iOS 18.1 Beta 4 enables spatial photo shooting on selected iPhones

Last year, Apple introduced spatial video recording on the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, which allowed users to record immersive clips to watch on their Vision Pro headsets. With iOS 18.1 beta 4, the company is now extending support for spatial recording to images. While the Vision Pro can already view regular footage in 3D, using the dedicated spatial photo mode should produce better results.

iOS 18.1 beta 4 includes a new Spatial Mode tab in the built-in Camera app. When you enter this tab, you'll see a switch that allows users to switch between spatial photo and spatial video capture. Note that you'll need to hold your compatible iPhone in landscape mode to use Spatial Mode. This allows the rear lenses to capture the depth data needed to create spatial media.

Since the latest non-Pro iPhone models have switched from diagonal to vertically aligned rear lenses, the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus will also be able to capture spatial photos and videos, which should further popularize the feature among the few Apple Vision Pro users.

In addition to support for spatial photo capture, iOS 18.1 beta 4 includes the changes Apple first offered in the iOS 18 release candidate, including support for pausing video recording and the new watch faces in watchOS 11 that were introduced during the iPhone 16 event.

iOS 18.1 will be available to all users next month. Notable changes include phone call recording and transcription, as well as the first Apple Intelligence features.