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For architects, engineers, tradies, real estate agents etc, the ability to quickly scan an area and come away with a measurable 3D image that you can send to someone (polycam cloud etc) is a game changer and will be the 'only' reason many are buying the phone. It's clunky as it stands, but if it improved significantly these occupations could not afford 'not' to have one.
 
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For architects, engineers, tradies, real estate agents etc, the ability to quickly scan an area and come away with a measurable 3D image that you can send to someone (polycam cloud etc) is a game changer and will be the 'only' reason many are buying the phone. It's clunky as it stands, but if it improved significantly these occupations could not afford 'not' to have one.
LiDAR keeps improving but it definitely is not there yet on iPhones. I do look forward to each new iteration and am especially interested in seeing how the new iPhone 15 Pro chip improves things. And of course the constantly improving LiDAR is also improving image capture, despite many ignorant comments saying otherwise.
 
Well it doesn’t work very good, and all the phones that don’t have them seem to focus just fine or better.

So what’s the purpose??
Your uninformed comment that all the phones that don’t have them seem to focus just fine or better is simply wrong. LiDAR is a very useful (still evolving in iPhones) tech that you could read up on if you choose to become better informed.
 
Your uninformed comment that all the phones that don’t have them seem to focus just fine or better is simply wrong. LiDAR is a very useful (still evolving in iPhones) tech that you could read up on if you choose to become better informed.

So I just took some test shots with my Samsung phone and my 14 pro max. I really couldn’t notice any differences in how they both focus and perform, maybe in a test lab someone could point out the differences but I don’t see any.

Then I put both phones into raw and took some pics, the iPhone definitely seems to show more detail in pro raw at 48mp, and has an edge over the Samsung there. But at quadruple the megapixels I’d expect that. But I still prefer the Samsung image as it doesn’t have the blown out highlights and strange over sharpening/hdr look of the iPhone images. At night on a tripod there’s no comparison, the Samsung is better in every way and you don’t have to pixel peep to notice the difference.

This isn’t to detract from the iPhone, what it does well it excels at, video is better on the iPhone for sure. Maybe you can help me become better informed, teach me, tell me what I’m missing?
 
So I just took some test shots with my Samsung phone and my 14 pro max... ...Maybe you can help me become better informed, teach me, tell me what I’m missing?
My post simply referenced your specific words about LiDAR: "all the phones that don’t have them seem to focus just fine or better" (emphasis mine), which is incorrect and misleading. Of course there are some excellent smartphone cameras that lack LiDAR (you apparently own one), but that says nothing about whether or not LiDAR is a very useful technology that Apple should continue to pursue.

Yours was just one of many posts in MR fora denigrating LiDAR; many specifically stating that Apple should stop wasting time/effort on LiDAR. IMO otherwise smart folks would only say those things if they were poorly informed about LiDAR tech. I feel strongly that LiDAR is solid tech that those who look into it will see to be more and more useful over time. No disrespect was intended when I suggested that folks disrespecting LiDAR become better informed.
 
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So now that the iPhone 15 Pros are out, has anybody been able to confirm that the LiDAR sensor is actually improved? I cannot find any information about this online…
 
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