How I use Siri mode in the iOS 27 Camera app to ask questions about anything I see

Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.When using my iPhone's camera, I'll sometimes see an animal, plant, landmark, painting, or other object that strikes my curiosity. In those moments, I want a quick way to get information on the item. Well, that's something I can now do easily thanks to the new Siri mode in the iOS 27 Camera app.Also: I put Siri AI through the same tests I use for ChatGPT and Gemini on MacOS 27 - here's how it didCurrently available in the iOS 27 developer beta, Siri mode is another addition to the camera modes, alongside Photo, Video, Portrait, and Pano. When you see something through the camera, just tap the Siri mode icon. From there, you can ask Siri about it by voice, run a Google Search on it, or send an image of the object directly to Siri for analysis.What's the big Siri improvement in iOS 27?If this sounds like the Visual Intelligence feature introduced in iOS 18.2, that's because it is. But here's the difference. With the current version of iOS on a supported phone, you have to trigger Visual Intelligence separately. That means you must exit the Camera app and then launch the feature, a clumsy process. With iOS 27, you can stay in the Camera app and kick off Siri without losing sight of the object. That's a big improvement, and one I appreciate.As with any photo, you can zoom in or out in Siri mode to capture as much or as little of the object as you want. Depending on the object, Siri may display a name identifying the item. Tapping the shutter button then captures the image for Siri to further analyze. Tapping the picture icon on the right runs a Google search on the photo to show you similar images. Tapping the Ask Siri icon on the left opens a prompt with a thumbnail of the image, so you can type or dictate a question about it.Also: Will your iPhone support Siri AI? The answer is complicatedOther types of information in the photo will display additional options. Aim your camera at a date, time, and place, and Siri may offer to add it to your calendar. Aim it at a menu, sign, or other text in a different language, and Siri could offer to translate it.What do you need for this to work?First, you need an iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence and the new Siri AI. That includes the iPhone 15 Pro, the iPhone 15 Pro Max, or any model in the iPhone 16 or 17 lineup.Second, you need to download and install the iOS 27 developer beta. For that, I strongly urge you to use a spare or test iPhone and not your main or go-to device. Developer betas can be unstable, and you don't want to risk any adverse effects on your primary iPhone.Third, you need to join the Siri AI waitlist. And waitlist is the right term, as you may need to wait quite a while before Apple grants you access. After I joined the list, I had to wait almost a week before Siri AI popped up on my phone.With iOS 27 and Siri AI on my test iPhone 15 Pro, I've been using the new Siri AI mode with my camera. Here's how. Since Siri AI is still in the early beta stages, I did bump into a few problems. In some cases, Siri couldn't identify or incorrectly identified the object. In other cases, the AI took a long time to respond or even gave up and told me to try again later. But hopefully these bugs will be fixed by the time the new Siri makes its official debut with iOS 27 in September.