iPhone 15 Pro users may soon get Visual Intelligence
This could arrive as soon as April this year
When Apple announced Apple Intelligence, it almost seemed tailor-made for the iPhone 16, leaving older iPhones—like the iPhone 15 Pro models—with limited features or just scraps of the update.
While the iPhone 15 Pro did receive some Apple Intelligence features, such as writing tools and summaries, key capabilities like Visual Intelligence were left out due to hardware limitations.
That may be about to change, as reports suggest Apple will bring Visual Intelligence to the iPhone 15 Pro models in an upcoming update.
Oyinebiladou Omemu
Apple's Visual Intelligence works similarly to Google Lens, allowing users to identify objects or interact with them in real-time using their iPhone camera. For instance, pointing the camera at a plant can identify its species, or scanning a flyer can instantly add an event to your calendar.
Unlike Google Lens though, Visual Intelligence isn’t just free for anyone to use. When it first launched, the only way to access it was through the new 'camera control' button, which is exclusive to the iPhone 16 series. But when Apple released the iPhone 16e, they made it available through both the Action button and the Control Panel, since that model doesn’t have the extra camera button.
Now, reports say Apple plans to do the same for the iPhone 15 Pro models in an upcoming software update. It’s not exactly clear which update will bring this change, but rumours point to iOS 18.4, which could be coming as soon as April this year.
While this addition is welcome, Apple’s rollout feels a bit slow, and adoption among older iPhone users may lag. With many users trusting alternatives like Google Lens—used over 12 billion times a month—Apple’s Visual Intelligence could struggle to gain traction.
This update may not be groundbreaking, but at least it gives iPhone users a new way to look at things. Pun intended 😄
Louis Eriakha
