What you need to know

  • Simultaneous multi-cam recording to be available for iPhone XS and iPhone XR.
  • The feature is thanks to a new API available in iOS 13.
  • One of the apps that will utilize the API is Filmic Pro.

When Apple announced the iPhone 11 Pro last week, it demonstrated simultaneous multi-cam recording through a third-party app. The idea is you don't need a complex rig to film a professional-looking video, instead taking advantage of the phone's triple-camera system.

The good news is you don't need Apple's latest flagship for simultaneous multi-cam recording. Apple is offering a new API in iOS 13, which means iPhone XS, iPhone XR, and even 2018 iPad Pro models can also perform a similar function.

There is one small caveat, however, as 9to5Mac notes:

Recording from multiple cameras is strenuous, and there are some imposed limitations. For iPhone XR and iPhone XR, only certain combinations of cameras can be active simultaneously. Developers may also have to use lower-quality camera feeds, depending on how much work the rest of their own app logic wants to do.

The iPhone XS can record (or take photos) from the back wide and front camera together, or the back telephoto and the front camera, or the back wide and back telephoto. Three-camera recording is not supported. It's not yet clear what combinations of simultaneous camera streams the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro will be capable of.

Apple's own Camera app doesn't appear to allow simultaneous multi-cam recording. It does, however, show iPhone 11 Pro owners each individual view in the camera app when taking photos, making it easier for iPhone owners to frame their shot.

If you want to take advantage of simultaneous multi-cam recording when iOs 13 becomes available on September 19, you can download a third-party app like Filmic Pro.

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