iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus Could Still Have Smaller Camera Sensor Than Pro Models Despite Upgrade to 48MP

Apple's iPhone 15 and ‌iPhone‌ 15 Plus models could still have a smaller sensor than the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max, despite their upgrade to 48-megapixels, according to a new rumor posted on Weibo.

iPhone 15 Cyan and Magenta Frosted Back Feature
The claim comes from "Digital Chat Station," a Weibo user responsible for a range of details about the camera technology of upcoming ‌iPhone‌ models. Firstly, they claim that the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max will retain the same 1/1.28-inch 48-megapixel sensor as the ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro Max.

Numerous reports from sources including the analysts Jeff Pu and Ming-Chi Kuo say that the two standard ‌iPhone‌ 15 models are set to be upgraded to 48-megapixels just like the ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro Max. According to Digital Chat Station, while the non-Pro models will receive the upgrade to 48-megapixels, they will continue to have a smaller stacked CMOS image sensor (CIS) than the Pro models at 1/1.5-inches.

The ‌iPhone‌ 14 and ‌iPhone‌ 14 Plus feature a 12-megapixel sensor that is 1/1.9-inches in size. This means that the standard ‌iPhone‌ 15 models could gain a 27% larger sensor – a substantial increase, but still not equal to the ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro models. In May, Digital Chat Station reported that the next ‌iPhone‌ sensor size increase for the Pro models is set to occur in 2024, increasing from 1/1.28-inches to 1/1.14-inches.

A larger image sensor offers improved image quality by capturing more light, leading to greater detail and less noise, especially in low-light conditions. It also provides a wider dynamic range and better color accuracy, resulting in more professional and visually appealing photos.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

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...
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...
Google maps feaure

Google Maps Quietly Added This Long-Overdue Feature for Drivers

Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by
Google Maps on iOS quietly gained a new feature recently that automatically recognizes where you've parked your vehicle and saves the location for you. Announced on LinkedIn by Rio Akasaka, Google Maps' senior product manager, the new feature auto-detects your parked location even if you don't use the parking pin function, saves it for up to 48 hours, and then automatically removes it once...
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...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

Apple to Make More Foldable iPhones Than Expected [Updated]

Tuesday December 9, 2025 9:59 am PST by
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports. In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
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 >...
AirTag 2 Mock Feature

Apple AirTag 2: Four New Features Found in iOS 26 Code

Thursday December 11, 2025 10:31 am PST by
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products. Here's what's supposedly coming: An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
maxresdefault

iOS 26 Code Leak Reveals Apple Smart Home Hub Details

Thursday December 11, 2025 4:02 pm PST by
Apple is working on a smart home hub that will rely heavily on the more capable version of Siri that's coming next year. We've heard quite a bit about the hub over the last two years, but a recent iOS 26 code leak provides additional insight into what we can expect and confirms rumored features. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Macworld claims to have access to an ...

Top Rated Comments

contacos Avatar
31 months ago
well of course, this device only exists for upselling purposes anyway. If they truly cared about providing the best customer experience available, they would put the best tech currently available in "the" iPhonE (singular)
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SilvioInfante Avatar
31 months ago

well of course, this device only exists for upselling purposes anyway. If they truly cared about providing the best customer experience available, they would put the best available tech currently available in "the" iPhonE (singular)
That's exactly what they did while Steve Jobs was alive, and for a few years after. Every year they poured the best they could do for that year into one really great model.

Inevitably though, the greed got to them. Especially with a bean counter as CEO. They'll tell you that the iPhone market is vast and complicated, and needs 20 different iPhones on sale at any time to hit every imaginable price point. In truth, it's all just greed.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SilvioInfante Avatar
31 months ago

Non pro phones are for the peasants.
I don't know, at $799 and $899 they don't sound like peasant phones. More like they sound like terrible buys that exist only to upsell the Pro models.

I don't see what the point is anymore, honestly. If Apple is only going to put its best foot forward with the Pro phones now, then just get rid of the standard models, and embrace the fact that flaghship iPhone starts at $1000+. And just keep last year's Pro models in the lineup at those price points.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rychiar Avatar
31 months ago
How useless is a 48mp sensor when it’s small….
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
coffeemilktea Avatar
31 months ago
I wonder how this will affect all the pictures I take of my cat? o_O
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Skyscraperfan Avatar
31 months ago
So the cripple a phone on many levels and still ask for $799 or even more?

I recently looked for a new TV and was surprised that TVs despite their size and all those modern features cost much less than smartphones. It seems TVs are getting cheaper while smartphones are getting more expensive. For €749 you already get a 48 inch OLED TV. There are TVs with a screen size over 80 inch for the price of an iPhone 14 Pro.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)