and a USB Type-C port. It exclusively offers up to 5x optical zoom, too, so it's slightly better than the regular iPhone 15 Pro model.
