iPhone XR sequel might gain twin-lens rear camera in 2019
Rumors suggest Apple's iPhone XR follow-up will upgrade to a dual-lens rear camera in 2019, potentially delivering the company's advanced photographic technology to an entry-level smartphone model for the first time.
As with the iPhone X and XS, one lens would be wide-angle and the other telephoto, Mac Otakara said on Friday, citing information from Chinese suppliers. The current XR has a single wide-angle lens, identical to recent base level iPhone offerings.
Traditionally Apple has used telephoto lenses for two purposes, the first being 2x optical zoom instead of digital enlargement. The second, though, is Portrait Mode photos accomplished in the iOS Camera app -- the telephoto becomes the primary lens, while the wide-angle captures depth data used to isolate the subject and simulate DSLR-style bokeh.
The XR employs specialized algorithms to achieve a similar Portrait effect, but the resulting image is zoomed-out and not necessarily as accurate as its XS counterpart.
Multiple reports have pointed to flagship 5.8- and 6.5-inch "XI" and "XI Max" OLED iPhones coming with a triple-lens camera, the third lens possibly being a super-wide unit. Mac Otakara added that two out of three lenses/sensors may be used as common parts to keep costs down.
Separate design changes may include iPad-style mute switches and the use of 3D-molded rear glass, even covering the phones' larger camera bumps. That same all-glass design is expected with the dual-camera XR successor, which could rely on a familiar 6.1-inch LCD screen, the report said.
It is also possible that the new phones will include USB-C to Lightning cables and 18-watt USB-C power adapters, but keep Lightning as their wired data type.
As with the iPhone X and XS, one lens would be wide-angle and the other telephoto, Mac Otakara said on Friday, citing information from Chinese suppliers. The current XR has a single wide-angle lens, identical to recent base level iPhone offerings.
Traditionally Apple has used telephoto lenses for two purposes, the first being 2x optical zoom instead of digital enlargement. The second, though, is Portrait Mode photos accomplished in the iOS Camera app -- the telephoto becomes the primary lens, while the wide-angle captures depth data used to isolate the subject and simulate DSLR-style bokeh.
The XR employs specialized algorithms to achieve a similar Portrait effect, but the resulting image is zoomed-out and not necessarily as accurate as its XS counterpart.
Multiple reports have pointed to flagship 5.8- and 6.5-inch "XI" and "XI Max" OLED iPhones coming with a triple-lens camera, the third lens possibly being a super-wide unit. Mac Otakara added that two out of three lenses/sensors may be used as common parts to keep costs down.
Separate design changes may include iPad-style mute switches and the use of 3D-molded rear glass, even covering the phones' larger camera bumps. That same all-glass design is expected with the dual-camera XR successor, which could rely on a familiar 6.1-inch LCD screen, the report said.
It is also possible that the new phones will include USB-C to Lightning cables and 18-watt USB-C power adapters, but keep Lightning as their wired data type.
Comments
Apple gets it. Their 'shot on iPhone' ad campaigns drive this home.
I'm sure that many of them had good cameras, but in their case, it was the dumb photographer/user which causes the terrible final result.
And even when taking a still photo, the photographer still has the final say of where their camera is pointing, and how far away it is etc.
Even with a great camera, a bad or clueless user with no artistic abilities will take poor photos, and many people lack artistic abilities.
Why are people so fixated on a TV-centric resolution like 1080p?
So each iteration of the XR might have the top models cameras-1, this could be a good setup still having good cameras on all the models.
As for the usb cord, it seems like they are going to keep this same setup as long as the iPhone has a lightning port. If they are going to do fast charging USB C, I see no reason that couldn’t have been done with the X or the XS. I’m expecting they have no desire to switch cord setup at this point.
I myself is happy to be using the iPhone, for the reason that I use the Mac, Apple Watch, iPad, AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Music.. to remain in this ecosystem. But I know of many iPhone users who are very attracted to Huawei's camera, and is entirely comfortable to move away from iOS, given that they use a Windows laptop and do not own and not intend to buy an Apple Watch or AirPods. In short, they got "nothing much to loose" to move away from the iOS/Mac ecosystem.
And therefore, I think Apple really needs to improve the camera to be at least on par with the rest.
The current Xr is probably the best value in the iPhone lineup; the main differences are the camera, the screen, no force touch and less RAM. Force touch is not used by many people. I've compared the screens side by side and even then you're hard pressed to notice a difference, and the RAM doesn't make a noticeable difference for most people in daily use. That leaves the camera as only significant difference between the two. I'm guessing Apple did not include a dual lens camera in the Xr so it wouldn't cannibalize sales of the Xs, but if the Xs gets an updated camera then it would make sense to update the Xr's camera as well.
I would agree with all of this. In fact, I would go so far as to say the camera differences among the top smartphones are seriously overrated. I don't see where the photos I take with my X are that much better than the ones I took with my 7+ or even my 6. It's not like the old days when there was a noticeable difference between an iPhone 4 photo and an iPhone 5. There are clearly circumstances where some phone cameras are better than others, but I would say for most people under most circumstances if you picked the worst major flagship camera you'd still have a very good camera.
I own a X, and i have lots of friends with XRs. Their screens look, at least casually, every bit as good as mine with their screens being larger. I agree the camera is the big shortcoming for me on the XR, but on the flip side the XR has by far the best battery life of any iPhone I've heard of. This is something all of my XR friends confirm. If it wasn't for the camera setup, I'd rather have a XR than a X even if they they were the same price just for the battery life alone