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The iPhone XS, left, and iPhone XS Max
- Apple may bring a triple-lens camera system to two new iPhones in 2019 instead of just one, according to Macotakara.
- Previous reports have suggested that only one new iPhone - the successor to the iPhone XS Max - would get this feature.
- Apple's next-generation iPhone XS might have a 6.1-inch screen, Macotakara indicates, while earlier reports suggested it could have the same-sized 5.8-inch display as the current model.
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Apple's rumored triple-lens camera system may debut on two next-generation iPhones instead of just one model as previous reports have indicated, according to Japanese blog Macotakara.
The report also indicates that Apple's successor to the iPhone XS might have a slightly larger screen than initially expected.
The report, which was first discovered by 9to5Mac, says a rear-mounted camera with three lenses will appear on both a 6.1-inch OLED iPhone model and a 6.5-inch OLED iPhone model. OLED is the screen technology Apple uses for its iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max that generally produces deeper blacks and better contrast than LCD display panels, which is the technology used for the lower-priced iPhone XR's display.
Read more: Apple's next iPhones will come with larger batteries, according to reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo
That notion that Apple could outfit two of its new iPhones with triple cameras differs slightly from what we've heard in the past. The Wall Street Journal reported in January that only the successor to Apple's iPhone XS Max, which has a 6.5-inch screen, will get the triple-camera upgrade. A Bloomberg report from January made similar claims, saying that "the larger of the new high-end iPhones" would have a triple camera. That report also noted this system could eventually come to other iPhone models as well.
Macotakara reports that the new iPhones will be slimmer to accommodate a larger bump on the back of the device that would house the triple camera system.
The 6.1-inch screen size for a new OLED iPhone also does not line up with previous reports from Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst for TF International Securities with a reputation for making accurate predictions about upcoming Apple products. In February, Kuo suggested that Apple's next generation iPhones would be direct follow-ups to those in the current lineup, predicting that a new 5.8-inch OLED model, a new 6.5-inch OLED model, and a new 6.1-inch LCD model would be coming this year. If Macotakara's report is correct, it could mean that Apple's successor to the iPhone XS will have a 6.1-inch screen instead of a 5.8-inch display as Kuo previously predicted.
Macotakara has a mixed track record when it comes to the accuracy of its reporting. It correctly reported in 2016, for example, that Apple would debut new iPad Pro models with improved screens in 2017, but its claim that a 7.9-inch iPad Pro would also come during that year proved false. Apple did, however, release a refreshed iPad mini that supports Apple Pencil input in March 2019. But the outlet was right when it said Apple was planning to nix the iPhone's headphone jack and correctly reported the iPhone 7's Jet Black color option.
Other than a new triple-lens camera, Apple's 2019 iPhones are expected to come with support for bilateral wireless charging, an improved version of Face ID, and a frosted glass design.