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Well then we disagree on the meaning of the term „digital zoom“. There is nothing „digital“ about cropping.
If the optics don’t change, it’s digital zoom.
by definition, if you’re zooming without changing the optics, it’s digital zoom.

The iPhone 17 Pro’s 8× is just a center crop of the 48MP telephoto , no interpolation, so still digital.
 
Folks, I'm just talking about physical hardware here. Of course Apple has made many changes to their processing pipeline and software since the 14 Pro. There is 1 physical upgrade that is very real: they started using an improved anti reflective coating on the lens of the 16 Pro, so that is a nice physical upgrade for sure but other than that it's physically the same as the 14 Pro main camera https://fstoppers.com/landscapes/apples-secret-upgrade-iphone-16-pro-yields-incredible-results-682936#:~:text=I won't dwell too much on these tests because I don't think the main sensor or its technology has changed much (if at all) since the iPhone 14 Pro

To be fair, PetaPixel says the faster readout speed does give the 16 Pro one benefit: slightly sharper/clearer photos for moving objects (or if camera is the one moving)

But what I'm talking about here is for more serious photography using ProRes, ProRAW or Halide Process Zero where computational processing isn't there to help, there is no meaningful improvements compared to the 14 Pro.


Bottom line, that main camera is over due for a significant upgrade (remember, this is a "Pro" iPhone we're talking about folks). I'm really hoping they go with a bigger sensor that uses Sony's new 2 layer transistor pixel tech.
 
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They don’t have to and take the ready when it’s ready approach. They know it’s still going to sell gangbusters regardless without it.
 
What’s more concerning is that the claimed 8x optical zoom is essentially a lie.

The 17 Pro does not have 8x optical zoom.

It only offers 4x optical zoom, and the image is then digitally cropped to simulate 8x.

That’s actually less optical zoom than the iPhone 16 Pro (5x).
Do you have an analysis on the new tetraprism? If not, how do you know there isn’t an 8x light path in there?
 
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