iPhone 15 Pro Max to use prism-based zoom lens; Big worry for Samsung?

iPhone 15 Pro Max to use the prism-based periscope lens system for zoom similar to the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max is said to get a periscope zoom camera system. (Amritanshu / HT Tech)

The iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 15 Ultra, is coming with a big upgrade to its zoom camera. Even though Apple is months away from unveiling the iPhone 15 series, leaks and rumours have revealed a lot about these phones and what all can we expect. Other than the Dynamic Island becoming a standard affair on all the models along with the 48MP camera sensor, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is going to bring another significant upgrade to the camera – a better zoom lens.

Rumours had already pointed out at Apple including a periscope lens zoom camera on the Pro Max version this year. A new report from The Elec now confirms the same. Apple is looking to replace its current suppliers, Japan Alps and Mitsumi. Instead, it is willing to sign a contract with LG Innotek and Jahwa, both of which supply periscope lens systems for smartphones. Jahwa supplies the components for the periscope zoom camera on the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and now the upcoming Galaxy S23 Ultra.

iPhone 15 Pro Max to be a zoom king?

A periscope lens system would involve a prism-based lens system that puts the entire lens system horizontally inside the body of the phone. This will allow for better zoom without increasing the width of the phone.

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What now remains to be seen is what kind of optical magnification Apple settles for. Apple's big rival Google includes a 5x optical zoom lens on the Pixel 7 Pro whereas Samsung offers a 10x optical zoom lens. Apple could either settle for a 5x optical zoom or max out on the same levels as Samsung's 10x optical zoom.

Currently, Apple only offers a 3x optical zoom lens on the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. These phones can only offer up to 3x optical zoom and everything beyond that is digital. We tested out the zoom camera on the iPhone 14 Pro Max and you can get useable pictures until 7x zooming, beyond which everything looks blurry. Samsung leads the zoom performance with its Galaxy S22 Ultra, offering up to 10X optical zoom.