IOS 26.0.1 camera are blurry on iPhone 17 Pro Max and older iPhones.

Why don’t you post a few examples. Flicker now wants me to join and I’ve no intention of joining the site to view your photos. Just add them to the forum here.

Small sensors have greater apparent DOF because to achieve the same field of view for the scene, the small sensor must use focal lengths that are smaller (wider angle of view), or increase the distance to the subject (move camera further back) to achieve the same FOV.

If Google is telling you it’s sensor size it’s wrong. Small sensors do not inherently have more DOF.

But we’re getting away from the issue.

Here’s a crop of the image you linked to on Flickr.

That’s from the right edge of the photo. That sure looks like camera movement. If that image is your argument for a defective camera, please put your iPhone on a tripod and shoot it again.

Here’s what you want to do. Find the photo in Apple Photos app, tap the information button (letter I), take a screenshot. It’ll look like this.

The information we need to examine is circled in red.

Try using the scanning feature in Apple Notes app, Apple Files app or new Apple Preview app. Those apps are specifically designed to scan flat documents and correct geometry errors and enhance text etc. Something that camera and Apple Photos app is not designed to do.

Ok...Having the exact same issues as everyone else. So...I think it has something to do with the way they have redesigned the zoom options. This is why we can't hold the phone up close for images anymore. It is way too wide angle for what most of the general public use this camera for. This worked for me, or at least it's better. Go into your camera settings, scroll down to Fusion camera. Turn off the 28mm if it is on, or if both are off, turn on the 35mm and set it to default. Now when you open your camera and use it, it defaults to 1.5 35mm and the pictures, at least for me, are coming out nice and sharp and I can take closeups of documents, receipts or even objects in my hand with no out of focus spots. Try and it and see if it works for you!

:)

[Edited by Moderator]

Thank you for the correction. I noticed that too, the image you designate as iPhone 17 pro is 23% smaller than the one you say is iPhone 11 Pro. This goes to my comments that your experiment was inconsistent. JPEG is a dynamic compression algorithm which causes difference in files sizes based on different ISO settings and quality settings used for JPEG compression. The native camera Apple Camera app is not the best choice for doing these types of comparisons because the app lacks many pro features offered by third party apps. I rarely use the Apple app preferring Halide, Reeflex and Leica LUX for most of my images.

Jeff,

A larger depth of field means more of the picture is in focus from near to far away. More depth not less.

Small sensors inherently cannot produce a shallow (small) depth of field. Especially when coupled with tiny lenses. I think we are saying the same thing?

What you are seeing at the edge of my photo is not camera movement but the rather nauseous "bokeh" produced by apple engineering !

I'm not arguing the camera is defective but there is a bug in the software. Short and unscientific but extensive photography appears to indicate the focusing system may be over reliant on a lidar which has a colour blind spot in the red spectrum, resulting in the over aggressive use of the "low-light" technology, ruining the image. Sometimes. But then again, maybe the lidar is defective? Way too many variables to really know.

Purge speculation of course as we don't have the means to disable the technology. It may be something else or there may be more than one blind spot! But several thousand pictures taken using a process used many many times over the last five years indicates there is something amiss.

The one thing you could rely on with an iPhone camera in normal lighting conditions was rock solid focus. No tripod needed.

I will post some samples.

Patrick

p.s. i've changed the image status on flickr to public so you should be able to review the whole image.

iPhone cameras do have a Lidar sensor, but it’s used for capturing depth data to use in the algorithm used to simulate DOF when in portrait mode. It may be used to assist AF in low light situations. Its sensitivity to red wavelengths doesn’t factor into AF that Apple mentions.

Focus in daylight uses whats called phase detection AF. It’s standard in the photo industry and virtually every major camera manufacturer uses the same technology. Phase detect is fast and extremely accurate in daylight.

Lidar was added to assist the phase detect AF in low light by adding distance and depth information to improve accuracy and speed. A major complaint about earlier iPhones was their poor low light focusing performance.

There is a school of thought that moving the Lidar sensor to the far right has affected the sensor’s performance. However, photographers doing spatial photography are praising the move saying it’s improved.

It would be best to post your photos in the thread if for no other reason than continuity. It avoids confusion about which image is being discussed.

Use of a tripod aids focus and minimizes camera blur. While it hinders spontaneity, it will improve any photo by providing a rock solid base. It also permits use of a lower ISO setting and the resultant slower shutter speed. Handholding at slower shutter speeds is an issue for even the steadiest of hands.

It definitely has something to do with iOS 26 (software issue, not hardware) my iPhone 16 took amazing astrophotography until I updated the iOS to 26, and it’s been taking blurry pictures ever since. It’s incredibly frustrating. ( latest update 26.1 has same issue) it’s terrible

I want to add myself as an owner of an iPhone 17 Pro where the 1x camera has the same problem. That is, the center of the image is sharp and edge details are blurred and/or smeared. I went to a Genius Bar and discussed the problem with two staff members. We compared my phone with a display phone and saw the same issue with the display phone. Conclusion was that my phone didn't exhibit anything out of the ordinary, and therefore, no service is needed. It's all very disappointing of course.

I'm beginning to think this problem is inherent in the design of the 1x camera, and the only fix is for apple to redesign the 1x camera and offer a replacement (which has 0% chance of happening.)

P.S. My iPhone 15 pro 1x camera does not have this problem.

Under what circumstances are your photos not sharp in the corners? The closeup/macro operation and limitations have changed and iPhone 17 uses the ultra wide angle 0.5X lens for photos within about 18 inches. Do you have any examples you can share?

Please post one or two photos illustrating the issue. Also exactly how far is your iPhone from the book or object you want in focus?

Please share a couple of the images you’re not satisfied with. It’s impossible to diagnose a visual issue with some visual evidence of what you’re experiencing.

Ok glad that I am not the only one here. I bought Iphone 17 Pro and have Iphone 12 (not pro) for work. Today I tried taking a photo on my 17 Pro from my monitor and noticed blurry text. I thought may be the screen is not clear. So I cleaned it but still same result. Then took a photo on my Iphone 12 and to my surprise, it was as clear as it should be. I even showed it to my colleague and he noticed that as well. I tried taking different text photos and same result in all images. Did I get scammed for $1300 is what I started thinking. Both my 17 pro and 12 are running on iOS26.0.1

The cameras have different lenses, different sensors (12 Megapixel vs. 48 Megapixel) and this contributes to the different images that result from the different cameras. Apple optimizes their cameras for the average iPhone user. If you’re wanting different results, experiment with different third party apps, different image processing apps and even third party lenses. IPhone cameras cannot fit the needs of every photographer on the planet. Apple has also changed the way iPhones do Astrophotography. These are changes intended to best suit the needs of the average iPhone user.

I gotta say, I am disappointed in my pictures too. I’m by far not a professional photographer, but I’ve enjoyed using my iPhone camera to capture some really great photos until this last update. Doing a google search, and it’s pretty much all over the feeds out there. Just did the 26.1 update, not seeing anything better. Same blurry edges around stuff. There has to be a simple adjustment fix of some sort?!

come on apple…step up, listen to your users…fix this issue.

signed…amateur photo clicker!!

Adjust the exposure using the swipe up and down feature of your iPhone. Also use thE focus lock feature. If you’re using Night Mode, don’t. The moon is illuminated by the sun and needs a regular daylight exposure setting.