14 DAY TRIAL // We’ve known for a while that Apple was working on a periscope camera, and while most people expected this upgrade to go across the lineup in 2023, it looks like the Cupertino-based tech giant might wait a little bit longer to make it happen.
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says the first iPhone to get a periscope camera will be the iPhone 16, which is projected to launch in 2024.
Not only that, but Apple is also planning to bring this upgrade exclusively to the iPhone 16 Pro Max – though the analyst expects the device to be renamed to iPhone 16 Ultra.
Sources familiar with the matter said Apple could drop the Pro Max moniker and replace it with Ultra in an attempt to create more consistency in its lineup. The Ultra will therefore be the top-of-the-range configuration, aligning the iPhone series with the Apple Watch.
Kuo says only the most expensive iPhone will get a periscope camera in 2024.
“Only one/the highest-end model of the new 2H24 iPhone 16 series may have a periscope camera, not the two models of market expectation. It's detrimental to Largan and Genius since the demand for lens upgrades will fall below expectations,” he says.
“As previously predicted, the highest-end model of the 2H23 new iPhone 15 model (15 Pro Max or 15 Ultra) will adopt the periscope camera. The market expected that adding periscope cameras to more iPhone models would drive demand for lens upgrades in 2023-2024. But my latest survey indicates only one/highest-end new iPhone 16 model in 2H24 will have the periscope camera, not the two models the market expected. Therefore, the contribution of the periscope camera to the demand for lens upgrades may be lower than the market consensus.”
iPhone 15 is projected to launch in September this year, but it’s not yet clear if the Pro Max transition to Ultra would happen for this generation.