That’s how I feel about the iPad. But they’re never going to do a version sans camera.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPhone 15 Camera Upgrades Will Be 'Star of the Show' at Apple Event
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Upgrading from the 12P to the 15PM because the 12 now feels like a mini. I also want the usb-c, 120hz, Dynamic Island, upgraded cameras, and most of all a better battery
It's clear we are now well into the law of diminishing returns with iPhones.
To be honest the iPhone has had a good enough camera for casual shots since the iPhone 7 at least. “Better” hasn’t meant “noticeably better” for a few years, as far as I’m concerned.
You have nice cameras. The phones have decimated the lower end camera space…it’s gone. Agree about the high end the gap is insurmountable on a phone form factor. More zoom would be cool and settings for moon shots would be cool.
Not referencing Apple Watch at all? You said that Apple should spend a year only focusing on increasing battery life. My comment was directly aimed at that. Most are getting a full day on a charge...
My experience is vastly different then yours. No issue using features they rollout. Maybe look at other phones that are better for your situation?
Last edited:
They'd need a lens hood for that - not a good idea on an already huge camera hump. Or they could edit it out with AI, but I'm not sure if this will work well yet. You could use your hand to shade the lens for more contrast and no flares.
It's very apparent since forever. The Verge actually calling it out ever since their review of iPhone 12 and up.
Seems like the problem stems from the sapphire material on the lens.
I understand the excitement. But I have the opinion that an iPhone is not necessary. What someone needs is an iPad with an Apple pencil or,if he/she is a heavier user an iMac. iPhones are popular but exists out there Android phones with better cameras or dedicated cameras for that purpose. In computers and tablets on the other hand Apple is unique in its own way.
I respect that. I too believe that iOS is better than any Android version but that's a compromise I can do for a better portable camera. On the contrary,iPads, especially of the M series (with M1 and M2), are very powerful and creative with the pencil. And Macs with MacOS and M processors simply rocks! But in the region of phones... is another discussion.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Make no mistake: I'm neither against the camera in iPhone, nor Apple trying to make it better each year. The point is that it's fundamentally limited by the form factor and the innovations that are needed would need to be able to break the unbreakable laws of physics for the big leaps forward some seem to want in the camera.
Since the rest of the phone seems towards "plateau" (focus of each year is a little faster, a little bigger, etc) and much of the big push- as headlined in this very article- is camera improvements, this idea is about a separate product that goes at it as if Apple decided to go after the camera market back in the day and eventually add on the rest of the phone features.
By changing the form factor limitations, Apple would have a near endless opportunity to make huge leaps forward in image and video quality. Instead of trying to glom a modestly-better camera onto a phone each year, this would be the reverse: glom a modestly-better phone+internet device onto a camera each year.
Those happy with the phone and the limits of what that camera will even be able to do keep buying a phone. Those wanting a much better camera and also phone features might consider the form factor change. Long before everyone carried a slab around in their pocket, photographers carried a camera hanging around their neck. And a "smart camera" could also be a phone & internet device just as easily as a smart phone & internet device can also be a camera.
Else, physics are physics and a camera jammed into a skinny slab will never be able to be as good as one without those constraints. If camera is most of the rationale for upgrading each year going forward, why not make the best camera Apple can and layer on the phone & internet features? That camera- unhindered by form factor- could take fantastic photos & video, forever impossible in a phone. The skinny slab is forever limited to "good enough..." which certainly can be enough for many of us.
Last edited:
What has been "new" in iPhone in forever?
Don't give me this "dynamic island" BS - it's literally just notification software to cover the stupid decision to put holes in the display (and waste the space above it). Could have done expanding black-background software notifications from the notch and called it the "dynamic peninsula."
Camera kinda has been the only reason to upgrade - and even still I'd argue it's not relevant for most unless you're going with the Pro Max with a supposed 6x optical zoom.
And why is it only in the largest phone? I was using Sony point and shoots with periscope lenses 20 years ago!!!
Give them all periscope cameras, better battery life, no camera bumps. But then of course they have nothing else to "upgrade" with the next year. BLAH!
Don't give me this "dynamic island" BS - it's literally just notification software to cover the stupid decision to put holes in the display (and waste the space above it). Could have done expanding black-background software notifications from the notch and called it the "dynamic peninsula."
Camera kinda has been the only reason to upgrade - and even still I'd argue it's not relevant for most unless you're going with the Pro Max with a supposed 6x optical zoom.
And why is it only in the largest phone? I was using Sony point and shoots with periscope lenses 20 years ago!!!
Give them all periscope cameras, better battery life, no camera bumps. But then of course they have nothing else to "upgrade" with the next year. BLAH!
i see no appreciable improvement in camera quality since the 11 pro. i think thats when they really nailed down the dynamic range by way of HDR.
From then on its more about details if you zoom in. And even then, sometimes it's actually made up details that weren't there in the first place.
From then on its more about details if you zoom in. And even then, sometimes it's actually made up details that weren't there in the first place.
I am on an 8 Plus (after upgrading from my 7 Plus last year just because it didn't support the new OS) and will upgrade to the 15 Pro Max this year since the 8 Plus no longer will support this year's OS. Looking VERY forward to all the improvements I'll benefit from when compared to the 8 Plus!
I think the reason is because Apple's processing has never been about making the best possible image, but more about making the best "good enough" image from the skinny slab form factor.
So even if they had the space to use better lens and sensor, by way of a new product class, it's not likely that the implementation of their algorithm will produce ground breaking enough results to warrant its existence.
LMFAO star of the show….
95% of buyers wont even use the periscope lens or give a &#£ about it.
Apple are masters of marketing something that most will never use or need but now want it.
starting to tire of this garbage now.
95% of buyers wont even use the periscope lens or give a &#£ about it.
Apple are masters of marketing something that most will never use or need but now want it.
starting to tire of this garbage now.
Apple is a lot of things, but it isn’t dumb. I’m sure according to market research and polls, camera is a major point for buyers.
Consumers don’t have to know what something is to feel the inconvenience when they need two different cables to charge their phone and their iPad/MacBook. Or when they need to charge at a friends house and they have to ask: “do you have an iPhone charger?” Let’s give the “average“ consumer a little more credit.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
They actually wouldn't need so much processing if they were not trying to squeeze bigger camera image quality out of tiny case cameras. And that's the point: the form factor forces trying to make ever-better lemonade out of physics-limited lemons. Apple can't really do much about that without altering thickness... and thus we have the much griped-about bump. Physics is physics. Many wants a flush camera with case but the only way to do that without reducing image quality is to fatten the whole phone (and bring the added weight with it).
If iPhone reasons to upgrade keep revolving around camera improvements, camera hump must grow or "good enough" will plateau. More simply: if most of the reason to upgrade is for the better camera, maybe they should make a camera that is also a phone & internet device. Freed from the shackles of form factor would yield an enormous leap forward. Competitive edge vs. those already making such cameras is all of the benefits of iOS.
Else, hump is forever and camera improvements will keep dancing around the edges of hard physics limitations.
Agreed. There’s an amount of indirect peer pressure involved. A friend became aware that her photos weren’t as good as photos posted by her friends, so she replaced her old android phone with a new android phone, and is very pleased she did.
I'll go with this, but I'm still getting the 15 Pro Max Ultra.. I'm still using a 12 Pro
Thanks for the tips. I already know that. It helps, certainly, but will not work at all when I shoot busy night streets with cars and motorbikes headlights galore.