I am shocked this Pixel 10 characteristic is not commonplace on all smartphones

It is vital to deal with any rumor with skepticism, however one of many extra persistent claims in regards to the Google Pixel 10 is that the cellphone could have triple cameras on the again, as an alternative of simply the first and ultra-wide cameras on the Pixel 9. The third, in fact, is anticipated to be some form of telephoto unit, making use of periscope expertise to deal with the tiny quantity of area accessible in a cellphone’s digicam bump.

This may all be trivial aside from one factor — we’re nonetheless getting pricey “commonplace” (non-Professional) smartphones with twin cameras, and even single cameras, regardless of in the event that they’re within the mid-range or premium value tiers. The iPhone 17 Air, for instance, is anticipated to be a single-camera machine, regardless of a price ticket larger than the bottom iPhone 17. Google’s transfer ought to hopefully put overdue stress not simply on Apple, however on each holdout within the smartphone business.

What is the large take care of triple cameras?

The realities of digital life

Pocket-lint / Apple

It was that any digicam on a cellphone was a novelty. A few many years in the past, the truth is, there was a short-lived area of interest of “digicam telephones” — units that weren’t but smartphones within the fashionable sense, however did allow you to take mediocre images that proved you’d gone someplace or been with somebody. Even on the time, I by no means actually bought the enchantment, because you’d get much more out of the devoted point-and-shoot cameras that have been accessible. It was higher to purchase an inexpensive flip or candybar cellphone and spend the actual cash on a Canon PowerShot.

As we speak, cameras on telephones aren’t solely a lot better, however nearly a necessity. Many companies assume you are ready to scan QR codes for issues like menus and waiver types. Extra importantly (for the sake of my argument), the marketplace for point-and-shoots has successfully dried up, leaving folks to decide on between telephones or shopping for hobbyist- or professional-grade tools — and nobody actually wants a Nikon Z30 to take images of their child at a park, a lot much less a Z6 III or Z8.

All that is to say that whereas a number of cellphone cameras may superficially sound like a luxurious, they’re actually not within the context of shopping for a tool priced upwards of $800, just like the Pixel 9. In one thing that costly, it is cheap to anticipate a digicam system that may produce respectable to glorious photographs in any widespread state of affairs. For me, that may imply taking a close-up of my son making music — for you, that may imply snapping surroundings on a visit, or getting everybody within the body at a household cookout.

My challenge with dual-camera telephones is that they inevitably depart an vital vary out of on a regular basis protection: zoom. You get a wide-angle digicam as your most important, however your solely various is an ultra-wide — which really pushes your topic(s) additional away whereas including a distorted perspective to something that is not dead-center. As I’ve argued many occasions earlier than, it is extra helpful to zoom in.

One of many commonplace guidelines of picture composition is to fill the body along with your topic. Often, optical zoom is the one approach to get cheap element. The iPhone 16 could have a superb 26mm most important digicam, however even AI-enhanced digital cropping is not going to get you an honest picture of a singer at a live performance, say, or a mountain within the distance.

Triple-camera methods resolve that hole. I am not anticipating something on par with the 80-200mm Nikkor lens I used to make use of for professional images, however in 2025, it is completely cheap to need a smartphone digicam that may snap a headshot from the opposite facet of your lounge. Economies of scale have pushed components prices down, particularly since cellphone makers have been promoting telephoto-equipped units for a few years at this level.

The Pixel 10’s potential impression

It isn’t in regards to the brief time period

As I recommended, essentially the most direct stress might be on Apple, which is Google’s most important rival within the North American cellphone market. Do not get me incorrect, iPhone gross sales vastly dwarf any Pixel launched thus far — no matter whether or not the Pixel 10 is a runaway hit, it will not put a dent in Apple’s market dominance.

Apple cannot afford to disregard the optics of a triple-camera Pixel, although, pun supposed. The corporate is already dealing with the truth that Apple Intelligence is years behind Google Gemini, and triple cameras may give the Pixel 10 one more edge over the iPhone 17 and 17 Air, no less than amongst buyers who aren’t chained to a single ecosystem. Merely put, it dangers reinforcing the view that Apple is stagnating, obsessive about minor refinements within the title of preserving its revenue margins secure.

Google’s affect would not imply as a lot besides that Samsung, Motorola, Nothing, and OnePlus are already within the triple-cameras-as-standard camp, due to units just like the Galaxy S25 and Moto Edge. Google becoming a member of go well with is rubbing salt within the wound, making Apple look outright backwards.

Worldwide, you may nonetheless discover different manufacturers attempting to get away with dual-camera units at elevated costs, akin to Honor. However for them, Google could also be a tipping level, since if it could discover a approach to make triple cameras inexpensive in North America, there should not be something stopping its competitors elsewhere.

How quickly will Apple comply with go well with? It is onerous to say. It is too late to alter the iPhone 17 and 17 Air, since with their launch simply two months away, these units ought to already be in manufacturing. I would not be shocked to see Apple change up the iPhone 18, on condition that it is more and more troublesome for the corporate to search out new promoting factors. It may also be extraordinarily cussed, nonetheless — it held on to Lightning years after different cellphone makers switched to USB-C. In that regard, it isn’t unimaginable that we’ll have to attend for the iPhone 19 earlier than we will actually take triple cameras without any consideration.