How To Use Your Apple EarPods To Take A Photo

Apple provided a pair of wired headphones with iPhones up until the iPhone 12 series. Called EarPods, the basic headphones featured an inline microphone and buttons, allowing you to make calls, control music playback, and adjust volume. Apple continued providing EarPods even after getting rid of the headphone jack on the iPhone 7 back in 2016, with later models of the EarPods shipping with a Lightning connector instead of a 3.5mm plug.

While Apple no longer includes EarPods with new phones, it does sell them on its online store. You can pick up EarPods with a Lightning connector or 3.5mm plug for $19. Apple also sells Lightning to 3.5mm and USB-C to 3.5mm adapters for $9. While EarPods don't offer the advanced features you get with AirPods, like noise canceling, spatial audio, and sweat and water resistance, they do have some advantages.

For starters, you don't need to worry about losing one earbud, or keeping an eye on battery life. Plus, since the EarPods don't have a battery, they're much more reliable, and should last as long as the cable doesn't wear out. Another advantage of the EarPods is the ability to capture a photo on your iPhone – a feature the AirPods don't offer.

The three buttons on your EarPods can do a lot more than control music playback. You can go to the previous or next song, fast forward or rewind a track, summon Siri, and even switch between calls. The volume controls can also capture a photo on your iPhone, acting like a physical shutter button. Here's how to use the feature:

1. Plug your EarPods into your iPhone.

2. Open the camera app.

3. Frame your shot.

4. Press the volume up or volume down button to capture a photo.

You can repeatedly press either volume button to capture photos in quick succession. Since the EarPods don't actually need to be in your ears to use this feature, you can leave them plugged into your iPhone and take a selfie. Using the EarPods as a shutter button also comes in handy when you need to make sure your iPhone is steady, such as when capturing photos of the night sky. Both Lightning and 3.5mm EarPods can capture photos on your iPhone, and SlashGear has verified that this feature also works if you use 3.5mm EarPods with a Lightning adapter.