The 2024 iPhones, by all accounts, will feature their biggest screens ever…although how much they will extend remains a point of dispute. After four generations in a row with the Pro and Pro Max at 6.1 inches and 6.7 inches respectively, Apple will finally increase them to 6.3 and 6.9 inches (according to Ross Young) or “a little bigger than existing models (according to Ross Young). Ming-Chi Kuo).
The odd thing, however, is that the larger screens seem to be just a side effect of the company’s real focus. If a new report is correct, Apple is just making the screen (and therefore the chassis) bigger so it can fit better cameras.
Initially, the claim was made by an anonymous source on Chinese social media site Weibo (as reported by MacRumors), citing industry insider information. But the idea was then corroborated by the much more reassuring presence of Mark Gurman, the Bloomberg leaker-reporter who is one of the most respected voices in the Apple expert sector.
According to the sources, there are two aspects to this design decision. The first is the famous periscope camera lens, which is said to bring 6x optical zoom (compared to a maximum of 3x on the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max) and digital zoom up to 30x (instead of 15x). This feature is highly anticipated this year on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but not on the 15 Pro, for space reasons. Apple will happily keep it exclusive to the most expensive model in the lineup for a year, with upselling being the name of the game in Cupertino these days, but it wants to expand it to the iPhone 16 Pro model in 2024. And that means a bigger frame is needed.
The second concerns the size of the sensor. Current iPhone Pros feature a 1/1.28-inch sensor, and Series 15 models will retain it. But the increase in chassis size expected on the iPhone 16 Pro Max will allow it to include a larger and more capable 1/1.14-inch sensor.
In other words, the 16 Pro will be bigger to be able to include a camera feature that’s exclusive to the 15 Pro Max, and the 16 Pro Max will be bigger to be able to include a new, exclusive camera feature that won’t be available for the Pro. All rather confusing; maybe Apple will increase the size again in 2025 so that the iPhone 17 Pro can include the larger sensor of the 16 Pro Max? But the bottom line is that while the larger screens of the 16 Pro handsets will be the most obvious to customers, the real rationale for the change is the fact that it will allow Apple to include superior cameras. (It could also be related to battery capacity, according to Gurman.)
Long before we get to the iPhone 16 models, of course, we have to salute the 15 series. For the latest news and rumors related to this year’s update, check out our iPhone 15 superguide.
