Why didn’t Apple try to bring 48 mpx in the first place to its 3x lens which had proven its optical quality and admired by many users?
To become 6x (@12 mpx level) by pixel binning, it could have easily beaten today’s 5x @ 12 mpx, at least in good light.
And this way, it could be applied on current size of 15 pro devices, without any need of slightly scaling up (will be with 16 pro) to fit the bigger tetraprism setup.
Who knows what reason is behind? Maybe a 48 mpx sensor of this size is not available yet. Maybe they are working on to offer 3x & 48 mpx on some future models, along with options using the 5x & 48 mpx.
A quad-optic solution can also be thought, as 0.5x, 1x, 2.5x (there was one on 12 pro max) and a new 6x tetraprism all having 48 mpx sensors.
It’s not easy to keep up with improving tech & competitors’ pace together with other future plans we may not know yet.
There may be many cancelled plans, because they could not reach maturity at the time needed and have become obsolete in technical ecosystem.
As a Nikon photographer, I remember ten years ago Nikon was lagging behind with no reasonable full frame option other than 12 mpx D700, while other brands could. Users were begging for at least 16-20 mpx successor. You could buy the 24 mpx D3X, but it was too bulky and expensive ($6K!), plus it yielded noisy images at even medium ISO settings and lacked video capability of competitors (meaning a niche product almost born dead). Nikon was waiting for the new-tech clean 36 mpx Sony sensor that availed video. They eventually brought out the long-awaited D800 in normal size and price, which saved the brand.
Same strategies apply to mobile phone brand chess game.
If iPhone can bring a pocketable sized phone (not the brick max models) with all sensors from ultra wide to telephoto as finally replaced by 48 mpx quad bayer ones, then I will buy one to replace most of my semi-pro photographic needs (except for astrophotography, wildlife or studio, etc).
Yes, it will never match a dedicated camera, but it will be good enough for double-spread prints. I see mobile photography is coming close (better in some cases) to the first-line 1.5x crop sensor cameras, which was good enough for editorials to be replacing full frame (Leica format) film.
There is an iPhone 14 pro ~20 mpx sample on web, processed from proRaw file at NY Times Square having such fine details and texture consistent from corner to corner with color fidelity, while recent iPhone 15pro 24 mp sample image details from 1x sensor is as well fantastic on good light, given it’s just in-camera jpg.
Dedicated professional camera has a compromise of spending a fortune, carrying bulk, getting unnecessary attention, working for hours in post, all for better quality results, yet only to be noticed by the few.
In a recent exhibition, I attended with several photographs, some Nikon D800 and D300, some drone images processed from 12 mpx raw, along with a few select iPhone 7 & 11 pro. Believe me, no photographer or enthusiast could correctly tell which one was which from 1 meter prints on the long side. Differences were so slim.
Unless you intend to make mural-sized art exhibitions or paid the worth for your dedication in editorials; then all efforts start to become questionable. Except for the lucky top world-renowned photographers, businesses pay less then ever nowadays, and updating gear with your income becomes impossible, leaving no option but to use your outdated gadget until it (or you) dies.
IMO, a good photographer can make miles better images just with an iPhone, than a novice given a full Hasselblad H6D system. Same analogy applies to a experienced driver with a standard car versus novice driver with a super car in a difficult situation.