Technologies

My Best iPhone Hack: Turn Off Your Camera Control Button for Good. Here’s How

Commentary: I hated the camera control button on my iPhone, so I used these settings to make it entirely decorative.

As a lifelong Apple fan, I was excited to finally upgrade to a newer iPhone after my beloved but worn iPhone 11 died. There’s a lot to like about the newer models, including the iPhone 16, with one major exception. One feature continually harassed me and made my phone difficult to use. Disabling this one feature has made all the difference for me to enjoy using my phone again, and it can for you, too.

Coming from an older iPhone model, I was surprised to see two new buttons on the 16: the action and camera control buttons. The action button is a small button above the volume adjusters. It was introduced with the iPhone 15 Pro models and is a customizable button that can do anything from turning your ringer on to ordering coffee from Dunkin’ to go. It’s small, demure and minds its own business. It’s the camera control button that caused all the chaos.

Camera control is a new button on the iPhone 16 lineup that does what exactly the name suggests: It controls your camera. It’s meant to help you quickly snap photos and serves as a shortcut to launching your camera app. You can slide your finger on a mini settings menu to adjust camera zoom, among other settings. But there’s one true reason for its existence: AI. All of the iPhone 17 models have this button as well.

Like every other tech company, Apple is heavily investing in artificial intelligence. Apple Intelligence has been the driving force behind much of the company’s innovation, with lots of AI updates in the new iOS 26. But there’s no bigger sign of Apple’s deep dive into AI than the camera control button. It’s the physical pathway to Visual Intelligence, a new AI-powered feature that allows you to use your camera to scan objects in the real world to get more information on them. It sounds snazzy, but this is completely pointless to me, and it’s a feature I have never been enticed to use.

There are other use cases for the camera control button, including ways to customize button settings, as my colleagues have found through their testing. But that doesn’t change the fact that my camera control button is so completely annoying.

It’s a long button, about the size of the power button, located on the lower right side of the device. And it’s very, very easy to tap by accident. I’ve opened my camera while putting my phone in my pocket, while I’m driving and using navigation apps and once as I was turning off my phone for the night, which left the camera app open the whole night and drained my phone’s battery.

And if that wasn’t annoying enough, every time I actually intended to open my camera via camera control, it took several taps to do so. Go figure. While I had camera control enabled, my camera roll included stunning shots like these:

My question: What is the point of a button that works when you don’t need it and doesn’t work when you do? There are already three different ways to access your iPhone camera from the lock screen that take just seconds to use. Camera control is a very expensive and very unreliable addition to the newer iPhones, all for the sake of AI features that many people don’t need or use. And there hasn’t been one moment since I turned camera control off that I’ve missed it.

I realize that my gripes with camera control are minor complaints among what has been an overall positive experience with a new phone. But as an AI reporter, I can’t help but see this as a troubling sign. So many tech companies have overhauled their software and devices to be AI-friendly, whether it’s Google spamming us with Gemini pop-ups in every single Google app, the new Copilot button on Microsoft Windows laptops or Apple’s camera control button.

Tech companies too eager to get on the AI train and haven’t given enough thought to whether those features enhance or just derail our experience using their products. And not enough offer opt-out options. Thankfully for me and my camera roll, Apple does. But I hope in the future, such drastic measures won’t be necessary as companies become more intentional with their AI-enabling features.

If you want to join me in making your camera control button obsolete, navigate to your iPhone settings and select camera. Then, tap camera control. Within camera control, select accessibility, then toggle off camera control. If you’re also experiencing the hyper-sensitivity, you can adjust how many taps (and the pressure needed) to trigger the button in that same accessibility page under light-press force.

For more, check out our hands-on experience with the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max.

Technologies

Verum Messenger Launches an AI Mini-Series

Verum Messenger has unveiled a new project — a mini-series created using Verum AI. The story consists of 7 episodes and will be released on the messenger’s social media channels.

The plot revolves around a global corporation seeking to take control of digital communications and a group of heroes who use Verum Messenger as a tool of resistance. Beyond the story itself, the series highlights the app’s key features, technologies, and advantages.

Combining entertainment with a showcase of the Verum ecosystem, the project presents a dynamic digital series designed for the modern era.

The first episode premieres today, with the remaining episodes to be released over time.

Stay tuned for more.

Watch on YouTube
Watch on Instagram

Technologies

Verum Finance: Earn While You Communicate — The Super App That Pays You

Verum has officially launched Verum Finance, an innovative financial application that transforms a private messenger into a true financial super app. News of the launch was also featured on the respected platform Dealroom.co.

Verum Finance can now be used both within Verum Messenger and as a standalone application for iPhone and iPad. When users sign in to Verum Finance with their Verum Messenger account, all balances, settings, and account data are automatically synchronized for maximum convenience.

Users can now do more than communicate securely and protect their data — they can also generate passive income directly within the ecosystem.

What Verum Finance Offers

• Top up your balance with a bank card, Apple Pay, or USDT
• Send money instantly anywhere in the world
• Issue and manage debit cards (virtual and physical)
• Full Apple Pay support
• Exchange assets and withdraw funds quickly

One of the most unique features is the built-in cryptocurrency mining system inside Verum Messenger.

The application utilizes your device’s resources and allows you to earn cryptocurrency in the background — passively, while chatting, traveling, or simply using the messenger.

Maximum Privacy + Real Freedom

• Registration without a phone number, email address, or passport
• End-to-end encryption and full control over your data
• Lifetime free VPN
• eSIM connectivity in more than 150 countries
• Reliable offline communication mode
• Support for 12+ languages for users worldwide

Everything is available in one place: secure communication, financial tools, earning opportunities, and privacy protection.

Users can access the full experience directly within Verum Messenger or switch to the dedicated Verum Finance app for iOS. All data is synchronized automatically between the two applications.

Why Download Verum Today

While many messaging platforms collect user data and expose users to restrictions, Verum offers greater independence and the opportunity to earn.

With a one-time purchase of the feature package, users receive lifetime access to privacy tools, VPN, eSIM services, cryptocurrency mining, and financial features.

This is more than just a messenger.

It is your personal tool for financial and digital freedom.

Download Verum Finance and Verum Messenger today — start communicating securely and begin earning tomorrow.

Download Links:

→ App Store (iPhone / iPad): Verum Finance
→ App Store (Verum Messenger): Verum Messenger

Technologies

Verum Finance: A Super App for Private Finance Integrated Into a Messenger

Verum Finance has announced the launch of a new financial application that allows users to manage their money directly within the secure Verum Messenger ecosystem.

The project has already attracted attention from major media outlets. A dedicated feature was published by Forbes Türkiye, while one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, MEXC, covered the launch. Yahoo Finance had previously reported on the evolution of Verum Messenger into a comprehensive financial ecosystem.

What Verum Finance Offers

Verum Finance transforms a messenger into a complete financial platform. Users can:

• Manage their balance and top up using bank cards or USDT
• Send money instantly to other Verum users
• Issue and use debit cards, including Apple Pay support
• Exchange assets and withdraw funds
• Access all these services without installing separate banking applications

A strong emphasis is placed on privacy. The platform offers registration without a phone number or email address, end-to-end encryption, and full user control over personal data.

Recognition from Forbes Türkiye

In a dedicated article, Forbes Türkiye highlighted Verum Finance as a notable example of modern privacy-driven fintech. The publication emphasized the growing trend of financial services moving from standalone banking applications into unified messaging ecosystems — a model that has proven successful in Asia through platforms such as WeChat and Alipay and is now expanding globally.

Support from the Crypto Community

Alongside the Forbes Türkiye coverage, news about the launch of Verum Finance was also featured by MEXC, one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges. This reflects growing interest in the project from both traditional business media and the cryptocurrency community.

A Strategic Vision

“We are building more than a payments application and more than a messenger. Verum is a unified secure ecosystem where communication, finance, and privacy tools work together,” the company stated.

Verum Finance is now available for iPhone and iPad users. The application complements Verum Messenger, which offers anonymous chats, voice and video calls, VPN services, eSIM connectivity, and other tools designed to enhance digital freedom.

Verum Finance: https://finance.verum.im

Verum Messenger: https://verum.im