Rumor: iPhone 16 Pro camera coating could reduce lens flare

A leak about the iPhone 16 Pro claims that a new coating will be used on the camera lens, which could cut back flares and improving image quality.

It's already been repeatedly rumored that the iPhone 16 Pro will get the tetraprism lens that was previously exclusive to the iPhone 15 Pro Max. A new rumor says that the next Pro models will get the new lens coating.

According to leaker Yeux1122 on their blog, Apple will use a technology called Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) on the new iPhones.

ALD produces a very thin film — just a few nanometers thick — that can be overlaid on the lenses. It can be applied very precisely and evenly to surfaces such as curved lenses.

It's already being tried by car manufacturers as way to reduce errors caused by lens flare in the cameras used by EVs for lane control.

By adding what's effectively a filter, the iPhone 16 Pro cameras should cut down on flaring. Lanzuk claims that there will also be other, unspecified improvements in the quality of photography.

One such benefit is likely to be a reduction in ghosting, where bright elements of an image can appear to be duplicated. Ghosting and flaring are perhaps the two biggest criticisms that Apple's iPhone cameras continue to get.

Yeux1122 tends to have a middling track record for leaks, and often appears to be echoing other reports. He or she was correct about ProMotion and Always-On displays being limited to the iPhone 15 Pro models, but was also clearly wrong in a muddled report about Apple completing work on its own 5G modem.