Taiwanese research firm TrendForce reports that the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro models could feature a 48MP wide-angle camera unit. This corroborates the previous speculation from September 2021.

If the iPhone 14 Pro features a 48MP wide-angle camera, it would be a noticeable improvement from the 12MP wide-angle camera on the current-generation iPhone 13 Pro models.

In September last year, reputed analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that the iPhone 14 Pro models would feature the improved camera unit, alongside a host of other changes such as a hole-punch or pill-shaped display cutout for the front camera and in-display Touch ID.

That said, increasing the sensor’s megapixel count without making the sensor larger itself means the iPhone 14 Pro’s 48MP sensor would have smaller individual pixels than the iPhone 13 Pro’s 12MP sensor. This reduces the amount of light, and hence information, captured by each pixel on the sensor, adversely impacting low light camera performance. Kuo added that the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro would use pixel binning technology to generate 12MP outputs using the 48MP sensor.

Pixel binning essentially combines data from a grid of four pixels of the sensor (in this case) into one pixel of the image you would see. This mitigates the impact of high-resolution sensors on image quality in low light conditions. In essence, iPhone 14 Pro users would get the best of both worlds. They would be able to shoot high-resolution 48MP images in broad daylight while pixel binning would ensure night-time images are equally sharp and color-accurate. Pixel binning is already used widely on several flagships and mid-tier Android smartphones.

Given that 48MP images naturally consume more storage, it is likely that the iPhone 14 Pro’s camera app would default to shooting 12MP photos with the 48MP wide-angle camera, although a dedicated 48MP mode should be available.

Rumor has it that the 48MP wide-angle camera would be available on the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro as well as the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max. Do you think the improved sensor would bring new software features for the camera app in tow? Tell us in the comments section below.