DXOMARK, a camera review and test platform, has published its comprehensive camera assessment for the recently launched iPhone 18 Pro. Check it out!
With an overall camera score of 172, the iPhone 18 Pro secures second place in both DXOMARK’s global ranking and its ultra-premium category for devices priced above USD 800. It trails only the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra, which retains the top spot with a score of 175.
Apple’s newest flagship posts a four-point increase over the previous-generation iPhone 17 Pro, which previously scored 168 and has moved down to sixth place.
The iPhone 18 Pro also dominated the video testing with a score of 176. In terms of specific use cases, the iPhone 18 Pro gets the top spot in lowlight with a score of 150, while it scored 157 for portraits and 138 for zoom.
DXOMARK also highlighted several key performance pros and cons for the iPhone 18 Pro:
Pros:
- Exposure is mostly accurate, and it is supported by a wide dynamic range, contrast is very natural even under challenging conditions
- Depth of field is automatically extended on group portraits thanks to variable aperture, which can be adjusted manually
- Stabilization is effective, even during running motion, with smooth and natural rendering enhanced by 60 fps capture
- Texture-noise trade-off is well balanced across most test conditions, combining high detail preservation with well-controlled noise
Cons:
- Face exposure can be low in challenging backlit conditions
- Slight color casts and occasional white balance instabilities are noticeable
- Long-range telephoto performance is behind that of some flagship competitors
- Artifacts such as flare and aliasing are frequently visible
- A noticeable brightness difference between photo and video can be distracting in the preview
iPhone 18 Pro Camera Specs
To achieve this ranking, Apple equipped the iPhone 18 Pro with cameras consisting of a:
- Primary: 48 MP, f/1.48 – f/4.0, 24 mm (wide), variable aperture, sensor-shift OIS, Focus Pixels
- Ultra-wide: 48 MP, f/2.2, 13 mm (ultrawide), 120° field of view
- Tele: 48 MP, f/2.8, 100 mm (telephoto), 8x optical zoom, tetraprism design, sensor-shift OIS
This is the first time Apple added a variable aperture on the main camera, which uses six blades to adjust the aperture for different lighting and depth-of-field effects.
The Camera app also adds new Pro controls, letting users manually adjust aperture, shutter speed, and white balance alongside a live histogram for monitoring exposure. For video, the iPhone 18 Pro now supports post-recording Cinematic effects at up to 60fps, adds 4K Dolby Vision HDR to Time-lapse mode, and upgrades Audio Mix algorithms for sharper voice and music separation.
Meanwhile, the device gets an 18MP Center Stage front camera with a ƒ/1.9 aperture.
You can check out DXOMARK’s official website for the full camera test review.