Hidden beneath the foldable iPhone Duo’s 7.6-inch interior screen is an under-screen FaceTime camera. This long-rumored feature is a first for Apple, but the company hasn’t provided as many details about it as the device’s other cameras.
For example, unlike the 12-megapixel sensor on the front exterior screen and the two 48-megapixel lenses on the back, Apple has not revealed the megapixel count of the camera under the screen. Apple’s technical specifications page for the iPhone Duo offers the following details on its capabilities:
- FaceTime camera under the screen
- Center stage for video calls
- Aperture ƒ/1.8
- Tap to zoom and rotate
- Ultra-stabilized video
- 1080p video recording at 30 or 60 fps
- Animoji and Memoji in FaceTime
- Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos
- Lens correction
- Automatic image stabilization
- QuickTake video in 1080p at 30 fps and 60 fps
- Spatial audio and stereo recording
- Wind noise reduction
- Audio mixing
Apple says the under-display camera records video at up to 1080p at 60 frames per second, compared to 4K at up to 60 fps for the exterior front camera and 4K at up to 120 fps for the main rear camera. This means the sensor is at least 2 megapixels – the minimum needed to shoot 1080p video. However, its apparent inability to shoot 4K video may suggest it’s less than 8 megapixels. Given that Apple has been quiet, perhaps it’s closer to 2 megapixels.
The f/1.8 aperture of the under-display camera is faster than the f/2.2 aperture of the external camera, which makes sense since it likely helps compensate for light lost through the screen. Of course, Apple hasn’t detailed the resulting image quality compromises. How this affects photos and videos will likely only become clear when we have more time with the device.
According to a December 2023 report, LG Innotek was developing an under-display camera for Apple using a “free-form optical” lens array designed to reduce distortion and compensate for loss of brightness. Again, we don’t know if this is the camera that was built into the iPhone Duo.
Another thing to note is that the display layer above the camera doesn’t appear to have the anti-reflective nano-textured coating found on the rest of the screen, resulting in a shiny spot. The screen also likely covers the lens with an area of lower density pixels.
Either way, the difference means the camera placement is less inconspicuous than one might expect based on the angle of the ambient light. Apple even subtly acknowledges this in its marketing materials with a circular shadow on the screen, but based on the video below and the varying reflectivity, the effect may be more pronounced than the company lets on.
Samsung is struggling with the same problem. The Korean company previously used under-display cameras in models including the Galaxy Z Fold6, before switching to a conventional 10-megapixel punch-hole camera with the Galaxy Z Fold7. This is Apple’s first attempt at under-display camera technology, so future iterations of the Duo may better hide what may appear as a small blemish or blemish on the screen, depending on how you look at it.
Apple says pre-orders for the iPhone Duo will go live at 5:00 a.m. PT on Friday, October 16, and will be available starting Friday, October 23.
