iPhone 15 will get new stacked camera, but not the iPhone 15 Pro

AppleInsider

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that a new stacked camera system will debut in the regular iPhone 15 models before appearing in the iPhone 16 Pro in 2024.

iPhone 14 Pro camera bump

Ming-Chi Kuo

has previously reported that Apple will increase the feature gap in the iPhone 15 range, meaning that the differences between the regular iPhone 15 and the iPhone 15 Pro will be greater than in previous years. The presumption was that Apple would continue to put the newer features into the Pro models, but now Kuo says that in one case, it's going to be the other way around.

SonyiPhone 16CIS2025 / Sony's capacity will remain tight until 2025 as iPhone 16 will adopt more stacked design CIS, which is beneficial for Will Semi to lead the smartphone sector to bottom

-- (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo)

August 4, 2023

A stacked design CIS (CMOS Image Sensor) allows cameras to capture more light. It's a component of Apple's planned 48-megapixel camera sensor, and production issues with it have previously been said to mean the launch of the iPhone 15 range may be delayed.

In his fuller report, Kuo focuses on the market for companies manufacturing this stacked design CIS, but also specifies Apple's plans.

"Following two 2H23 iPhone 15 standard models, two 2H24 iPhone 16 Pro models will also adopt stacked-designed CIS," he writes, "so Sony's high-end CIS capacity will continue to be tight in 2024."

It had been rumored that all iPhone 15 models would get a 48-megapixel camera system. Kuo has previously claimed that the base iPhone 15 models will get this upgrade, but did not positively rule out the iPhone 15 Pro until now.

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JohnDenver101

If this is true, what is the selling point for the 15 Pro? The 15 Pro Max will have the new telephoto lens. The 15 and 15 Max will have the new stacked sensor, which may be smaller than the sensor being reused from the 14 Pro to the 15 Pro but its stacked properties will mean it could out perform the 15 Pro's sensor.

So what is the reason to buy the 15 Pro this year? The action button? Maybe the suspected glass/plastic hybrid lens might be a selling point but man this does not sound like the year to update to a Pro especially if you do it for the camera. 

mknelson

JohnDenver101 said:

If this is true, what is the selling point for the 15 Pro? The 15 Pro Max will have the new telephoto lens. The 15 and 15 Max will have the new stacked sensor, which may be smaller than the sensor being reused from the 14 Pro to the 15 Pro but its stacked properties will mean it could out perform the 15 Pro's sensor.

So what is the reason to buy the 15 Pro this year? The action button? Maybe the suspected glass/plastic hybrid lens might be a selling point but man this does not sound like the year to update to a Pro especially if you do it for the camera. 

It's an odd rumour - I can understand why AI rates it as possible instead of probable.

In any case that would only be the 48MP camera. The Pro would still have the standard 48MP, and the zoom camera which the regular 15 won't have.

40domi

🤣 What a load of rubbish 🤣

riclf

This report doesn't really make any sense at all. If only one model is going to get an upgrade, why would you make it the less expensive model?

Is somebody mixing some whisky with their Diet Coke?

melgross

What I’ve read is that the 48MP camera for the non pro models will be a smaller sensor. So perhaps the stacked sensor is needed to offset the lower sensitivity, dynamic range and noise levels of that sensor. That could therefor be to raise the IQ to what the bigger sensor has until next year when the bigger sensor (assuming they don’t use one of Sony’s new 200mp quad sensors) will also receive it.

if true, it then makes sense.