Some time ago, journalist Wayne Ma, who deals with technology trends, claimed that Apple will move the front camera to the upper left corner of the screen in the iPhone 18 Pro and switch to a single-hole design, while the rest of the Face ID components would be placed under the panel. However, more and more information indicates that this claim was wrong or misinterpreted.
According to another supply chain analyst, Apple does plan to shrink the Dynamic Island, but not to introduce a hole-in-the-corner design.
The iPhone 18 will have a smaller notch, but Face ID will remain in the center
As stated, the 3D facial recognition of the iPhone 18 Pro will continue to rely on the existing TrueDepth system. The only change refers to the infrared “flood illuminator”, which will be moved below the screen, approximately in the area of the upper left part of the panel. However, the front camera, dot projector and infrared camera remain grouped in the central part near the top of the screen.
Because of this, the notch on the screen will be smaller and retain a central position, instead of changing to a single hole in the left corner, as previously speculated.
The infrared flood illuminator has the task of providing additional infrared light in low-light conditions, so that Face ID works even in complete darkness. The dot projector projects more than 30,000 invisible infrared dots on the user’s face, while the infrared camera records their reflection and forms a precise 3D model of the face, which is then processed in the processor.
Based on all available information, it is concluded that the iPhone 18 Pro will have a smaller “pill”-shaped notch, centrally placed at the top of the screen. In addition, it is expected that this particular model will have the largest screen-to-body ratio in the history of Apple phones, which would make it an iPhone with the most pronounced “all-screen” design so far, reports mydrivers.