What you need to know about iPhone 15 Pro Max 5x optical zoom

Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro Max uses a four-prism lens system that is capable of up to 5x optical zoom, an improvement over the 14x zoom of the iPhone 3 Pro and the previous generation iPhone 15.

The telephoto lens on iPhone 15 Pro Max features Apple’s most advanced camera image stabilization system yet, combining optical image stabilization and an autofocus 3D sensor shift module.

According to Apple, the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s telephoto lens opens at ƒ/2.8 for excellent light management when shooting with 5x enabled. In comparison, the Galaxy S23 Ultra's 10x lens has an ƒ/4.9 aperture. A lower aperture allows the camera's sensor to capture more light, which is especially beneficial for Night Mode photos.

To use 5x optical zoom in your regular camera app, just tap the 5x button at the bottom of the viewfinder. With 5x optical zoom enabled, you can also enable up to 25x digital zoom by pinching the viewfinder, but keep in mind that image quality will degrade the more you zoom in digitally.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max’s 25x digital zoom limit is still lower than the competition. For example, Samsung's latest Galaxy S23 Ultra smartphone features 100x Space Zoom, which can capture images from 330 feet away, while the Pixel 7 Pro has 30x digital "Super Resolution Zoom" with its 5x optical zoom lens.

To its credit, Apple has never leaned into digital zoom because of poor quality. Optical zoom uses camera hardware to deliver crisp, clear images, but digital zoom uses software enhancements to crop.

5x optical zoom is an iPhone 15 Pro Max-specific feature that is not available on iPhone 15 Pro and is limited to 3x optical zoom. (Rumors have suggested that Apple plans to expand the quad prism lens system to two iPhone 16 Pro models next year. However, both phones have other camera improvements. The 48-megapixel main camera has a larger sensor, allowing for more More light comes in, and can be set to 24mm, 28mm and 35mm focal lengths.

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