With a 5X optical zoom telephoto lens and a tetraprism, the iPhone 16 Pro is expected to launch

Apple is apparently preparing to release the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max with the company’s tetraprism Telephoto lens, which offers improved zoom capabilities, after adding a new tetraprism lens system to the iPhone 15 Pro Max earlier this year.

With the release of the iPhone 15 Pro Max in September, Apple introduced a new tetraprism lens technology that allowed for the first-ever 5x optical zoom. For the first time, Apple has upgraded one Pro device but not the other with camera capabilities—the iPhone 15 Pro—without receiving the update.

It was reported that yield also had a role in the limiting, which only allowed the Pro Max to fit the hardware because of space limits. The tetraprism hardware for the iPhone 15 Pro Max was being produced by lens supplier Largan in the third quarter of 2023, but manufacturing yield was just 40%, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The yield has now increased to at least 70%.

To provide more room for camera gear, the firm intends to expand the iPhone 16 Pro’s size from 6.1 inches to 6.3 inches. The tetraprism lens was probably limited to the bigger Pro Max iPhone due to certain issues, which have been addressed by this size increase and yield improvements.

The article states that it is still unclear whether Apple plans to improve the tetraprism lens in 2024. Rumor has it that Apple is working on a “super telephoto camera” with a longer focus length.

According to a source, Apple is allegedly thinking about altering the appearance of the basic iPhone 16 models, maybe going back to the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini’s vertical camera arrangement.

For the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14, Apple used a diagonal arrangement. According to MacRumors, “it’s not entirely clear why Apple would revert, but one theory is that it could allow the devices to record spatial video for Apple Vision Pro.”