The iPhone 16 has a feature we thought was iPhone 16 Pro-only — this is good news
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Not to be outdone by the new video recording capabilities of the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max, Apple also carved out time during its ‘Glowtime’ event to talk about the audio recording features in its new phones. Specifically, the new Audio Mixing feature that allows the iPhone 16 Pro devices to adjust the sound capture with video recordings — so that the audio can focus on a specific source or blend multiple ones.
Apple showed off how it works with actors playing out a scene inside of a restaurant, with two actors talking amongst themselves while a waitress off screen interrupts them with their food orders. With Audio Mixing, the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max are able to isolate the audio to only the individuals in the frame — while essentially removing all other background noise. What’s interesting about this is that Apple repeatedly mentions this for the iPhone 16 Pro models.
But it turns out that this is coming to the standard iPhone 16 models. One quick scroll through the specs page for the iPhone 16 lineup, the Audio Mix feature is clearly listed under the video recording section. This info is also in Apple’s press release for iPhone 16 — it just seemed like Audio Mixing was a Pro-only feature at first. That’s big news for anyone thinking about getting this year’s non-Pro models, especially the cheapest of the bunch in the iPhone 16.
In our iPhone 16 hands-on review, we’re particular about how it receives even more ‘Pro’ features than before, which lessens the gap considerably between them. For example, the iPhone 16 gains spatial video recording, offers macro photography with its new ultrawide camera, and it even boasts the same Apple Intelligence features found on the Pro models.
Now we can add Audio Mix to the list, which gives the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus the same post video recording ability to edit how the audio sounds. Shooters will have much more control for tuning the audio to fit their scenes. For example, you’ll be able to use Audio Mixing to better balance the audio for interviews — so that the voice behind the camera can have just as much presence as the person being videoed in front of the camera.
Preorders for the entire iPhone 16 lineup begin on Friday, September 13 — with general availability slated for September 20. Considering how the iPhone 16 starts at $799, the surprising addition of Audio Mixing deepens its camera capabilities even more.
