The iPhone 12 Pro Max is a legitimate camera beast, thanks to its superior imaging hardware and a ton of professional-grade features to make the most of it. One impressive camera trick that is exclusive to the Apple flagship is sensor-shift image stabilization, which aims to enhance the stabilization output to deliver blur-free photos and cancel out the effect of hand movements in videos. It now appears that Apple plans to bring the technology to the entire iPhone 13 family. 

“Apple’s next-generation iPhones slated for launch in the second half of 2021 will all come with sensor-shift stabilization technology, according to industry sources,” says a report by DigiTimes. Now, this isn’t the first time we’re hearing about Apple extending the sensor-shift image stabilization technology to more iPhones in the future. Another report by ETNews claims that Apple aims to bring the technology to both dual and triple-camera iPhones in 2021. 

“According to the industry on the 17th, it is understood that Apple is planning to expand the sensor shift technology to the iPhone 13 scheduled to be released this year,” says the report (translated). The report adds that component for the sensor-shift stabilization hardware is exclusively supplied by LG Innotek, but the latter refused to confirm the same. 

What is Sensor-Shift Image Stabilization? 

So far, the sensor-shift image stabilization tech has been exclusive to DSLR cameras, and the iPhone 12 Pro marks the first time that it has been miniaturized to be used in a commercially available mass-market smartphone. As the name makes it abundantly clear, this technology shifts the whole image sensor inside the camera using electrical actuators to compensate for hand movements.

On the other hand, the standard optical image stabilization used on the iPhone 12 only shifts the lens element inside the camera module, and not the actual sensor. Thanks to the sensor-shift approach, the stabilization results are said to be much improved, delivering sharper photos with fewer chances of blurry edges and smoother videos with minimal janky movements.