Testing the iPhone 17 front camera: A pixel-by-pixel comparison with the iPhone 16

Macworld

The iPhone 17 is here, and as always, there are a slew of upgrades over prior models, especially when it comes to the front camera. Many people enjoy taking selfies and filming vlogs with their iPhone (myself included), and all the new iPhone 17 models – including the ultra-thin Air – have some really cool new tricks up their sleeves. But is it a reason to rush out and upgrade your iPhone 16?

Here’s a detailed comparison of the iPhone 17’s front camera versus the 16’s front camera.

A look at the tech specs

If you look at the iPhone 17 page on Apple’s website, you’ll quickly see that the front camera now has a new square-shaped sensor rather than a rectangular one. You’ll also learn that the new sensor is higher quality: 18MP, 50 percent larger than the 12MP sensor Apple has used since the iPhone 11.

But in fact, Apple is using a 24MP sensor for the front camera, binning it to 18MP. And there’s a good reason for that.

Because of its square (1:1) shape, the iPhone can capture 4:3 images at 18MP either vertically or horizontally by cropping the sensor. This allows Apple to not only adopt Center Stage from the iPad and Mac (a feature that keeps the focus on the user during video calls), but also to let people choose which orientation they want to shoot without having to rotate their phone.

This same new front camera sensor is available on the iPhone 17, iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. So no matter which of the new phones you choose, you’ll get the same quality and features when it comes to the selfie camera.

The advantages of a square-shaped sensor

Remember the 1:1 sensor? It turns out that it enables some really fun features you’re going to love using.

With the iPhone 17’s front camera, you can take selfies (or even record videos with the front camera) in any orientation you want, without having to rotate your phone. With phones getting much larger, holding your iPhone in landscape mode to take a group selfie can be challenging sometimes. The new front camera on the iPhone 17 solves this.

You can choose to let the iPhone select the best framing for you or manually adjust the photo orientation. If you want to have complete control over how your photos will look, you can disable the automatic options by tapping the yellow icon at the left of the top menu and selecting “Off” next to Auto Rotate and Auto Zoom.

So how does it work? Well, let’s say you’re holding your phone vertically and your friends come over to take a group selfie. Instead of rotating your phone, you can tap the buttons above the shutter button (left will zoom; right will change the orientation), and the iPhone will adjust the crop on the sensor to capture the photo horizontally.

Because Apple used a square sensor, the phone can change the orientation of the photo or video without losing quality – something that is not possible with a regular 4:3 sensor.




Foundry

This new trick essentially unlocks four different perspectives for the same angle. But wait a minute… four? Wasn’t it just horizontal and vertical?

In fact, since the new sensor is also ultra-wide, the iPhone centers the image on the user’s face by default. This results in a cropped 7MP image. You can also snap can 18MP ultra-wide selfie that shows much more of your surroundings or gets more people in the frame.

Older iPhones already have a similar option, but the difference between 7MP and 12MP wasn’t exactly huge. On the iPhone 17, choosing the ultra-wide view can really change the look of your selfies or vlogs.

Are selfies noticeably better?

The new iPhones might have a fancy new sensor, but what does that mean in terms of image quality? Are the front camera photos and videos really better? I snapped a bunch of selfies with my brand new iPhone 17 Pro Max and my old iPhone 16 Pro Max to find out.

When I took a selfie with both phones side by side in strong outdoor lighting, you may not see any huge difference. I took many selfies during the day, and they were all quite consistent between the two phones.

The colors and details look pretty much the same to the naked eye. But if you zoom in, you can see some extra details in the shots taken with the iPhone 17. Post-processing also seems less exaggerated now, with photos taken with the iPhone 16 exhibiting artificial oversharpening.




Foundry

Take this photo as an example. The differences are subtle, but the photo taken with the iPhone 17 Pro Max has slightly more detail.




Foundry

The differences start to become more noticeable in low-light scenarios. Here, for example, I took a selfie inside my apartment at night with the lamp on. While my face looks sharp in the photo taken with the iPhone 17, the photo from the 16 Pro Max left my face slightly blurred.




Foundry

Then I went outside at night and tried to take some selfies in a really low-light setting. While the iPhone 17 is still able to retain some detail, the iPhone 16 photo appears much more washed out.




Foundry

So while the new selfie camera isn’t dramatically better, it can definitely make photos in low-light scenarios more pleasant to look at.

What about videos?

If you enjoy vlogging and use your iPhone for it, you’ll be happy to know that Center Stage also works for videos. You can easily change the orientation of videos without having to rotate your phone—but unfortunately, there’s no option to use ultra-wide view for videos.

According to Apple, the new front camera sensor also improves video stabilization. While I still need to test this in more challenging scenarios, the videos I’ve shot do seem more stable compared to those shot with the iPhone 16.

Another cool feature available on iPhone 17 models is Dual Capture. As the name suggests, it lets you record videos with both the rear and front cameras at the same time. The feature is fun for vlogging and also for showing reactions in real time, such as at a concert.

There are already a bunch of apps available on the App Store that do what Dual Capture does – and they also work on older iPhones. Moreover, Apple’s Dual Capture is a bit limited, as videos from both cameras are saved together as a single video file, so you can’t edit them separately.

Is the selfie cam enough to upgrade?

If you’ve been considering upgrading your iPhone 16 just for the new front camera, I wouldn’t say it’s a must-have upgrade. Sure, it’s better and offers great features for creators, but that alone isn’t a reason to upgrade, especially if you only take occasional photos and videos with your phone.

If you’re coming from an older iPhone, the differences will become even more noticeable, and upgrading becomes more justifiable.

That said, I’m glad that Apple has finally paid some attention to the iPhone’s front camera, and I’m really enjoying the new features and improvements. Still, for those who already own an iPhone 16 and don’t make a living snapping selfies, you can probably live with the current iPhone for another year.