Evidence of Native HDR Support on iPhone 3GS Emerges

Apple may have planned HDR photos for iPhone 3GS handsets all along, an iOS SDK finding reveals.

Developers juggling with the contents of Apple’s software development kit for iOS have discovered two separate HDR badges.

One is available in a very a high-resolution, suggesting it is for the iPhone 4 Retina display.

The other has a significantly lower resolution, akin to something that would best fit the iPhone 3GS non-Retina display.

This finding, coupled with the absence of Apple’s “@2x” markings for Retina display-supported features, led to credence that iPhone 3GS was, in fact, on track to get HDR photos.

Instead of planning a future implementation of the feature for the still-selling iPhone 3GS, Apple is now believed to have scrubbed it altogether for the old-gen handset.

One reason may be that Apple simply wanted a substantial-enough set of new features to promote the new iPhone 4 hardware with.

And, it makes sense - with all the reported issues surrounding it, Apple does not want to lose potential buyers.

A report by 9to5mac points out to the new finding, adding that, had Apple wanted HDR in older iPhones, the 3GS would have been the only one to support this.

For those who are not in the loop with the latest technologies crammed inside Apple’s new portables, HDR photography is a new iOS 4.1-feature which allows iPhone 4 users to take great photos that capture a wider range of light intensity using a new high dynamic range (HDR) setting.

It automatically combines multiple exposures into a single HDR image, resulting in images of much higher quality and detail.

Still, owners of an iPhone 3GS should not be upset for being left out in the cold. As it turns out, there’s an app for that!