iPhone XR sequel might gain twin-lens rear camera in 2019

Rumors suggest Apple's iPhone XR follow-up will upgrade to a dual-lens rear camera in 2019, potentially delivering the company's advanced photographic technology to an entry-level smartphone model for the first time.

As with the iPhone X and XS, one lens would be wide-angle and the other telephoto, Mac Otakara said on Friday, citing information from Chinese suppliers. The current XR has a single wide-angle lens, identical to recent base level iPhone offerings.

Traditionally Apple has used telephoto lenses for two purposes, the first being 2x optical zoom instead of digital enlargement. The second, though, is Portrait Mode photos accomplished in the iOS Camera app — the telephoto becomes the primary lens, while the wide-angle captures depth data used to isolate the subject and simulate DSLR-style bokeh.

The XR employs specialized algorithms to achieve a similar Portrait effect, but the resulting image is zoomed-out and not necessarily as accurate as its XS counterpart.

Multiple reports have pointed to flagship 5.8- and 6.5-inch "XI" and "XI Max" OLED iPhones coming with a triple-lens camera, the third lens possibly being a super-wide unit. Mac Otakara added that two out of three lenses/sensors may be used as common parts to keep costs down.

Separate design changes may include iPad-style mute switches and the use of 3D-molded rear glass, even covering the phones' larger camera bumps. That same all-glass design is expected with the dual-camera XR successor, which could rely on a familiar 6.1-inch LCD screen, the report said.

It is also possible that the new phones will include USB-C to Lightning cables and 18-watt USB-C power adapters, but keep Lightning as their wired data type.

26 Comments

fred stein 78 comments · 11 Years

About 5 years ago

At current XR prices this would be great. Just came back from a family celebration. My XS (not max) photos were great. The other smartphones all produced bad pictures, blurry, lacking HDR, splashy back-lit effects, terrible low-light performance. It the camera, not the photographer.

Apple gets it. Their 'shot on iPhone' ad campaigns drive this home.

apple ][ 9225 comments · 13 Years

fred stein said:

It the camera, not the photographer.

What about all of the morons who post portrait videos to youtube? These people don't even know which way to hold their phones.

I'm sure that many of them had good cameras, but in their case, it was the dumb photographer/user which causes the terrible final result.

And even when taking a still photo, the photographer still has the final say of where their camera is pointing, and how far away it is etc.

Even with a great camera, a bad or clueless user with no artistic abilities will take poor photos, and many people lack artistic abilities.

indiekiduk 386 comments · 16 Years

Personally I don't think it is necessary but I would be interested to know how many with X/XS actually use their telephoto lens given its only 2x zoom.

canukstorm 2740 comments · 11 Years

fred stein said:

At current XR prices this would be great. Just came back from a family celebration. My XS (not max) photos were great. The other smartphones all produced bad pictures, blurry, lacking HDR, splashy back-lit effects, terrible low-light performance. It the camera, not the photographer.

Apple gets it. Their 'shot on iPhone' ad campaigns drive this home.

An updated XR with dual-lens rear camera, A13, 4GB RAM at current prices would make for a great value