iPhone 12 Lineup Features HDR Video Recording With Dolby Vision for Vivid Colors - MacRumors
Skip to Content

iPhone 12 Lineup Features HDR Video Recording With Dolby Vision for Vivid Colors

by

One of the key new camera-related features of the iPhone 12 lineup is support for Dolby Vision, a professional HDR video format that provides more accurate, lifelike color along with brighter highlights and darker shadows.

iphone 12 pro dolby vision

Shot on iPhone 12 Pro in Dolby Vision by Academy Award winning cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki

Apple says iPhone 12 models are the world's first devices capable of real-time Dolby Vision video recording — up to 4K at 30 FPS on iPhone 12 models and up to 4K at 60 FPS on Pro models. To achieve this, the devices have a new image signal processor that can take two exposures, create a histogram, and generate Dolby Vision metadata based on that histogram.

Apple demonstrated Dolby Vision on the iPhone 12 Pro during its event this week with a video shot by Academy Award winning cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, and it has since shared behind-the-scenes footage of the video on YouTube.


Dolby Vision support is end-to-end across the iPhone 12 lineup, meaning that users can capture, edit, and play back video in Dolby Vision directly on the devices. Dolby Vision grading is processed live and sustained during editing, which can be done in the Photos, iMovie, or Clips apps on the iPhone, or in Final Cut Pro on the Mac starting later this year.

Tags: Dolby Vision, Shot on iPhone
Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iphone 17 pro orange

Apple Highlights Photos Shot on iPhone During NASA's Mission to Moon

Saturday April 11, 2026 8:17 am PDT by
As we previously reported, astronauts aboard NASA's Orion spacecraft used the iPhone 17 Pro Max to take selfies of themselves with the Earth in the background during the Artemis II mission around the far side of the Moon last week. Now that the crew members have safely returned to Earth, Apple's CEO Tim Cook and marketing chief Greg Joswiak have both turned to social media to congratulate...
Read Full Article • 73 comments
macworld iphone 18 pro colors

iPhone 18 Pro's Four Rumored Colors Revealed, Including 'Dark Cherry'

Friday April 17, 2026 3:50 am PDT by
A source said to be familiar with Apple's supply chain today revealed the color options Apple is planning for the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and the upcoming foldable iPhone. Image via Macworld. The information comes from Macworld, which says the signature new color for this year's Pro models will be Dark Cherry, a deep wine-like red. While other sources had previously reported on a...
Read Full Article • 113 comments
macOS 27 on MacBook Pro

macOS 27 Will Mark the End of an Era

Saturday April 18, 2026 6:45 am PDT by
During its Platforms State of the Union segment at WWDC 2025, Apple revealed that macOS 26 Tahoe is the final major macOS version for Intel-based Macs. The upcoming macOS 27 release will be compatible with Apple silicon Macs only, meaning that you will need a Mac with an M-series chip or a MacBook Neo with an A18 Pro chip in order to install the software update. macOS 27 should be available...
Read Full Article • 153 comments

Top Rated Comments

S
samtfischer
72 months ago
It should be noted that Dolby Vision is not an acquisition format, only a delivery format. So whenever you see "recording/capturing in Dolby Vision", it's a little misleading. Dolby Vision is only used to take HDR content and tone map it down to other displays. So basically, whenever a user would share the video.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aaronhead14 Avatar
aaronhead14
72 months ago

Up until yesterday I always thought Dolby Vision = 12-bit. I guess 10-bit + metadata now counts as well.
Dolby Vision can support 12-bit, but it doesn’t have to. Minimum requirements are 10-bit.


It should be noted that Dolby Vision is not an acquisition format, only a delivery format. So whenever you see "recording/capturing in HDR", it's a little misleading. Dolby Vision is only used to take HDR content and tone map it down to other displays. So basically, whenever a user would share the video.
I came here to say just this! It makes NO sense to “record” in Dolby Vision! The entire point of Dolby Vision is to create interpolated HDR-to-SDR trims AFTER the film has been color graded and finished. This is just a strange marketing ploy from Apple, and it encourages people to not go through a proper post workflow. It’s a very bizarre “feature.”
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vipergts2207 Avatar
vipergts2207
72 months ago
Wonder what the reason is for the non-pros only getting 30 FPS.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
mozumder
72 months ago
As nice at it is, it still has the "watercolor" look of a camera-phone, due to all the AI hacks they have to do to get higher dynamic range from a cell-phone camera. That's not going to go away until they quadruple the lens/pixel size. Each pixel is only about 10 bits of dynamic range in its electron well, instead of the 15+ bits you'd get in a real camera.

I wish Apple would just make an interchangeable lens camera, with their amazing CPU/ISP, to allow for a camera with apps you can download from the App Store.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
N
now i see it
72 months ago
But Dolby Vision sounds cool so I want it. And OLED Super Retina XDR sounds cool too so I want that too I guess
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
J
jcshas
72 months ago
Cinematographer: “These new Camera’s are extraordinary“

Me: “Video’s of my kid’s birthday parties will look so cool with HDR Dolby Vision”

Reality check :)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments