Report claims the iPhone 6 might sport larger pixels, electronic image stabilization

For months, the internet rumor mills have been busy speculating on what the next iPhone could look like and what its specs will be. The iPhone has always been a favorite with photographers due to its camera module and vast array of photo apps, which have been getting better with each new generation. Now if the latest report is accurate, the allegedly upcoming iPhone 6 will up the ante once again, and could very well be another reason for enthusiasts to stick with an Apple smartphone.

According to Chinese analyst Sun Chang Xu, the next iPhone could sport a camera with larger pixels, which would mean that Apple is going the same route as HTC when it first introduced the One with its Ultrapixel camera. Her report claims a pixel size of 1.75 µm over the iPhone 5S's camera's 1.5 µm pixel size. While an increase of 16.7%, the alleged iPhone 6's pixels would still be slightly smaller than the HTC One's, which measure 2 µm.

Then again, the HTC One only packs 4 million pixels onto a 1/3"-type sensor, whereas the iPhone 5S packs 8 megapixels–and there is no reason to believe the iPhone 6's pixel count will go down. The larger pixel size of course means that each pixels is able to take up more light, which leads to overall better image quality, especially in low light and high-contrast scenarios that require great dynamic range. In addition ot the larger pixels, the camera is said to sport electronic image stabilization.

Other alleged specs of the new iPhone include a (finally) larger screen, and it is even possible that there will be two versions of the phone sporting 4.7" and 5.5" screens respectively. This, too, is a step in the same direction that we have seen HTC take with the three diffrent versions of its One smartphone, coming with 4.3", 4.7" and 5.9" screens. Whether or not the resolution of the screen(s) will also grow, and whether the two differently sized screens will sport different resolutions, is unclear so far.

Previously, we reported on various Apple patents that could hint at potential technologies in an upcoming iPhone version, including magnetically attachable accessory lenses, a bayonet mount for accessory lenses (instead of the magnetically attachable ones), and even a dual camera system, albeit one different from that used in the latest HTC One M8. As neither of these technologies is mentioned in any of the latest reports, it is dubitable that they will make it into the next iPhone.

Still, it can be expected that the next iPhone will be just as great a tool for photographers as the current one is, if not even better.

(via Pocket Lint)