The iPhone 18 Pro’s clearest Samsung parallel is its 48MP Fusion Main camera with a mechanical variable aperture. Apple offers four selectable settings—ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0—while Samsung’s Galaxy S9 and S9+ used two positions, ƒ/1.5 and ƒ/2.4, in 2018. The iPhone 18 Pro also adds manual aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and histogram controls.
That makes the story more interesting than “Apple copied Samsung.” Samsung helped popularize variable aperture in premium smartphones, but the Nokia N86 is cited as an earlier example from 2009. Apple’s contribution is a broader four-position system integrated into a current flagship camera, not ownership of the underlying idea.
The confirmed iPhone 18 Pro camera change
A camera aperture is the opening that controls how much light reaches the sensor. A wider setting such as ƒ/1.48 admits more light; a narrower setting such as ƒ/4.0 reduces the opening. The practical effect depends on the lens, sensor, lighting, and scene, so four settings do not automatically make the iPhone 18 Pro the better camera overall.
The important hardware distinction is mechanical: the aperture physically changes rather than merely simulating the effect in software. Apple lists automatic and manual selection, giving photographers a way to let the phone choose or take direct control. The same Camera app also exposes shutter speed, white balance, and a histogram—a graph that helps judge the distribution of bright and dark tones.
Apple’s broader camera system includes 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide and 48MP Fusion Telephoto cameras. For video, the iPhone 18 Pro supports 4K Dolby Vision at up to 120 frames per second on the Main camera, along with ProRes RAW, Apple Log 2, and genlock for synchronizing multiple devices.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max is rated for up to 45 hours of video playback. Apple also identifies the A20 Pro chip and a next-generation vapor chamber, claiming up to 40% better sustained performance than the iPhone 17 Pro.
Why Samsung is part of the story—but not the whole story
The closest Samsung precedent is the Galaxy S9 generation. The Galaxy S9 and S9+ offered two aperture positions in 2018: ƒ/1.5 for a wider opening and ƒ/2.4 for a narrower one. The iPhone 18 Pro provides four positions, so its control range is more finely divided on paper.
The historical footnote matters. Variable aperture was not invented exclusively by Samsung: the Nokia N86 used the technology in 2009. Samsung’s role was to bring the concept to wider attention in premium smartphones. Apple is now applying the idea to a newer 48MP camera system with a much deeper set of controls.
| Device | Year | Aperture settings | Selection mode |
| Nokia N86 | 2009 | Variable aperture | Historical example |
| Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ | 2018 | ƒ/1.5 and ƒ/2.4 | Two positions |
| iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max | 2026 | ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0 | Automatic or manual |
So, does the iPhone 18 Pro use a Samsung camera? No such conclusion follows from the shared feature history. Apple specifies a 48MP Fusion camera system; a Samsung precedent explains the technology’s lineage, not the manufacturer of Apple’s camera module.
What Samsung still does differently
The Galaxy S26 Ultra and iPhone 18 Pro Max are built around different flagship priorities. The iPhone emphasizes physical aperture control and creator-oriented video formats. Samsung’s phone retains a 200MP main camera, two dedicated telephoto cameras, Privacy Display, a built-in S Pen, and 8K video recording.
| Category | iPhone 18 Pro Max | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | Practical consequence |
| Main camera | 48MP Fusion Main with mechanical variable aperture | 200MP main camera | Apple offers physical aperture control; Samsung emphasizes higher nominal resolution |
| Zoom hardware | Dedicated 4x telephoto; up to 8x optical-quality framing | Dedicated 3x and 5x telephoto cameras | The phones use different hardware strategies, so their listed zoom figures are not directly interchangeable |
| Video | 4K Dolby Vision up to 120 fps, ProRes RAW, Apple Log 2, and genlock | 8K recording | Apple targets advanced capture and synchronization; Samsung offers 8K capture |
| Privacy and input | Face ID, Camera Control, and Action button | Privacy Display and built-in S Pen | Samsung adds a privacy-screen mode and stylus input that Apple does not match one-for-one |
| Display | 6.9-inch OLED, 2,868 × 1,320, up to 120Hz, up to 3,000 nits outdoor peak | 6.9-inch AMOLED, 3,120 × 1,440, 120Hz, 2,600 nits | Samsung lists higher resolution; Apple lists a higher outdoor peak-brightness figure |
| Weight and thickness | 249 g; 8.75 mm | 214 g; 7.9 mm | The Galaxy S26 Ultra is lighter and thinner in the listed specifications |
The comparison does not produce a single winner. A photographer who wants direct control over the lens opening may value Apple’s four-step system. Someone who uses a stylus, wants a privacy display, or prefers dedicated zoom cameras may find Samsung’s hardware more compelling. Video creators also need to distinguish supported formats from image-quality claims: a list of professional codecs is not a controlled test result.
The practical verdict
The iPhone 18 Pro’s most direct Samsung-era connection is real and easy to define: a mechanical variable-aperture camera. Apple’s version uses four settings—ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0—rather than the Galaxy S9 generation’s two. It also pairs the mechanism with manual exposure-related controls and advanced video options.
That is meaningful progress, but it is not proof that Apple invented the feature or that the iPhone 18 Pro wins every camera comparison. Samsung popularized the idea in premium phones, the Nokia N86 predates Samsung’s implementation, and the Galaxy S26 Ultra still offers a distinct set of camera, privacy, display, and stylus features. For buyers, the useful question is not who “copied” whom—it is whether physical aperture control, creator-focused video, or Samsung’s broader hardware toolkit matters more to the way you actually use a phone.
