iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max reviews were published today, with the devices receiving praise for their smoother ProMotion displays, longer battery life, and improved cameras, but there was one consistent complaint among the reviews.
On the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, a new feature is the ability to take macro photos. As noted by Input's Raymond Wong, however, this new capability results in the device automatically switching from the Wide lens to the Ultra Wide lens when you place an object or a subject within 5.5 inches of the rear camera. (The viewfinder still shows "1x" framing, but the camera relies on the Ultra Wide lens for autofocus.)
The automatic camera switching is easily noticeable in the iPhone's viewfinder, as Wong demonstrated in the video below.
"The viewfinder keeps jittering as it tries to choose between a regular wide or wide-macro shot," he said. In his review, he expressed his opinion that "the framing should never change from what you compose and never automatically."
Apple initially told Wong that the automatic camera switching is intentional to help users better capture close-up details, according to his review, but the company has since issued a statement to Wong and others that says iPhone 13 Pro users will gain the option to turn off the switching in an iOS update that will be released later this fall.
"A new setting will be added in a software update this fall to turn off automatic camera switching when shooting at close distances for macro photography and video," said Apple.
Apple said the ability to turn off the automatic camera switching will apply to macro video recording as well, but as Wong noted, there is a "Lock Camera" option under Settings > Camera that appears to prevent the switching for video already.
All four iPhone 13 models will begin arriving to customers and launch in stores this Friday, September 24 in the U.S. and over 30 other countries and regions.
