iPhone owners are only now realizing what the mysterious black circle on the back next to the camera does
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- The sensor is located on the back next to the camera array
- Enables cool features including measuring your height
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Users of the latest iPhone Pro models are just getting to grips with the functions of a mysterious black circle next to the cameras on the back of the latest iPhone models.
In a recent Reddit post with 1,400 votes, a user was seen circling the mysterious circle and simply asking, “What’s it for?”
The Circle is only found in the latest iPhone Pro models and certain iPad Pro models – and is actually quite useful, as it enables some of the device’s coolest apps and features.
The dot, which is built into the camera array, is actually a LiDAR scanner (which stands for Light Detection and Ranging).
The black ‘dot’ is seen here on an iPhone 14 Pro (Apple)
The sensor allows the Measure app to calculate people’s height (Apple)
Simply put, it’s a depth sensor that uses lasers to calculate how far things are away.
It works by aiming a pulsed laser at an object and measuring how long it takes for the light to return, allowing the iPhone or iPad to “build” a 3D model of the world in front of it.
LiDAR technology has been used to uncover lost cities in the Amazon by “digitally deforesting” the canopy and finding ruins beneath, and is also being used in self-driving cars to “sense” distance from other vehicles.
But on iPhones, it’s being used to power advanced photography and augmented reality apps that “sense” how far away things are — and apps that can automatically measure someone’s height, for example.
Apple says, “The LiDAR Scanner measures the distance to surrounding objects up to 5 meters away, works both indoors and outdoors, and operates at nanosecond speeds at the photon level.”
It allows apps like Apple’s own Measure app to measure lengths, widths and area with pinpoint accuracy – and even measure people’s heights using the LiDAR sensor.
Apple says, “The LiDAR scanner enhances the Measure app, making it faster and easier to automatically calculate someone’s height, while automatically popping up handy vertical and edge guides that help users measure objects faster and more accurately.
“The Measure app also now comes with Ruler View for more detailed measurements and allows users to save a list of all measurements, complete with screenshots for future reference.”
The sensor also appears on iPad Pro models (Apple)
The technology also helps the camera in Pro models take better photos, especially in low light, and makes autofocus work faster.
There are also many apps that take advantage of the technology: Polycam is a 3D scanner that quickly builds virtual models of 3D objects and spaces using the LiDAR sensor, and can be used to capture 3D objects for the fun or for space planning.
The technology also enables augmented reality apps where virtual objects interact with the ‘real’ world.
Apple says LiDAR allows apps to “allow virtual content to interact realistically with the physical environment, such as bouncing a virtual ball against a wall in the real world and allowing the ball to follow the laws of physics.”
IKEA Place, for example, uses augmented reality to place IKEA furniture, such as sofas, lamps and bookcases, in your home and see how well they fit.