iPhone 16 Pro to get 48MP ultra-wide sensor, Tetraprism

Rumors of major camera changes to the iPhone 16 Pro lineup continue, with a leaker insisting there will be an ultra-wide sensor update and one for the telephoto's zoom.

Apple regularly makes updates to the camera system on the iPhone, with the Tetraprism lens on the iPhone 15 Pro Max getting a lot of attention. Rumors claim more are on the way, and a Tuesday leaker post seems to agree.

The post from leaker "Baby Sauce" on Weibo refers to the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The first of the two claims is that there will be an upgrade of the ultra-wide angle camera to 48-megapixels.

If true, this would mean Apple will include two 48-megapixel cameras on the rear. The telephoto camera would therefore become the last remaining camera using a 12-megapixel sensor.

Baby Sauce claims the sensor upgrade will happen to both the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max.

The second claim is specific to the iPhone 16 Pro, in that it would get the zoom upgrade to 5x. This would match the 5x zoom of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which was facilitated by the Tetraprism lens.

While the Pro model will get the zoom update, the leaker says there won't be a change to the iPhone 16 Pro Max's telephoto zoom level.

The leaker does not have much of a track record when it comes to Apple leaks. Their most recent significant posting was a collection of images of cases, supposedly intended for an iPhone SE 4.

There have been previous rumors discussing the outlined camera changes. Another leaker, "Setsuna Digital" and multiple analysts proposed the 48-megapixel sensor upgrade in 2023.

There has also been analyst speculation that the Tetraprism lens would spread from the Pro Max to the Pro model.

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20 Comments

DAalseth 3033 comments · 6 Years

About 6 months ago

This would be nice. I don’t need a bigger screen. I just want the 5X. Going with the Pro and not the Pro Max would also save me a few bucks.

kmarei 208 comments · 16 Years

just please give me anything that is not camera related.
it seems that's the only thing they keep focusing on
2 cameras. now 3 cameras, now 4 cameras
we are not all professional photographers.
i take pics i usually see on my iphone screen or on my ipad
i don't need terrapixel quality with 99x optical zoom , and carl zeis diamond quartz lens
with a huge camera bump on the back that makes the phone rock when i put it on a table

hmlongco 580 comments · 9 Years

Should note note that the "zoom" isn't really an optical zoom from my perspective. It's either at one end of the range or the other. There's no optical in-between.

charlesn 1153 comments · 11 Years

About 5 months ago

hmlongco said:

Should note note that the "zoom" isn't really an optical zoom from my perspective. It's either at one end of the range or the other. There's no optical in-between.

I don't know why AppleInsider--which knows better--and many others in the tech press keep referring to iPhone Pro lenses as "optical zoom." They are not. Each iPhone Pro model contains three FIXED FOCAL LENGTH LENSES. Their focal lengths, as full-frame equivalents, are 13mm for the ultrawide, 24mm for the main/wide and 77mm for the telephoto on the iPhone Pro and 120mm for the tetraprism telephoto on the 15 Pro Max. Each lens covers a range of focal lengths through sensor cropping and computational photography--there is no optical zoom capability in any iPhone lens. The ultrawide lens covers the 13mm-23mm range. The main lens kicks in at 24mm and then covers up to 76mm on the Pro and 119mm on the Pro Max. The telephoto lens covers 77mm and up on the Pro and 120mm and up on the Pro Max.

Optical zoom lenses, as the name clearly states, change their focal lengths and achieve zoom capability through optics -- i.e., a variety of precise optical elements within the lens that move with great precision to provide the "equivalent" of many fixed focal length lenses in a single lens. In actual practice, an optical zoom lens will not achieve the same quality as a fixed focal length "prime" lens because optical zoom requires optical compromises, but the convenience of zoom sure beats toting a trunk full of prime lenses.

mike1 3431 comments · 10 Years

kmarei said:

just please give me anything that is not camera related.
it seems that's the only thing they keep focusing on
2 cameras. now 3 cameras, now 4 cameras
we are not all professional photographers.
i take pics i usually see on my iphone screen or on my ipad
i don't need terrapixel quality with 99x optical zoom , and carl zeis diamond quartz lens
with a huge camera bump on the back that makes the phone rock when i put it on a table

Good that you don't need to upgrade then. For many of us, the camera is the single most important feature and a core function of the phone. And yes. We look at photos on screens far larger than an iPad and sometimes want to high-quality prints. In addition, any improvement to the optical zoom would be greatly appreciated.