Apple’s component suppliers are beginning production for iPhone 18 parts, and a new report says this includes elements of a brand new camera feature for the iPhone 18 Pro .

Specifically, China’s Sunny Optical has reportedly begun manufacturing a key component needed to control the iris in the lenses in the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max …

iPhone 18 Pro variable aperture lenses

You can find a detailed explanation with examples in an explainer we wrote a couple of years ago, but the executive summary of the key benefit is the ability to control the depth of field (DoF) in a photo.

You can have a shallow DoF when you want to isolate a person from the background, a medium DoF when you want isolation while ensuring the background is still recognizable, or a deep DOF when you want everything in shot to be in focus, as in a landscape or cityscape shot.…