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iPhones' cameras compared

My husband and I are fairly satisfied with our iPhone XR's running 15.4.1. But I'd perhaps opt for an upgrade if I knew that the cameras on the newer iPhones were FAR superior. Is anyone knowledgeable about their relative photographic quality? Thanks, folks.

iPhone XR, iOS 15

Posted on Apr 29, 2022 6:57 PM

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Posted on Apr 29, 2022 11:40 PM

The camera is better, but you may not like the supporting software, if you want more control over the way photos are captured. On the iPhone 13 it is no longer possible to disable Automatic HDR. It will use Deep Fusion, whenever the Artificial Intelligence thinks the conditions are perfect for Deep Fusion, and if it is wrong, you will not be able to take a simple shot, without oversaturated colours or motion artifacts caused by the fusion of nine images. On my iPhone 11 I can disable Automatic HDR and use it only, when I want it, but that is impossible on the iPhone 12 and 13. The camera will decide for you how to take the photo. It can be an advantage, because you are faster, but may be annoying, when you cannot take the photo as you want it.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Apr 29, 2022 11:40 PM in response to Marcia F

The camera is better, but you may not like the supporting software, if you want more control over the way photos are captured. On the iPhone 13 it is no longer possible to disable Automatic HDR. It will use Deep Fusion, whenever the Artificial Intelligence thinks the conditions are perfect for Deep Fusion, and if it is wrong, you will not be able to take a simple shot, without oversaturated colours or motion artifacts caused by the fusion of nine images. On my iPhone 11 I can disable Automatic HDR and use it only, when I want it, but that is impossible on the iPhone 12 and 13. The camera will decide for you how to take the photo. It can be an advantage, because you are faster, but may be annoying, when you cannot take the photo as you want it.

Apr 29, 2022 10:28 PM in response to Marcia F

Have a look at the camera specs for your XR and compare it with the currently available iPhone 13.

iPhone XR - Technical Specifications

iPhone 13 - Technical Specifications


I'm not a camera fiend, but a local expert (my daughter) says the camera in my iPhone 13 is much better than my older iPhone X. When asked for a qualitative estimate she said, "Heaps better".



Apr 30, 2022 1:10 AM in response to Marcia F

iOS camera app is geared to the average user who does not want to fiddle with controls but still wants to get good images and movies (i.e. have a cake and eat it too).


If you want more manual control, get a 3rd party camera app like Halide for images and FiLMiC for movies (I have FiLMiC but very rarely use it because now also the built-in camera has an option for 25 fps).

iPhones' cameras compared

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