

You can use it to create 3D maps of a room (as shown above), or a 3D recreation of a single object, which you can then print out on a 3D printer when you use an app like Polycam.Īccording to CNET's Scott Stein, the Apple Arcade game Hot Lava uses the lidar sensor to scan a room, after which he could hide virtual stuff behind real items in the room, like a chair.Īs more apps are updated to improve the augmented reality experience thanks to the lidar sensor, there's no telling what else we'll be able to do with compatible iPhone and iPad models.Īfter impressing your friends and family with your iPhone 12's ( $829 at Amazon) fun trick, make sure to check out these hidden features in iOS 14. The lidar sensor isn't limited to just measuring different objects. Using a third-party app, you can scan an entire room and create a 3D map. So if you've upgraded your iPhone, it's worth giving the Measure tool another shot. With the addition of lidar on Apple devices, the app is getting more accurate. When the Measure app first launched with iOS 12, I explained how to use it to measure random household objects or figure square footage.

I recently measured a TV to settle a debate on whether it was 55 or 65 inches (it was 65). You can use it to get the dimensions of a piece of furniture, for example, to see if it will fit through a door. You can get a rough estimate of more than just a person's height with the Measure app. When I stood straight up, however, looking directly at the camera without a hat on, it was more accurate, with a 5 foot, 10 inch reading. I also tested it on myself, and small things like the angle of my head or wearing a hat resulted in the same slightly short 5 foot, 9 inch reading. My son's curly hair caused his first measurement to be just slightly too high, but after he combed it down, it was spot on at 4 feet, 7.5 inches. In my testing, the measurement was accurate within half an inch.


You can take a picture of the measurement with a tap on the shutter button, saving it to your camera roll. After a second or two, a line will appear above their head with an estimate of their height, including items like their hair or a hat.Ĥ. Point the rear camera at a person who is either standing or sitting and make sure you get their entire body - from head to toe - in the frame.ģ. Here's one party trick I discovered, with the help of MacRumors, and I lay out a few more below.įor my first trick, here's how to use the iPhone 12 Pro's camera to measure a person's height in just a couple of seconds (I did this with my kids and they loved it).Ģ. Read more: ProRaw: See how Apple's new iOS 14.3 trick transformed my iPhone 12 photos The sensor itself isn't new tech - in fact, the 2020 iPad Pro has lidar, too - and the same tech is often used in self-driving cars. Lidar stands for "light detection and ranging" and it works by bouncing lasers off of objects to measure their distance, based on how long it takes for the light to get back to the sensor. The lidar sensor, however, has another trick it can do - and it's sure to impress your friends at your next party (when it's safe again, of course). The new feature, a first on iPhones, helps improve portrait mode photos and even makes it possible to take those blurry-background shots in night mode. Apple not only included three cameras in the iPhone 12 Pro and the iPhone 12 Pro Max, but the company also added a lidar sensor.
