iPhone 18 Pro Could Bring Variable Aperture to iPhone Cameras
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA – December 23, 2024 – iPhone users considering skipping the iPhone 17 Pro may find the next generation worth the wait, as rumors suggest the iPhone 18 pro models will introduce a variable aperture for the main 48-megapixel camera – a first for iPhones. This potential upgrade, reported by supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, could offer users greater creative control over their photography.
Currently, iPhone 14 Pro through iPhone 17 Pro models utilize a fixed ƒ/1.78 aperture on their main cameras, meaning the lens remains fully open during every shot. A variable aperture would allow users to manually adjust the amount of light entering the camera, impacting depth of field and potentially image quality. This change arrives as smartphone photography continues to evolve, with users demanding more sophisticated controls previously found only in traditional cameras.
The ability to control aperture directly influences depth of field – the area of an image that appears in focus. A wider aperture (lower f-number) creates a shallow depth of field, blurring the background and isolating the subject, while a narrower aperture (higher f-number) increases the depth of field, keeping more of the image sharp.
However, the impact of this feature on iPhone 18 Pro remains to be seen, given the physical limitations of smaller image sensors in smartphones. Despite this, the addition of variable aperture represents a significant step toward professional-level photography capabilities on iPhone.
Currently,none of the cameras on the iPhone 17 Pro offer this variable aperture functionality.
For a thorough overview of anticipated features, see our iPhone 18 roundup.
