The iPhone 17 Pro has a new, wider camera stack that could house a variable aperture mechanism.
The iPhone 18 Pro’s camera system will be more flexible for photographers, with claims of a variable aperture main camera and a wider telephoto lens undergoing testing and expected to arrive later in 2026.
The camera is one of the iPhone’s key selling points, and rumors often try to guess what other changes will arrive. If current rumors are to be believed, it should include variable apertures.
According to a leak from Weibo’s “Digital Chat Station,” Apple is currently testing a version of the iPhone with a variable aperture mounted. This is a feature that could be introduced as part of the iPhone 18 Pro series in September.
The account also adds that there will be an update to the telephoto lens system, with Apple considering an increase from the current f/2.8 offered in the iPhone 17 Pro.
More aperture, more light
Aperture is a key part of the exposure triangle, which deals with the sensitivity of the sensor (ISO), the shutter speed, which determines how long the shot must take, and the aperture, which determines how much light hits the sensor.
A variable aperture would increase and decrease the size of the opening that lets light into the sensor. However, most mobile cameras use a fixed aperture instead of implementing a mechanical element in a very limited space.
With the introduction of Apple’s camera tray as an extended camera bump, this should provide more space to install the mechanism.
As a result, a fixed-aperture camera must work with the other elements of the exposure triangle to get the shot perfectly exposed, but this can limit the styles of shots one can shoot. With variable aperture, there is a much greater range of what can be pulled into the frame.
Take a typical portrait shot that combines with a computer photo on iPhone to digitally blur foreground and background objects around the subject. A variable aperture can allow blur or ‘bokeh’ to be created in-camera without post-processing.
A variable aperture or a dot with a larger aperture can allow the sensor to capture more light, which can also help improve shutter speed and noise.
Rumors Re-Examined
While Digital Chat Station doesn’t have one of the best reputations for accuracy, much like other Weibo leak channels in general, it’s a rumor that’s been circulating for quite some time and through various sources.
This includes a 2024 claim that it would arrive in the iPhone 17, before Ming-Chi Kuo’s November 2024 report that the iPhone 18 would get the feature.
Since then, it has appeared regularly and is one of the most significant predictions for the iPhone 18 Pro series in general.
It’s also not the only time Digital Chat Station has jumped into the fray. In October 2025, it claimed to have “supply chain information” on Pro models with “variable aperture materials”.