Jason Hiner/ZDNET — During Apple’s highly anticipated 2025 product showcase, which introduced the new lineup of iPhones, AirPods, and Apple Watches, much of the focus surprisingly bypassed Siri improvements and the overarching concept of Apple Intelligence. Although those elements drew little attention, Apple discreetly unveiled two remarkably significant artificial intelligence–powered capabilities. These innovations, while momentous, initially escaped widespread notice since they were framed simply as user-friendly feature enhancements rather than dressed in the inflated terminology of AI marketing hype.
Later, when I was given the chance to test both of these additions in person at Apple Park, my immediate assessment was that they seemed astonishingly polished — nearly finalized, in fact — and ready to deliver tangible improvements to everyday interactions. Personally, those are the types of features I find most compelling to discuss: not distant conceptual promises, but tools that seem poised to subtly but powerfully enhance routine life almost immediately.
**1. An intelligent, auto-framing selfie camera**
Apple has re-engineered the iPhone’s front-facing camera for the iPhone 17 series, introducing a square-shaped sensor that dramatically improves photographic versatility. Unlike prior generations capped at 12 megapixels, this new sensor doubles the resolution to 24MP. Because the sensor is square rather than rectangular, the final image output measures 18 megapixels, cleverly optimized for either vertical or horizontal framing. This design allows users to capture photos with consistent clarity, no matter the selected orientation.
Previously, anyone wanting to switch from portrait to landscape mode had to physically rotate the device — an acceptable yet sometimes cumbersome action. Now, with this redesigned system, the user can simply tap an on-screen rotate button, and the camera will instantly reframe the shot into the opposite orientation while maintaining exceptional sharpness. The ultra-wide sensor, enriched by its doubled pixel count, ensures photographs remain crisp in both portrait and landscape modes, making it easier to adapt on the fly.
Here is where artificial intelligence intervenes most impressively: the new front-facing camera supports Auto Zoom and Auto Rotate modes. When activated, the system can intelligently detect faces in the frame and automatically determine whether it should zoom closer for intimacy or pull back for inclusion. It can even evaluate whether a vertical or horizontal composition better accommodates multiple people in the photograph. This aligns with Apple’s ongoing “Center Stage” branding — a term previously used for video calling features on iPad and Mac, which automatically keep the speaker in focus. However, in the context of the iPhone 17, Center Stage specifically refers to still photography rather than live video. Importantly, the goal of this feature differs: while Macs and iPads enhance solo presenters during calls, the iPhone’s camera enhancement is optimized for group selfies, refining how people capture social moments together.
After experimenting with this feature on multiple demo units at Apple Park, I found the functionality not only intuitive but also profoundly practical. It legitimately feels like the most intelligent and versatile selfie camera currently available on the market. My expectation is that other manufacturers will be compelled to replicate this system quickly — perhaps by early 2026. Even better for consumers, Apple has chosen not to limit the innovation to only its most premium devices. The intelligent front-facing camera debuts not only on the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max but also on the standard iPhone 17 and the new iPhone Air, ensuring broader accessibility. Considering Apple reports that iPhone users took around 500 billion selfies last year, this widespread availability underscores just how impactful the feature may become for everyday photography across millions of users.
**2. Real-time translation through AirPods Pro 3**
When it comes to the practical application of artificial intelligence, few use cases demonstrate its transformative potential more effectively than language translation. Leveraging large language models to bridge linguistic divides is a straightforward yet extraordinarily valuable function — one that can fundamentally alter how humans communicate across cultures. Historically, Apple trailed competitors like Google in this space. Google Translate, for instance, has supported an astounding 249 languages since debuting in 2006, whereas Apple’s Translate application, which only became available in 2020, currently provides translations in just 20 languages. Despite that disparity, AI has given Apple the opportunity to close the gap meaningfully by embedding translation into products people already use on a daily basis.
Although Google has frequently showcased its own prototypes of live, real-time translation working across smartphones and earbuds, those demonstrations rarely translated into smooth, reliable results during real usage. Even the Pixel 10 event earlier this year highlighted this limitation: despite Google’s onstage emphasis, the translation stumbled noticeably during the demonstration itself, raising doubts about practical deployment.
Apple, however, has introduced a more refined alternative with its AirPods Pro 3. Alongside the new earbuds, the company unveiled an integrated Live Translation feature. While this initial implementation supports fewer languages than Google’s massive catalog — specifically English, Spanish, French, German, and Portuguese during the beta phase — Apple’s offering emphasizes utility and simplicity over sheer breadth. When I tested it on-site with other journalists in Cupertino, the system’s performance was impressively seamless.
During the demo, a native Spanish speaker engaged us in conversation while we wore AirPods Pro 3 connected to an iPhone 17 Pro. Upon recognition, the headphones instantly activated noise cancellation (ANC mode) to minimize distractions and focus our attention. As the Spanish words were spoken, they were translated in real time into fluid English, which we could hear directly in our ears. This allowed us to maintain natural eye contact with the speaker instead of glancing repeatedly at a screen for translated text. Having some familiarity with Spanish myself, I could confirm that the translations were not only accurate but also smooth, free from glitches or interruptions. By contrast, Google’s recent attempts aimed to replicate intonation and vocal characteristics using AI-generated voices, but Apple’s choice to prioritize reliability over such theatrical flair made the experience feel considerably more practical.
Although the heavy processing behind the translations occurs on the iPhone itself, AirPods amplify the effectiveness of the experience by intelligently managing noise and output. Importantly, Apple has ensured this capability is not restricted exclusively to the latest hardware. While AirPods Pro 3 provide the most streamlined experience, supported translation will also function with AirPods Pro 2 and the newly released AirPods 4, provided they are paired with an iPhone compatible with Apple Intelligence (namely, iPhone 15 Pro or later models). This commitment to backward compatibility significantly broadens access for consumers.
Looking forward, I plan to compare Apple’s solution against Google’s, specifically testing the Pixel 10 Pro XL paired with Pixel Buds Pro 2 against the iPhone 17 Pro Max with AirPods Pro 3. Because I frequently interact with friends and colleagues fluent in the supported languages, I will have ample opportunities to evaluate Apple’s live translation in real-world, multilingual scenarios, providing deeper insight into its long-term effectiveness.
Ultimately, what Apple demonstrated this year was not an extravagant vision of AI saturated with unrealistic promises, but instead two immediately valuable tools strategically integrated into devices people already depend on. Whether it is an intelligent camera that ensures your group photos are impeccably framed or earbuds that allow you to converse fluidly with someone in a different language, Apple is quietly but decisively advancing how technology meaningfully improves daily life.
Sourse: https://www.zdnet.com/article/i-tried-apples-2-big-ai-features-announced-at-the-iphone-17-event-and-both-are-game-changers/
