Analyzing the three new camera systems in Apple’s iPhone 12

Apple just announced its iPhone 12 lineup, and as part of today’s announcements, the company introduced a dizzying amount of camera technology scattered among the new iPhones. If you’re coming from an iPhone that currently has only one camera, or even a couple, you can find some major updates here.

But first, let’s establish the baseline.

One camera: iPhone SE (2020) and iPhone XR

The iPhone SE attracted attention earlier this year at a price of $ 399, and the iPhone XR is now $ 499. Both have a single 12-megapixel f / 1.8 “wide” camera, although they are not exactly the same: the XR It has a larger sensor, while the iPhone SE appears to be a smaller one similar to the iPhone 8 from 2017. or telephoto lenses, or sophisticated deep fusion techniques; its portrait mode shots are also limited to what Apple’s machine learning algorithms can guess about depth, as there is no second camera to check.

Still, each offers a six-element lens with optical image stabilization, 4K60 video recording, and a basic portrait mode.

Two cameras: iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini come with two cameras each, but perhaps most importantly, that main camera has changed. While it still offers 12 megapixels like previous phones, the lens now has 7 elements and a larger f / 1.6 aperture that allows 27 percent more light to reach that sensor compared to the previous generation, which should mean brighter, less noisy and / or blurry images. in low light and with a slightly shallow depth of field.

You also get:

• A second 12-megapixel f / 2.4 ultra-wide camera with a 120-degree field of view, a 5-element lens, and a 13mm equivalent focal length, which sounds like the same ultra-wide camera we got on the iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro
• Apple’s Deep Fusion computational photography system, which can now be used on any camera (instead of just the main one) and which Apple says works faster on the iPhone 12
• Night mode, which you won’t find on the iPhone SE, can be used on the front and ultrawide TrueDepth cameras here, which means you’ll be able to take photos in night mode no matter which iPhone 12 camera you’re using. (The iPhone 11 did not support night mode with ultrawide.)
• A new time-lapse function in night mode
• Apple’s Smart HDR 3 system, which will automatically adjust things like white balance and contrast in photos to make them look more natural, according to the company.
• The ability to record HDR videos with Dolby Vision at 30fps

Three cameras + LIDAR: iPhone 12 Pro

Like the iPhone 11 Pro, the iPhone 12 Pro adds a third telephoto camera to the package, and as far as we know, it’s the same 52mm f / 2.0 telephoto lens as last year, except now you can also use it for shooting. Deep Fusion. Photos. But perhaps most interestingly, the iPhone 12 Pro also has a LIDAR sensor, which could have a huge benefit in low-light situations: Apple says the LIDAR sensor can autofocus up to 6 times faster in low light and allow you to take portrait photos in night mode. .

You also get:

• The same main and ultrawide cameras found on the iPhone 12, and the same new modes
• 2x optical zoom and 10x digital zoom, thanks to that 52mm equivalent telephoto lens
• HDR video with Dolby Vision, like iPhone 12, but at 60fps instead of capped at 30

iPhone 12 Pro Max

The main camera on the iPhone 12 Pro Max looks like it will be a noticeable improvement over the main camera on the other iPhone 12 models, and that camera was already an improvement over the SE line and iPhone 11. The 12 Pro Max’s 12-megapixel f / 1.6 wide camera has a 47 percent larger sensor, which Apple says translates to an 87 percent improvement in photos low light. The main camera also has Sensor Shift Optical Image Stabilization, which means that the camera’s sensor moves within the camera to compensate for any movement. That, in theory, should make photos and videos more stable.

This is what you get:

• A 2.5x longer optical zoom compared to the iPhone 12 Pro, thanks to a longer 65mm equivalent focal length lens, but with a slower f / 2.2 aperture
• The same ultra-wide camera as the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro
• The same LIDAR sensor found in the iPhone 12 Pro
• 12x digital zoom – taller than iPhone 12 Pro
• All the same software features as the iPhone 12 Pro, including Dolby Vision HDR at 60fps

Both iPhone 12 Pro models will also get an additional software feature sometime later this year: support for Apple’s ProRAW format, which combines Apple’s computational photography with RAW. However, until it’s available, it’s hard to know exactly how you could improve your photos or how much control it will give you while editing.