Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Large improvements to cameras on all iPhones 16 and the addition of the Action Button (on the non-Pros) for quick and digital-camera-like photography seems like a fairly clever strategy to have buyers focus on that instead of the perpetually vanishingly little performance gains you'll get when actually using iOS and your apps.

I guess that's what you do when SoC improvements are getting more and more marginal every year, and iOS was already buttery-smooth several iPhones ago.

Probably also works as an effective value proposition at $799+ for an iPhone 16 over the upcoming <$499(?) iPhone SE 4th generation that surely gets no more than one single 48MP camera on the back but seems to otherwise not be too far from the iPhone 15/15 Plus or 16/16 Plus specs.

Fingers crossed its primarily improvements to the actual, physical camera hardware and less of the faux ones that are really just software.
 
My 8Plus and SE2 are making very good photos and videos too, even my SE1 is still good for doing that. Why do normal people need better cameras every year?

Is the camera still the most expensive part of an iPhone like it had been years ago?

I wish there would be high-end smartphones for people who are not professional photographers or video producers. Why do other people have to pay for those few if they just want a powerful small computer and might occasionally take a photo?
 
I suspect that some of the “meat” of the update (note I said update not upgrade) will be RAM, A18 vs A16, A18pro vs A17pro and screen size for the pro models.

Assuming there is an A18pro, not just A18 all around.

AI is just fallout from the processor and RAM updates
 
It’s funny how Hartley and Tim run this whole website, regurgitating what other websites have already written and they do it for the clicks. Articles that will have the most viewership (aka CLICKS) Tim or Hartley. ACTUAL WRITING an article that isn’t copying another website, Juli Clover. I’ll get blocked and banned for being honest for this just being honest. Please see ‘TheYayAreaLiving’ account and the history of what happened. Tim is a lazy and ignorant person whom cannot handle criticism, especially if it is factual. Writing an “article” 2-3 days after many other publications covered it and questioning about why Tim wrote it?? SUSPENDED.
Can you give me tl;dr of what happened to her? I would see her post on everything all the time and then saw she was banned. What happened?
 
  • Like
Reactions: TheMountainLife
Yet another unnecessary button. I thought we’re moving away from that. The action button is a less practical mute switch for me.
I never once used the mute switch in all the iterations I’ve had since the beginning. Get rid of the action button for all I care, but certainly don’t bring back the useless mute switch in its place.
 
unnecessary? this is a very nice new feature for once so you dont have to fiddle with the screen to take photos while on the go, just point and snap. Not sure if you ever used a traditional camera, the hold before snap is also great.

do people just by default start complaining about every new thing apple releases, how do you not want a new camera button to make it easier to take photos like a traditional camera...
I think if Apple is so serious about iPhone camera abilities as it has been for so many years and it's such a major feature of iPhones, let's have a capture button at least on the Pro models.
 
I actually remain unconvinced that the capture button is for photography now. If the dummy models are correct the capture button is symmetrical to the power button.

Now hold your phone in landscape as you would for taking a picture. For most people this is the same way you’d hold it for gaming. With each index finger and thumb in a C-shape. Try and reach the power button and it’s out of reach without blocking the screen or inducing some pretty terrible hand cramps.

In other words either Apple have made a colossal ergonomic mistake or it’s not for landscape photography. Sony’s shutter button on the Xperia handsets is right on the edge of the phone and easily reachable with an index finger.
It’s without a doubt going to be aimed at landscape photography. It’s in the same spot as the VisionPro’ spatial capture button as well. It’s an odd choice to add this button to both the Pro and regular models, when they usually introduce new features like the Dynamic Island and action button to the non-Pro models a year later. My theory is that Apple is trying to encourage us to take more landscape photos in the most subtle and Apple-esque way possible. They’ve introduced a button that’s supposed to make landscape photos feel more enjoyable and enticing than the classic vertical shot. If this button makes it easier to take photos in landscape mode, like if it’s positioned in a way that feels natural to use, it could gradually encourage people to take more sideways shots instead of the usual vertical ones. Why? Because of their obsession with spatial photos. I believe they’re preparing for the next Vision Pro or whatever comes next by indirectly encouraging an increase in landscape photos in everyone’s photo library. This would then result in a significant number of photos that need to be converted “spatially” retroactively, so people can be marketed to enjoy them on the next Vision device. Have absolutely zero doubts this will be positioned as such in the keynote.
 
Easily swappable battery? Nope. Government is going to have to force them.
Normal software installation? Nope. Government is going to have to force them.
Home button? Nope.
Courage to put back the headphone jack? Nope.
Stupid ugly pill cutout? Still there.

But camera crap that we don't need? That's what Apple considers 'innovation' these days.

"Govern me harder, daddy."
 
Instead of being snippy and sarcastic, why not offer your way of doing things as a positive alternative?

Snippy and sarcastic? Really? Responding accurately and asking a genuine question (simply asking what kind of software processing he's referring to that needs to be dialed down) is being snippy and sarcastic?

Tell you what... rather than resorting to snark, simply ask whatever question is on your mind. Deal? I love talking about photography and processing photographs.
 
I hope it gets more widespread support than HEIF does... every time I transfer my photos to my Mac, I have to convert the image files to JPEG if I want to use them outside of the few apps that support the format. 🙃

Can't blame the format on that one. It's based on the industry video standard for consumers (HEVC). Developers have been sitting on their thumbs apparently.
 
Hopefully JPEG-XL will be available on 15 Pro Max also. Good to hear that the ultra wide lens on 16 Pro Max is getting an upgrade.
 
  • Like
Reactions: fatTribble
3K 120 fps? Weird that iPhones still don't do 4k 120fps. My 2021 Nikon Z9 can do that with a huge sensor.
 
So not much for those having iPhone 15 Pro Max. Only the other varients in 16 trying to catch up with 15 Pro Max.
 
The only reason for me having a 15 Pro is the macro mode. I don‘t care about Pro Motion or too much about the 3-5x zoom. Would be happy to be able to switch.
 
It’s without a doubt going to be aimed at landscape photography. It’s in the same spot as the VisionPro’ spatial capture button as well. It’s an odd choice to add this button to both the Pro and regular models, when they usually introduce new features like the Dynamic Island and action button to the non-Pro models a year later. My theory is that Apple is trying to encourage us to take more landscape photos in the most subtle and Apple-esque way possible. They’ve introduced a button that’s supposed to make landscape photos feel more enjoyable and enticing than the classic vertical shot. If this button makes it easier to take photos in landscape mode, like if it’s positioned in a way that feels natural to use, it could gradually encourage people to take more sideways shots instead of the usual vertical ones. Why? Because of their obsession with spatial photos. I believe they’re preparing for the next Vision Pro or whatever comes next by indirectly encouraging an increase in landscape photos in everyone’s photo library. This would then result in a significant number of photos that need to be converted “spatially” retroactively, so people can be marketed to enjoy them on the next Vision device. Have absolutely zero doubts this will be positioned as such in the keynote.
I have no issue with this; portrait videos are annoying!

It’s just where they’ve put the key means you can’t comfortably reach it when the phone is held in landscape!
 
Macro to the base 16 and 16 Plus likely added to convince people to update.

It's a tough sell to those with a 13 and newer.
Yeah I'm sure the handful of people taking closeups of bees on flowers will be thrilled.
Meanwhile the other 99.9% of us just wish Apple would give us a telephoto lens on the base model instead.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: LionTeeth
The IMX903 is larger and would require a new lens design but exact with the same aperture of 1.78? Unlikely.
This is the biggest surprise of all. For almost two years, it has been known from Apple's internal pipelines that the 16 Pro Max would get the new IMX903 Sensor (1/1.14'' with 1.4 µm pixels). This is definitely a necessary step for Apple's absolute highlight product. If it stays with the old IMX703 1/1.28'' sensor, that would be more than disappointing.

However, this is the first time that the lack of the IMX-903 has been propagated. Digital Chat Station and many others had been talking about the IMX903 in the iPhone 16 Pro Max at the beginning of this year - only in the Pro Max, mind you. This could also be where Appleinsider made a mistake, so the iPhone 16 Pro will stay with the IMX703 with 1/1.28'', the Pro Max will get the IMX903 with 1/1.14'' - which will further set it apart in analog terms, while the Pro will follow suit with the telephoto lens.

iPhone 16 Pro Max reference for larger sensor on MacRumors
 
  • Like
Reactions: Artsketch
It’s good that Apple is pushing it because it’s an open-source improvement over the jpeg format which is old and really needs to be updated (files are much lighter, support transparency…)
And thanks to the technology of JPEG XL, now there's a new JPEG encoder called "Jpegli" that makes a file (no translucency) at the same quality smaller than WebP and close to AVIF.
 
Too bad no update to the 5x camera with its awful image quality. The 3X camera image quality is noticeably better.
 
  • The iPhone 16's main camera will remain the same as that of the iPhone 15 with a 48-megapixel sensor and a f/1.6 aperture, and there are unlikely to be changes to the unit on subsequent generations through to 2026.
  • The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will continue to feature a 48-megapixel main camera with an f/1.78 aperture.
So why is it that the iPhone 16 Pro models have a slower f/1.78 main camera lens compared to a faster f1.6 main camera in the iPhone 16 (regular and Plus, non-Pro) models. That seems to be a strange thing to do, making the Pro model with a slower lens aperture.
FYI for non-tech types: aperture speed is "faster" that is lets in more light the smaller the f/n.n number. Thus a 1.6 lens is larger faster and better in low light than 1.8 which is faster better in low light than 2.0, etc. (Assuming other factors are on par. But really, light gathering size is the primary thing and everything else is internal light and image processing of that primary light source.)
 
This is definitely a necessary step for Apple's absolute highlight product. If it stays with the old IMX703 1/1.28'' sensor, that would be more than disappointing.
It's the IMX803 1/1.28" in the 14/15 Pro/Max, but somehow they've managed to make the minimum focus distance of 20 cm no longer sufficient for the 15 Pro/Max and is more like 30-25 cm. And the depth of field is larger too. Why? On closer inspection and comparison, you can unfortunately see that the 15 Pro/Max in 48 MP ProRAW no longer shows fine details at all and is also blurrier. Theoretically, it could be that the lens design in the 15 Pro/Max was already adapted to the slightly larger IMX 903, but it was not used. Perhaps a question of cost savings?
 
  • Like
Reactions: dare100em
I'd rather the telephoto get 48mp before the ultra wide which I rarely ever use, but I suppose they have to leave something for next year. Gotta stretch out these features until they have their $2499 folding version ready.

I'm just gonna be glad to go back to the regular Pro size after having a year of using the Pro Max because of the optical zoom, which I love, but it has a size that I do not enjoy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Saturn007
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.