Rumor: Only iPhone 15 Pro Max will get camera with periscopic zoom

Only the iPhone 15 Pro Max will get a camera with periscopic zoom, says TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Other variants of next year’s iPhone will not have the zoom. The iPhone 16 Pro would then have the periscopic lens, says Kuo.

Oppo: periscopic camera

According to Kuo, the periscopic zoom lens should provide 5x-6x magnification over the primary camera. That comes out to around a focal length of around 130mm in 35mm equivalent. That is a relatively limited magnification compared to cameras in other high-end phones. For example, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra has a 230mm lens. It also has a second camera with a telephoto lens with less magnification.

Kuo says the camera will have a sensor size of around 1/3″, which equates to an area of ​​around 13 square millimeters. The aperture would be f/2.8, while the camera would support optical image stabilization with sensor shift.

The analyst indicates that the periscopic lens will replace the telephoto lens currently used. Some other manufacturers opt for two cameras with telephoto lenses in high-end phones. A periscopic zoom lens has a sensor that is rotated a quarter turn in the housing. The light enters through the lens, after which a mirror bends the light a quarter turn to make it land on the sensor. That technique makes longer focal lengths possible, because there is more space in the width of a phone than in its thickness. A periscopic zoom lens for future iPhones has been rumored for some time, but this is the first time Kuo has listed specs.