Apple’s Radical Changes Hint At Major iPhone Camera Redesign, Report Claims

The iPhone camera will soon undergo radical changes, including a redesigned interface with a new look and feel borrowed from visionOS, Apple’s operating system for the Apple Vision Pro.

As Front Page Tech’s Jon Prosser recently revealed, Apple may soon implement sweeping design changes to the built-in camera app. These changes would impact not only the app's visual appearance but also the usability and accessibility of key features.

he video above shows that the leaked camera app has a radical new look and feel reminiscent of Apple’s visionOS platform. It also significantly changes the app’s control layout. Prosser’s information is based on a leaked video of an unreleased version of the iPhone camera app, which is slated to arrive as part of iOS 19 later this year. Prosser avoided showing the original video to protect his source, opting instead to share a reconstruction made from scratch.

Leaked iOS 19 Camera App — What Has Changed?

The most significant changes include:

• A complete visual overhaul aligning with visionOS
• Transparent menus
• The whole app feels “more fluid”
• A larger viewfinder that uses up more of the screen than on iOS 18
• Camera controls split into Photo and Video modes like the Google Pixel camera
• Quick access to settings at the top of the screen
• Many settings remain hidden until you swipe through a menu

This leaked camera app looks very different from the current iOS version, featuring design elements from Vision OS, particularly in its increased use of transparency effects. Prosser suggests that these changes might signify a more radical design overhaul to iOS itself, which he then illustrates with a mock-up of a visionOS-style home screen, complete with round icons that also happen to look decidedly Android-like.

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As always, Apple has not indicated that this leaked camera app, or anything like it, will appear in iOS 19, and Prosser’s vision for the future of iOS is pure speculation at this point. However, he notes that it would be “weird” for Apple to redesign the camera app without changing the rest of iOS to match. If real, this new camera app could hint at a whole new iPhone experience for future versions of iOS.

However, Prosser suspects that while the camera app won’t be the only part of iOS that receives a visionOS-style makeover, these radical changes might apply only to “core” sections of iOS initially, such as the built-in Music, Notes and Wallet apps.

Leaked iOS 19 Camera App — A Mixed Response

Responses to the leak have been mixed so far. Aside from the predictable resistance to change expressed by many, some feel that the round icons are too Android-like, while others bemoan that some controls require more taps and swipes to access than they do with the iOS 18 camera.

A few extra swipes may not seem like much in general, but in a camera app, this sort of change can make the difference between capturing a moment and missing it entirely.

It’s important to note here that it’s much too early to comment on the usability of the new interface. Many changes will likely occur before release, and there are many unknown details that could make a big difference in how the app works in practice. For example, Apple could automatically place your most frequently-used controls at the start of the menu or find other ways to reduce the amount of swiping and tapping required to reach the features you want.

iOS and visionOS — very different beasts

Ultimately, iOS and visionOS are very different beasts. An operating system like visionOS, designed for immersive mixed-reality computing, has very different priorities when it comes to features such as translucent interface elements when compared to iOS which is designed for small, hand-held displays.

Either way, this leak provides valuable insight into how Apple could be designing future versions the iPhone camera and iOS.