The iPhone 16 Pro smartphone camera may be less prone to glare

Korean rumors claim that Apple is testing a new anti-glare optical coating technology for future iPhone cameras that could improve photo quality by reducing artifacts such as glare and halos.

According to the news aggregator account «yeux1122» Naver blog citing a company source in Apple's supply chain, Apple is considering introducing new atomic layer deposition (ALD) equipment into the iPhone's camera lens manufacturing process.

ALD involves applying materials to a substrate by one atomic layer at a time, allowing extremely precise control of thickness and composition. Its use allows manufacturers to deposit very thin layers of materials on semiconductor devices, including camera components.

For camera lenses, ALD can be used to apply anti-reflective coatings that can help reduce photographic artifacts such as light streaks and halos that can appear in the final image when a bright light source, such as the sun, shines directly on the lens. photo lens.

ALD can also reduce halos, a type of image distortion where faint secondary images appear in a photograph, usually opposite a bright light source. This occurs when light bounces back and forth between the surfaces of the lens elements and the camera sensor.

Additionally, the materials used with ALD can protect the camera lens system from environmental damage, not affecting the sensor's ability to capture light effectively.

The Naver blog claims that the manufacturing process will be applied to a "professional model" in the “next generation” iPhone line Apple, which sounds like a reference to one or both of the premium models in the iPhone 16 series, although given the timing of the rumored release, we shouldn't discount the possibility that this method is being tested for next year's iPhone 17 Pro models.

Both upcoming iPhone 16 Pro models are expected to include a tetraprism lens with 5x optical zoom – a feature that is currently exclusive to the iPhone 15 Pro Max in Apple's smartphone lineup. Apple usually releases a new generation iPhone around mid-September.