The domain of Apple leaks is currently obsessed with the controversial iPhone 17 Pro design refresh, which could stir some heated debate with its massive camera hump. A lot of chatter is also focused on the svelte iPhone 17 Air. Yet, it seems there are a few other internal upgrades worth getting excited about.
According to analyst Jeff Pu, Apple will equip all four iPhone 17 series models with an upgraded 24-megapixel front camera. So far, Apple has stuck with a 12-megapixel selfie snapper on its mainline iPhones. Moreover, the company hasn’t ever deployed a 24-megapixel camera sensor, keeping its experiments limited to 12-megapixel and 48-megapixel units in the past few years.
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The research note by Pu, which was seen by MacRumors and 9to5Mac, doesn’t go into details about the specifications or feature details of the new 24-megapixel front snapper on the iPhone 17 series. However, we can take an educated guess, based on what Apple accomplished when it switched from 12-megapixel to 48-megapixel rear cameras.
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A 24-megapixel sensor will most likely default to pixel-binning for delivering pictures and videos at a lower resolution than the native pixel count. Pixel-binning essentially combines the light data collected by adjacent pixels, creating what is colloquially known as a super-pixel.
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The sum total of these efforts are pictures that are more detailed and with more realistic color rendering, especially in low-light scenarios. Depending on how the pixels are combined, the final image is usually a lower-resolution shot, but more pleasing to look at.
For example, the iPhone 16 Pro’s 48-megapixel main camera does 4-in-1 pixel binning to produce 12-megapixel pictures, but you can still stick full-res 48-megapixel shots, too. There’s also an intermediary option to to get the best of both worlds with 24-megapixel clicks.
With a 24-megapixel selfie camera coming into the picture, iPhone 17 buyers can expect improved selfies and better-quality video calls. Moreover, since there are more pixels to collect light data, Apple might leverage it to offer more advanced camera features, too.
Jon Prosser / MacRumors
Low-light selfies, in particular, will draw a major benefit from a larger sensor. Moreover, when cropping and zooming in, the detail loss won’t be as discernible as it is on smaller camera sensors. Additionally, the 24-megapixel sensor could also pave the way for finer background blur effects.
In addition to an improved front camera, the iPhone 17 Pro is also expected to jump from a 12-megapixel zoom camera to a 48-megapixel telephoto sensor. Apple is also rumored to increase the RAM capacity, taking it up to 12GB, on the iPhone 17 Pro models.
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