Kuo: iPhone 16 Pro Models to Adopt Stacked Camera Sensor Design

Apple's iPhone 16 series next year will adopt a stacked rear camera sensor design across the lineup, following similar adoption in this year's standard iPhone 15 models, according to Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

iPhone 15 Blue Three Quarters Perspective Feature
This year's lower-end ‌iPhone‌ 15 and ‌‌iPhone‌ 15‌ Plus models are expected to feature a 48-megapixel rear camera lens with a stacked CMOS image sensor (CIS) design that can capture more light.

Production yield issues of the new sensor design have likely prevented Apple from adopting it across all ‌iPhone‌ 15 models this year, and while Sony's high-end CIS capacity is expected to remain tight through 2024, Apple has secured most of Sony's orders ahead of time.

According to Kuo, Sony's tight capacity is expected to benefit rival supplier Will Semi, which will obtain more orders for high-end CIS from Chinese smartphone brands as a result.

Rumors suggest the 48-megapixel wide-angle camera used in the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max will feature an eight-part hybrid lens with two glass elements and six plastic elements, along with improvements for the telephoto and ultra wide camera lenses.

Both the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro and the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max could get periscope telephoto lenses in 2024. In 2023, the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max will be the only device to get the new camera technology because of size constraints.

Related Roundup: iPhone 16
Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.4 and iOS 27 Features Revealed in New Leak

Friday December 12, 2025 10:56 am PST by
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28. The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Leak Reveals Foldable iPhone Details

Monday December 15, 2025 9:09 am PST by
The first foldable iPhone will feature a series of design and hardware firsts for Apple, according to details shared by the Weibo leaker known as Digital Chat Station. According to a new post, via machine translation, Apple is developing what the leaker describes as a "wide foldable" device, a term used to refer to a horizontally oriented, book-style foldable with a large internal display....
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.2 With Alarms for Reminders, Lock Screen Changes, Enhanced Safety Alerts and More

Friday December 12, 2025 10:10 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. ‌iOS 26‌.2 is compatible with the ‌iPhone‌ 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation ‌iPhone‌ SE. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features on Your iPhone

Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon. Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week. iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
macOS Tahoe 26 Thumb

Apple Releases macOS Tahoe 26.2 With Edge Light

Friday December 12, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1. Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings. macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3

Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2 Likely to Offer These 10 New Features

Monday December 15, 2025 7:41 am PST by
Apple released the AirPods Max on December 15, 2020, meaning the over-ear headphones launched five years ago today. While the AirPods Max were updated with a USB-C port and new color options last year, followed by support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio this year, the headphones lack some of the features that have been introduced for newer generations of the regular AirPods and the ...
apple beta 26 lineup

Apple Leak Confirms Work on Foldable iPhone, AirTag 2, and Dozens More Devices

Monday December 15, 2025 2:05 pm PST by
Last week, details about unreleased Apple devices and future iOS features were shared by Macworld. This week, we learned where the information came from, plus we have more findings from the leak. As it turns out, an Apple prototype device running an early build of iOS 26 was sold, and the person who bought it shared the software. The OS has a version number of 23A5234w, and the first...

Top Rated Comments

vseera Avatar
31 months ago
This article is confusing :/

So does that mean that only the lower end models will feature this new and improved stacked sensor this year? That makes no sense.

Shouldn’t the Pro models get the feature first, before it trickles down to the standard models?
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Schizoid Avatar
31 months ago
Does this bloke know about the iPhone 17 too?
Prediction: It’ll be better
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vegetassj4 Avatar
31 months ago
I don't know why people think this article is so confusing. To determine which phone will get the upgraded sensors first, one simply must use the following basic equation, where Standard Model = normal iPhone:



Attachment Image
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Eldaerenth Faexidor Avatar
31 months ago
The majority of iPhone buyers don’t really care about the technology behind their little camera setup. I like to catch flying birds so I kinda care. Yesterday I found my old iPhone 3G. Look at how tiny that camera module is! The iPhone camera has come a long way since. Looking forward to the iPhone 15 Pro Max.


Attachment Image
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MarcoPohlo Avatar
31 months ago

This article is confusing :/

So does that mean that only the lower end models will feature this new and improved stacked sensor this year? That makes no sense.

Shouldn’t the Pro models get the feature first, before it trickles down to the standard models?
Also didn't understand that part, so this year Apple is adding superior tech to the regular lineup? It has always been the other way around. Very confusing indeed.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iPadified Avatar
31 months ago
A lens does not have pixels. A lens is a piece of transparent glass or plastic or other medium and is certainly not pixelated. A lens maybe sit in from of a 48 M Pixel sensor but that is something completely different. I seen this sloppy writing too many times lately.

End Friday rant.

/M
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)