iOS 18 lets you pause video recordings now – and hints at a new AirPods Pro 3 feature

iOS 18 overview
The wait for iOS 18 is almost over (Image credit: Apple)

As the dust settles on the rather busy iPhone 16 launch event, more and more details are coming to light about the new devices and software that Apple is now rolling out – including the iOS 18 update due next week (Monday, September 16).

The team at 9to5Mac has done some digging and discovered the ability to pause video recordings in the iOS 18 Release Candidate (that's the finalized testing version that immediately precedes a public launch).

This ties in with a demo we saw at Apple's show, in which the iPhone 16 (and its new Camera Control button) was shown pausing a video midway through the recording – very handy for doing jump cuts between scenes in a single video file.

The new discovery suggests the feature is also coming to every other iPhone that's able to run iOS 18. When recording a video, a pause button appears in the lower left-hand corner, and you can tap to temporarily stop and restart the recording.

iOS 18 and the AirPods Pro 3

Apple AirPods 4

The AirPods 4 come with a hearing aid feature (Image credit: Apple)

Some further investigation into the iOS 18 code by 9to5Mac has revealed a reference to wireless earbuds with a heart rate sensor: "wear both earbuds during workouts to track and send your heart rate to Apple Health" reads part of the message.

As verified with insider sources, this means health sensors are likely on the way to both the AirPods Pro 3 and the next-gen PowerBeats Pro earbuds. Both those devices are expected to launch at some point during 2025.

Yesterday we got the unveiling of the AirPods 4 wireless earbuds, featuring a number of useful upgrades: improved sound (as you would expect), a refreshed design, and active noise cancellation on the more expensive of the two pairs.

Thanks to the iOS 18 code we now know there's more on the way for the more expensive version of Apple's wireless earbuds – in addition to infrared cameras, perhaps. The Apple AirPods Pro 2 were launched back in 2022, with a small refresh in 2023.

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David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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