The last rumors of iPhone 17 Pro point to the Apple Premium Insignia headset that obtains a new teleobjective camera with 8x optical zoom, above 5x zoom on the iPhone 16 Pro.
In addition, this new camera leans to use mobile components that could allow the continuous optical zoom between a range of still unknown focal distances. That is a rarely seen technology, generally reserved for phones that are specifically designed for photographs such as the Sony Xperia 1 VI, and the idea that such niche technology reaches one of the most popular phones in the world is properly exciting.
So why am I not jumping for joy?
Most flagship phones, and some of the average range phones particularly well spotted such as OPPO Reno 13 Pro, come with a teleobjective camera, which offer optical zoom through the addition of specialized lens and sensor.
However, to create a continuous zoom between different lenses, the phones generally use digital zoom to close the distance between their various lenses. For example, a telephone with a main camera in 1x zoom and a teleobjective camera with 3x optical zoom zoom digitally the main camera to achieve the 2x zoom.
If those rumors of iPhone 17 mentioned above are true, the new teleobjective camera will add even more scope and flexibility to what is already one of the best camera phones.
It could also explain the new camera housing that many rumors and leaks predict the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max to launch. Previously we thought that this design change was a purely aesthetic choice, but this pixel -style camera bar could, in fact, house a periscope lens or other technology to support the new Zoom camera.
Said all this, I can't help asking me if I would really use this new characteristic (certainly great). Once the emotion around the possible 8x zoom chamber of the iPhone 17 Pro sits, will it be worth using?
Three times is the charm
I am a maximalist when it comes to technology: I like to have the best possible specifications, and for a long time, I found myself afflicting after the 5x or even 10x teleobjective lenses installed for some of the best camera phones. I remember specifically feeling amazed when the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra launched with a 10X optical chamber.
But to be honest, it is rare that I find me so much, apparently I am not the only one, since Samsung reduced his long -range zoom camera from 10x to 5x with the launch of the Galaxy S24 Ultra. As I mentioned before, unless it is zoom in or beyond the 10x brand, a 10x zoom camera will not be useful.
If you ask me, the optimal point is actually a 3X telephoto camera, like the one that had the iPhone 15 Pro before increasing to 5 times on the iPhone 16 Pro.
It is not that I do not see the point in longer zoom lenses. In fact, last year, I wrote that the Zoom 6x Chamber of Oppo Find X8 Pro had opened new possibilities when it comes to mobile photography. It is only that 3x achieves a better balance between scope and daily utility; A 3X zoom lens brings details forward without feeling narrow, and the distortion of the smallest lens is ideal for more natural portraits.
Nor am I the only 3x zoom fan in the Techradar office: last year, the Axel Metz phone editor wrote that the 3X Teleobjective Chamber of the iPhone 15 Pro was his option for photos of natural social networks and more professional aspect, such as those below.
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An 8x zoom camera, or even better, a lens that continuously about, for example, from 5x to 8x, would be a victory for certain users: concert attendees, photographers of nature, perhaps even photographers of portraits that do not mind being far away.
But without an intermediate lens to close the long gap between 1x and 8x, for me, this will not be a point of sale.
Even the Ultra Galaxy S21 changed to a 3x camera before reaching the complete 10x zoom, and although the iPhone digital zoom is excellent, there would surely be a remarkable loss of quality at zoom levels that do not activate the new camera. It would be reluctant to give my 3x lens without some kind of software magic to avoid that.
We hope that the iPhone 17 series will be revealed in September 2025, so we hope we will not have to wait long to see what Apple is cooking.
What do you think of this rumor? Would it be an 8x teleobjective camera for an impulse for the iPhone, or did technology have gone too far? Let us know in the comments below.
