iPhone 17 May Miss Out on Periscope Telephoto Cameras

Apple's latest iPhone 16 Pro lineup has periscope telephoto cameras, depriving the standard iPhone 16 models of the advanced photography setup. That sparked the speculation that the iPhone 17 models will be upgraded, but a new report has claimed that Apple may keep periscope cameras exclusive to the Pro models next year.

According to a report by the South Korean publication The Elec, the periscope telephoto camera on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max will be made by LG Innotek, which recently announced additional investments in its facilities. So, if the periscope cameras are not coming to the standard models, the investment may be meant for upgraded cameras on the iPhone 17 series. However, it is unclear whether Apple will continue with two cameras on its standard models next year or if it will increase the count to three, even though one of them will not use a periscope telephoto sensor.

The report added that LG Innotek has invested KRW 375.9 billion to secure new facilities for the development of iPhone 17 camera modules. However, the investment will not be used to set up new facilities but towards the replacement of its equipment and facilities to meet Apple's demands to upgrade the cameras on the upcoming iPhone 17.

Apple is reportedly working on four flagship iPhone models to launch next year. However, the Plus model may be replaced by a new Air or Slim model. With that addition, the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro lineups could look like this: iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air/Slim, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. The Pro models will continue to come with top-end features, but reports suggest the Air (or Slim) model could be the first iPhone model to use Apple's in-house 5G modem, in addition to being the company's slimmest iPhone device. The iPhone 17 Air may be about 6mm thick, surpassing the iPhone 6s, which had a thickness of 6.9mm.