iPhone 16 Pro to get a huge Ultra Wide camera upgrade according to industry analyst — 48MP camera will be four times the 12MP seen in the iPhone 15 Pro

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By James Bentley
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The next Pro iPhone could be very impressive.

iPhone 15 Pro review back flat angled camera
(Image credit: Future | Alex Walker-Todd)

The iPhone 15 Pro camera is pretty impressive but according to a well-known industry analyst, the iPhone 16 Pro’s Ultra Wide camera could blow it out of the water. 

Ming-Chi Kuo recently posted a report going over production concerns and efforts with the iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 17, and Apple Vision Pro, and, to contextualize those production reports, he talked about a brand new camera upgrade coming to the iPhone 16 Pro. In it, he said “The ultra-wide camera of the iPhone 16 Pro series will be upgraded to 48MP/0.7um/(1/2.6") (vs. iPhone 15 Pro’s 12MP/1.0um/(1/3.6")). “ This matches a rumor from last month. 

How this works in actual photos and videos is yet to be seen, but the better raw power could give the iPhone more to work with when it comes to how it treats that footage. This should result in much clearer and more detailed footage if the rumored Ultra Wide improvements launch later this year.

A healthy upgrade — iMore’s take

The camera is rumored to be built on the same architecture as the iPhone 15 Pro, which means production costs should not rise exponentially, but the bump in quality should be noticeable. It’s important to note that the Ultra Wide camera’s MP count has not changed at all since the launch of the iPhone 11 Pro way back in September 2019. 

This increase is a needed step for the iPhone as it was being outpaced by its competitors in raw figures. In actuality, this doesn’t always place iPhone Ultra Wide cameras significantly behind, as those specs don’t tell the full story of what they can capture. Apple can combine its top-class software and efficient design to get the most out of this significant bump. Ming-Chi Kuo’s report suggests everything is on track to deliver that camera upgrade this year. Hopefully, it’s worth the wait. 

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James Bentley
James Bentley

James is a staff writer and general Jack of all trades at iMore. With news, features, reviews, and guides under his belt, he has always liked Apple for its unique branding and distinctive style. Originally buying a Macbook for music and video production, he has since gone on to join the Apple ecosystem with as many devices as he can fit on his person. 

With a degree in Law and Media and being a little too young to move onto the next step of his law career, James started writing from his bedroom about games, movies, tech, and anything else he could think of. Within months, this turned into a fully-fledged career as a freelance journalist. Before joining iMore, he was a staff writer at Gfinity and saw himself published at sites like TechRadar, NME, and Eurogamer. 

As his extensive portfolio implies, James was predominantly a games journalist before joining iMore and brings with him a unique perspective on Apple itself. When not working, he is trying to catch up with the movies and albums of the year, as well as finally finishing the Yakuza series. If you like Midwest emo music or pretentious indie games that will make you cry, he’ll talk your ear off.