Similar to the iPhone 14 Pro, the iPhone 15 Pro’s camera is still its primary feature, even with the addition of new functions. Both versions have strong camera systems, but the iPhone 15 Pro offers some subtle but noticeable upgrades.
Here is a detailed comparison of the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro’s cameras.
What fresh features does the iPhone 15 Pro offer? And how does it differ significantly from the original iPhone 14 Pro model?
The first 3nm chip ever found in a smartphone, the Apple A17 chip, is the first innovation of the iPhone 15 Pro. However, you may be more interested in the device’s new titanium body, which is lighter and more robust, and the camera upgrades. We also appreciate that the new USB-C port replaces the outdated Lightning port, allowing us to travel with only one connection that charges all of our devices.
iPhone 14 Pro vs 15 Pro Camera Specifications
Both the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro have many lens setups; however, the iPhone 15 Pro has new capabilities and more options than the iPhone 14 Pro.
Optical Zoom and Focal Length Picker: The iPhone 14 Pro has a focal length picker that goes from 13mm to 77mm with optical zoom levels of 0.5x, 1x, 2x, and 3x. On the other hand, the iPhone 15 Pro keeps the existing zoom levels while extending the optical zoom to 5x/120mm (Pro Max only). More adaptable and user-friendly, the focal length picker on the iPhone 15 Pro now has a button to alternate between 24mm, 28mm, and 35mm.
Sensor and Lens Coating: A telephoto camera with sensor-shift optical image stabilization is a feature of both models. If you were concerned about the glare on the iPhone 14 Pro’s lenses, the new anti-reflective coating on the iPhone 15 Pro’s lenses greatly decreases it.
Smart HDR and Night Mode: Brighter and richer photographs, particularly in HDR aspects, are the outcome of the switch from the iPhone 14 Pro’s Smart HDR 4 to the iPhone 15 Pro’s Smart HDR 5. Low-light photography is boosted with the iPhone 15 Pro’s enhanced night mode and night mode portraiture.
One of the iPhone 15 Pro’s best features is the automated portrait mode, which recognizes when you’re taking pictures of people or pets while the camera is in regular mode and lets you apply the portrait mode effect later. I found this option to be quite useful.
Video aficionados will value the iPhone 15 Pro’s capacity to record ProRes video at up to 4K at 60 frames per second when using external recording, which is an improvement above the 4K at 30 frames per second on the iPhone 14 Pro. Video editors are accustomed to working with the LOG format, which is also supported by the iPhone 15 Pro.
Minimap while Zooming: An intelligent addition for easier navigation, the iPhone 15 Pro shows where you are zoomed in on a shot while you are fully zoomed in while using the camera.
Although it has nothing to do with the camera, the iPhone 15 Pro’s switch from the proprietary Lightning port to the USB-C port allows for quicker USB 3 transfer speeds, which is excellent for swiftly sending high-resolution images and videos to other devices.
iPhone 14 Pro vs 15 Pro Photo Comparisons
Here is a quick breakdown of example photos from the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro. In well-lit settings, the photos captured by both the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro appear quite similar at a glance.
However, when viewing the original HDR photos on an HDR monitor, there’s a subtle yet noticeable improvement in the HDR processing on the iPhone 15 Pro, showcasing better dynamic range and color accuracy (not pictured). The wide-angle lens on the iPhone 15 Pro also reaps the benefits of the enhanced HDR processing, presenting clearer and more vibrant images. Despite these improvements, the overall performance of the wide-angle lens remains largely comparable to that of the iPhone 14 Pro.
Here’s another example on the main camera: I do love the addition of a 24, 28, and 35mm button in the camera app on the iPhone 15 Pro. It allows for swift adjustments to the focal length, offering more creative freedom while framing your shots. Lens selection on the iPhone 15 Pro (you tap the 1x lens to toggle 24/28/35mm) Glare was a recurring issue in many of my iPhone 14 Pro photos, leading me to believe there might have been a flaw with the lens coating on my particular unit.
Fortunately, the iPhone 15 Pro seems to have rectified this issue, as I haven’t experienced any glare in the photos taken with the new model. The maximum zoom capability hasn’t seen a significant enhancement, with the exception of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which boasts a 5x optical lens. Nonetheless, the iPhone 15 Pro introduces a handy minimap feature when zoomed in, allowing you to easily “see” and navigate the zoomed area, thus enriching the zooming experience.
Zoom “mini map” that shows up in the top right corner of the camera The glare issue on my iPhone 14 Pro is well illustrated in this photo, which starkly contrasts with the crisp and clear image produced by the iPhone 15 Pro, devoid of any glare. The selfie camera on the iPhone 15 Pro has seen a marked improvement in low-light conditions, as evidenced by these night mode selfie photos. The images are brighter and exhibit better color rendition, making night-time selfies much more enjoyable.
iPhone 15 Pro vs iPhone 14 Pro: Camera specs
It appears that the cameras on these two versions are nearly identical, based just on their specs sheets.
With a 48MP (24mm f/1.78 equivalent) “main” camera, a 12MP 3x telephoto (72mm f/2.8 equivalent), and an ultrawide 12MP (13mm f/2.2 equivalent) lens, both use a triple lens setup. If you want a longer zoom, you’ll have to upgrade to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which offers a 5x (120mm equivalent) zoom.
There are three cameras on both the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro.
Apple does not release information about sensor sizes, but because the business hasn’t claimed to have greater sizes or anything, we can probably believe that both the pixel count and the physical size of this device have stayed the same.
The addition of nano-scale coatings, which are supposed to enhance ghosting and flare, is one hardware upgrade. Additionally, an anti-reflective coating has been added to the ultrawide for improved nighttime performance.
Software has also been improved in other places. The iPhone 15 Pro now outputs photographs by default at 24 megapixels, even though both have the same 48 megapixel resolution (unless shooting in particular settings, such as macro, portrait, or low light). The new photonic engine (machine learning) for image enhancement is to blame for this; the iPhone 14 Pro also featured a photonic engine, although it’s likely a more recent model.
In addition, Smart HDR 5 is new, replacing Smart HDR 4 on the iPhone 14 Pro. It doesn’t seem likely that this will have a significant impact on the quality of the images, but as we work through the piece, we may see more even exposures, particularly in high-contrast moments.
Display Differences
The 6.1-inch OLED screen of the iPhone 15 Pro and 14 Pro is identical in size.
These screens are produced by Samsung using the newest and most sophisticated OLED panels available, and they have a very similar appearance. Both the iPhone 14 Pro and the more recent iPhone 15 Pro offer excellent colors and a peak brightness of 2,000 nits when outdoors. They also both have the Always-On feature. Furthermore, all models are compatible with 120Hz refresh rate ProMotion technology, which allows you to scroll at a buttery smooth 120Hz whether you’re browsing through static material like lock screen wallpapers.
The screen’s look is the only upgrade. The iPhone 15 Pro’s screen margins are almost one-third thinner, giving it a sleeker appearance. According to earlier sources, these are narrower than the 2.17mm ones on the 14 Pro, measuring just 1.55mm, which would make them the thinnest smartphone borders ever.
However, there are no modifications to Face ID. With the 14 Pro, Apple debuted the Dynamic Island, and the 15 Pro keeps everything the same.
Performance and Software
Under the hood of the iPhone 15 Pro is Apple’s first chip created using the new 3nm manufacturing process, the A17 Bionic.
With only 3nm, you can achieve remarkable performance and efficiency advantages over the 4nm technology Apple has been using in recent years, as well as have far more transistors (19 billion on the A17 vs. 16 billion on the A16) in the same sized chip.
A revolutionary new GPU that has one more core and more power also gives a pleasant increase to gaming performance.
The iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro both employ the same type of memory, LPDDR5. However, the 15 Pro has 8GB of RAM while the 14 Pro has 6GB.
Since they are both iPhones, they utilize the same version of iOS 17, too.
Updates to the FaceTime, Messages, and Phone applications are among the new features in the most recent version of iOS. Another significant improvement to autocorrect will ultimately make it much better.
The most significant update to the Phone app is the addition of a new contact poster that you can customize and that people may view when they receive a call from you. NameDrop is an additional new iOS-only gimmick that allows you to share contacts just by bringing your iPhone near another iPhone. The most significant update to the Messages app is the creation of custom live stickers from your own Live Photos, which provide a unique touch to conversations.
Additionally, iOS 17 introduces a new Standby Mode that turns your iPhone into a sort of miniature home hub by presenting helpful data as it charges.
In addition, Apple typically guarantees five or six years of software updates for both phones—much longer than other manufacturers. The one noteworthy detail is that, due to its later release date, the iPhone 15 Pro will receive an additional year’s worth of software updates.
Although the Qualcomm X70 modem, which is an enhancement over the Qualcomm X65 5G modem used in the 14 Pro with some improvements in coverage range, latency, and power efficiency, is what’s inside, according to teardowns,. Apple does not formally state which modem it employs.
Primary Camera
Apple’s resolution of the problematic oversharpening on the 14 Pro and the absence of that artificial oversharpening in photos taken with the new iPhone 15 Pro represent the largest improvements to the primary camera. Farewell!
We also adore the 24-megapixel resolution that the camera now produces. Even with a smaller image size than 12-megapixel photos, this has better detail. A 24 MP HEIF image typically weighs around 3MB, but a normal 12 MP HEIF file is about 2MB.
It’s also worth noting that both phones now have the ability to record 48MP HEIF or JPEG files, which is a good feature; however, the files are a little larger and have more noise in low light.
Ultra-wide
According to Apple, the ultra-wide camera has improved with a similarly enhanced anti-reflective coating, better night mode, HDR, and macro photography; nevertheless, in our experience, the variations are rather slight, and the majority of the photographs appear to be identical.