According to foreign technology media MacRumors, the iPhone 16 Pro has entered the “Proto2” development stage. Apple has decided to abandon the previous prototype design. The operation button design is similar to the iPhone 15 Pro model.
The media report that Apple tested four button configurations and two sizes when developing the iPhone 16 Pro model:
Unified volume buttons with small action buttons
Unified volume buttons with large action buttons and new camera button
Independent volume buttons, large operation buttons and camera buttons are flush with the frame
Independent volume buttons, small operation buttons, camera button and frameThe earliest prototype of iPhone 16 Pro was designed by Project Bongo. It had a unified volume button and a small multi-function button, both located on the left, and the power button was located on the right. However, due to unsatisfactory test results and high hardware failure rate, Apple abandoned this design.
But part of Project Bongo’s design, the unified volume buttons, showed up in early designs for the iPhone 16 Pro.
The second prototype of the iPhone 16 Pro also uses unified volume buttons, but it has a larger action button that is close to the size of the volume buttons. The prototype also adds a camera button below the right side of the power button.
Later prototypes (pictured above) featured separate volume buttons rather than a unified button design. Apple plans to add capacitive action buttons and camera buttons to these new products, both of which are flush with the bezel and use force sensor technology.
In the latest “Proto2” design, Apple has changed the action buttons again. Now, Apple has gone with a smaller action button that’s essentially the same as the one on the iPhone 15 Pro, ditching the larger flush look.
While it’s unclear how this affects Apple’s future work on the capacitive action button, such a significant design change suggests it has been canceled or delayed to a future iPhone version.
