While the iPhone 18 Pro is due to be presented by Apple in around eight months, the first concrete rumors are starting to emerge about it, particularly on the photo part. Informant Instant Digital told us, for example, this fall that Apple would consider adding a variable aperture sensor to the 18 Pro. This is a system capable of mechanically adjusting the amount of light entering the lens depending on the scene captured.
Beyond this development, another key aspect of the camera could also see a major improvement. According to a new leak relayed this week, Apple would seek to offer a much more powerful zoom on its next model, but in a very particular way.
Apple evaluates a previously unreleased photo accessory
Tipster Smart Pikachu, usually more active on Android smartphones, claims thatApple is currently testing a teleconverter on its iPhone 18 Pro prototypes. This is an optical component used in professional photography, which allows the focal length of a lens to be enlarged without software intervention. The principle consists of inserting a magnifying lens between the sensor and the main optics, to offer a more powerful zoom without physically modifying the size of the sensor.
Apple would not be seeking to offer an external accessory here, but to integrate this technology directly into the photo block. This positioning would be consistent with the ambitions of the Pro range, which has been banking on visible zoom improvements for several years to stand out. However, this could be an exploratory test, with no guarantee of resulting in a finalized product..
No products found.
The addition of a teleconverter would indeed raise several constraints. This type of optic reduces the amount of light captured by the sensor, which affects low-light performance. There is also a risk of loss of sharpness and contrastespecially since the defects of the main objective can be amplified by the magnification. By testing this option upstream, Apple would therefore seek to assess whether the benefits outweigh the compromises.
The zoom of the iPhone 17 Pro Max has already changed the game
This choice by Apple is not anecdotal, especially as it is part of a dynamic already started last year with the x5 zoom of the iPhone 17 Pro Max, based on a periscopic telephoto lens. This model was particularly noted for its ability to capture distant scenes with a level of precision rare on a smartphone.
Many users had also turned to this version precisely for this option, encouraged by the demonstrations that had gone viral on TikTok, X or Instagram.
By: Keleops AG
