Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Apple patent hints at Force Touch volume rocker on a future iPhone

Christian de Looper
By

It looks like Apple is continuing to wage its war on physical buttons. The company has already removed function keys from the keyboard on the MacBook Pro with the Touch Bar, as well as eliminated the Home button from the iPhone. Now, it could be the volume rocker’s turn — Apple has filed a patent for a touch-sensitive rocker switch that could ultimately find its way to the iPhone and perhaps even the Apple Watch.

The patent itself is a continuation of a patent that was filed in 2016, and highlights the use of multiple force sensors and a capacitive sensing surface in place of a rocker switch like the volume rocker on an iPhone. This could make for a much more aesthetically pleasing look for the iPhone, while limiting the number of physical, breakable buttons on the device.

Recommended Videos

This wouldn’t be the first time that Apple has used its Force Touch tech. Not only do laptops employ the tech in the touchpad, but current iPhones also use it under the display as a way to interact with some aspects of the software. On the iPhone, the tech is called 3D Touch. Ultimately, the tech could be more appropriate on the Apple Watch. Apple is increasingly working on making the Apple Watch more of a fitness tracker, which means it will need to make it more rugged too. Currently, the device has a Digital Crown and a button on the side — but if those physical controls could be replaced with a Force Touch button, it could make the device a little less likely to break or suffer water damage. The images in the patent show both iPhones and Apple Watches.

Related

Of course, this particular patent relates specifically to rocker switches, like the volume rocker on the iPhone. If Apple does end up using Force Touch controls on the iPhone instead of the volume rocker, the device could look a little sleeker and minimalist.

Ultimately, this just a patent — so it’s entirely possible that the tech will never end up being used in volume rockers. Apple routinely files patents for tech it doesn’t end up using.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper
Contributor
Christian’s interest in technology began as a child in Australia, when he stumbled upon a computer at a garage sale that he…
Here’s how Apple could change your iPhone forever
An iPhone 15 Pro Max laying on its back, showing its home screen.

Over the past few months, Apple has released a steady stream of research papers detailing its work with generative AI. So far, Apple has been tight-lipped about what exactly is cooking in its research labs, while rumors circulate that Apple is in talks with Google to license its Gemini AI for iPhones.

But there have been a couple of teasers of what we can expect. In February, an Apple research paper detailed an open-source model called MLLM-Guided Image Editing (MGIE) that is capable of media editing using natural language instructions from users. Now, another research paper on Ferret UI has sent the AI community into a frenzy.

Read more
There’s a big problem with the iPhone’s Photos app
The Apple iPhone 15 Plus's gallery app.

While my primary device these days continues to be my iPhone 15 Pro, I’ve dabbled with plenty of Android phones since I’ve been here at Digital Trends. One of my favorite brands of phone has been the Google Pixel because of its strong suite of photo-editing tools and good camera hardware.

Google first added the Magic Eraser capability with the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, which is a tool I love using. Then, with the Pixel 8 series, Google added the Magic Editor, which uses generative AI to make edits that wouldn’t be possible otherwise. There are also tools like Photo Unblur, which is great for old photographs and enhancing images that were captured with low-quality sensors.

Read more
Why you should buy the iPhone 15 Pro Max instead of the iPhone 15 Pro
Someone holding an iPhone 15 Pro Max outside on a patio, showing the back of the Natural Titanium color.

If you want the best iPhone money can buy in 2024, you have two options: the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max. They have the same chipset, similar display technology, nearly identical cameras, etc. It's a really close battle, save for the fact that the iPhone 15 Pro is $200 cheaper.

It might be tempting to save some cash and choose the iPhone 15 Pro, but I recommend you splurge for the larger (and more expensive) iPhone 15 Pro Max. Why? Let me explain.
It's a big iPhone you won't hate using

Read more