Forget iPhone 15! iPhone 16 Pro Max is getting a huge camera upgrade

iPhone 15 Pro
(Image credit: 9to5Mac)

iPhone 15 rumors have been brewing, but we’re already hearing a huge one about the iPhone 16 Pro Max camera system that may make you want to rethink buying this year.

According to Weibo account “Digital Chat Station,” next year’s super-sized Pro iPhone is going to get a new Super Telephoto Camera — making the most of a periscope lens.

Enhance!

Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max

(Image credit: Future)

According to this rumor, Apple will announce this greatly enhanced telephoto lens for next year’s Pro Max iPhone. When we take a look at the word “super” in relation to zoom lenses on other phones, that has usually meant a focal length of over 300mm.

When compared to what the iPhone 14 Pro Max currently has (a 77mm lens), this would be a huge increase — helping with situations such as sports and wildlife photography! Of course, it’s being widely reported that the 15 Pro Max is getting a periscope lens, which would give it the capabilities of optical zoom. A super zoom on the 16 Pro Max would be a natural extension of that hardware.

Outlook

We’ve been waiting to hear more about whether the periscope lens was going to come to this year’s iPhone 15, or arrive next year with the 16. And separate of the rather dramatic headline, it’s really up to you on how important a good telephoto lens is.

The team is split on it. On one hand, I never use a telephoto lens. But on the other hand, other writers speak of having a good zoom lens to actually capture their kids in soccer games.

Either way, we’ll know whether this rumor is true or not when Apple’s September event rolls around.

Jason England
Content Editor

Jason brought a decade of tech and gaming journalism experience to his role as a writer at Laptop Mag, and he is now the Managing Editor of Computing at Tom's Guide. He takes a particular interest in writing articles and creating videos about laptops, headphones and games. He has previously written for Kotaku, Stuff and BBC Science Focus. In his spare time, you'll find Jason looking for good dogs to pet or thinking about eating pizza if he isn't already.