Popular iPhone Camera App 'Halide' Gaining Three New Features in 2025

Lux, the developers behind Halide and Kino, have announced their plans for Halide 3.0, a major update slated for release in 2025 with a series of new features.

halide camera app
Halide "Mark III" is set to gain one-tap color grading. Color grading has been a highly requested addition since the launch of Process Zero, Halide's proprietary image processing system, which debuted in 2024. The feature is expected to allow users to apply professional-grade film looks instantly, similar to the capabilities offered in Lux's Kino app. Lux envisions this feature going beyond presets, potentially enabling users to import custom looks created by others.

While iPhones have long supported HDR through Apple's native algorithms, Halide has refrained from adopting the technology due to concerns over aesthetic preferences and technical compatibility. Lux aims to address these concerns by introducing a nuanced, tasteful HDR implementation that avoids the garish appearance often associated with poorly executed HDR. The timing coincides with advancements in iOS 18, particularly the introduction of Adaptive HDR, which extends HDR compatibility to legacy file formats like JPEG. Lux believes this development marks a tipping point for HDR’s broader adoption and plans to integrate the feature alongside its color grading tools.

Lux is also planning to debut a complete redesign of Halide's user interface. With Halide Mark II turning five years old in 2025, Lux has decided it is time for a visual and functional overhaul. The company has hinted that the changes will integrate tightly with the new features, such as making the color grading interface central to the app’s operation.

Lux has launched an official Discord server, allowing Halide subscribers to access early builds, share ideas, and participate in discussions to help shape the new version of the app. The server will also host a year-long photography challenge, offering weekly prompts and resources to inspire photographers and encourage engagement within the community.

Tag: Halide

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Launching Later This Year With These 16 New Features

Thursday April 24, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
apple watch ultra yellow

What's Next for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3

Friday April 25, 2025 2:44 pm PDT by
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped features rumored for the Apple Watch Series 11, but since 2015, the Apple Watch has also branched out into the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we'd take a look at what's next for those product lines, too. 2025 Apple Watch Ultra 3 Apple didn't update the...
iphone 17 dummies sonny dickson

iPhone 17 Air Almost as Thin as Its Buttons, New Images Show

Thursday April 24, 2025 2:14 am PDT by
If you missed the video showing dummy models of Apple's all-new super thin iPhone 17 Air that's expected later this year, Sonny Dickson this morning shared some further images of the device in close alignment with the other dummy models in the iPhone 17 lineup, indicating just how thin it is likely to be in comparison. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be around 5.5mm thick – with a thicker ...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
ipad air magic keyboard feature

iPadOS 19 Rumored to Show Mac-Like Menu Bar When Connected to Magic Keyboard

Thursday April 24, 2025 12:09 pm PDT by
When an iPad running iPadOS 19 is connected to a Magic Keyboard, a macOS-like menu bar will appear on the screen, according to the leaker Majin Bu. This change would further blur the lines between the iPad and the Mac. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously claimed that iPadOS 19 will be "more like macOS," with unspecified improvements to productivity, multitasking, and app window management,...
top stories 2025 04 26

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Air Rumors, Apple Watch Turns 10, and More

Saturday April 26, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
We've known for quite some time about Apple's plans for a thinner "iPhone 17 Air" coming later this year, but wow, the latest dummy models give us our best look yet at just how thin this phone is going to be. Other Apple news and rumors this week included another iOS 18.5 beta, the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch launch, and more management reshuffling in Apple's Siri division, so read...
Global Close Your Rings Day Pin

Apple Stores Giving Away a Limited-Edition Pin For Free Today

Thursday April 24, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Starting today, April 24, Apple Stores around the world are giving away a special pin for free to customers who request one, while supplies last. Photo Credit: Filip Chudzinski The enamel pin's design is inspired by the Global Close Your Rings Day award in the Activity app, which Apple Watch users can receive by closing all three Activity rings today. The limited-edition pin is the physical...

Top Rated Comments

applevisionpro Avatar
18 weeks ago
a subscription for a camera app? Are you out of your mind??
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Megaman Avatar
18 weeks ago
Subscription is a no go. Specially for a camera app.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
poematik13 Avatar
18 weeks ago
subscription?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jasonsmith_88 Avatar
18 weeks ago

Halide seems like a nice app and I understand that devs have to eat, too ... but there's just no way in hell I'm paying €23/a for this or €70 one time payment and it's not even really one time because you will have to buy the next version _again_.
So you don’t want to pay for a subscription but also don’t want to pay for major versions. So what exactly are you asking for? To pay once for unlimited access to all future versions of the app for the rest of your life? Do you genuinely believe this is a reasonable ask?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
neilw Avatar
18 weeks ago

you will have to buy the next version _again_.
No. From their blog:


Attachment Image
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cocoi Avatar
18 weeks ago

Halide seems like a nice app and I understand that devs have to eat, too ... but there's just no way in hell I'm paying €23/a for this or €70 one time payment and it's not even really one time because you will have to buy the next version _again_.
No, Mark 3 is obviously included. We even say so in the post!


Why should i pay to use a different UI for my camera?

Go get a real job, in hardware

Oh yeah, those “one pay” models are scams too. You’ll always release a new overhauled version that requires a new purchase, and the old one stops getting updates.
It costs nothing to be nice, by the way. Please elaborate on how we are a ‘scam’. If you bought Halide EIGHT YEARS AGO for $2/$3, not only does it still work, you got almost every major feature we added in the subsequent eight years for free. We even promise it will keep working, with all of those features, for the life of the app.

It’s bizarre to me that two guys making a camera app that work super hard on it - we barely have vacations - get called a ‘scam’ when the App Store is full of apps that require you to pay $8 for a week of features that barely work. Again, it costs nothing to be nice. If you have serious concerns or feedback, I answer our email personally. If you are a user from back then and you are unhappy with the product now, I’ll refund you out of pocket. Just DM me. But don’t say things that just aren’t true.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)