iPhone 15 Pro specs: Kuo says the 8P main camera is unlikely to happen

The iPhone 15 lineup is still a year from entering the market, but it is not too early for predictions on future specifications to appear in the wild. However, TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo quickly dismissed a recent report that suggested the iPhone 15 Pro models may include an 8P lens for the main camera.

Market research firm TrendForce released its expected specifications of the iPhone 15 series, including some camera upgrades for the Pro models. The firm expects Apple to upgrade the iPhone 15 Pro camera to 8P instead of using the same 7P lens on the iPhone 14 Pro units.

Most consumers might not be familiar with this term, but when they see "8P" in the specs sheet it means the lens includes eight optical elements. Note that the iPhone 14 lineup uses 7P lenses. 9To5Mac further explains that having an additional element to the main camera lens will most likely reduce distortion to improve the wide-angle sensor's performance.

Kuo, however, said in a tweet this weekend that the iPhone 15 Pro "won't likely" feature an 8P main camera. The analyst did not provide a more comprehensive explanation of his forecast, though.

What Kuo and TrendForce agree on is that Apple would add a periscope lens exclusively to the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Kuo said in a blog post last July that Apple could expand the availability of periscope lens in 2024 by including it on both the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The analyst expects both generations' periscope lenses to have the same specifications, including a 1/3" 12MP lens, f/2.8 aperture, sensor-shift stabilization, and 5-6x optical zoom.

Meanwhile, Apple fans no longer have to speculate if the iPhone 15 lineup will keep the Lightning charging port. The tech giant confirmed that it has to follow the European Union's recently passed mandate that requires electronic devices to include a USB-C port for wired charging.

Apple SVP of Worldwide Marketing Greg Joswiak seemed to have reservations about how the EU is implementing the common charger policy. "We think the approach would’ve been better environmentally and better for our customers to not have a government be that prescriptive," he said at the WSJ Tech Live last week.

However, Joswiak ultimately confirmed that "we have no choice" but to comply, meaning the iPhone 15 models are going to have USB-C ports. The law is expected to be fully implemented by late 2024, just in time for the likely retail launch of the iPhone 15 series.

Photo by Omar Al-Ghosson from Unsplash