The TechQuilt Why the iPhone 17 Pro Quietly Dropped a Beloved Camera Feature: What You Need to Know
Why the iPhone 17 Pro Quietly Dropped a Beloved Camera Feature: What You Need to Know
The iPhone 17 Pro has finally arrived, bringing with it the powerful A19 Pro chip, stunning 48MP Fusion cameras, and the latest Apple Intelligence features that promise to redefine our smartphone experience in 2025. Apple fans everywhere are rushing to get their hands on these devices, eager to test out the tetraprism telephoto lens and the crisp 120Hz ProMotion display. However, amidst all this excitement and cutting-edge technology, eagle-eyed users have spotted a surprising downgrade. It appears that a fan-favorite camera capability, one that has been a staple since 2020, is missing from Apple’s latest flagship.
If you are planning to upgrade or already have your new device, you might want to check your camera settings. The ability to use Night Mode while shooting in Portrait Mode is gone.
A Feature Lost in the Shadows
For years, iPhone users have relied on the seamless integration of Night Mode and Portrait Mode to capture stunning, professional-looking photos even in low-light conditions. This feature was first introduced with the iPhone 12 Pro and has been present on every Pro model up to the iPhone 16 Pro Max. It allowed the camera to pull in more light for bright, detailed portraits when the sun went down.
Sadly, this is no longer the case for the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max.
You can actually test this yourself right now if you have the device. Simply open your Camera app and stay in the standard “Photo” mode. If you cover the rear lenses with your hand to block out the light, you will see the familiar crescent moon icon appear in the corner, indicating that Night Mode is ready to activate. However, swipe over to “Portrait” mode and try the same thing. You will notice that the crescent moon symbol is nowhere to be found. No matter how dark your environment is, the Night Mode toggle simply refuses to appear.
Why Did Apple Remove It?
This discovery has left many tech enthusiasts scratching their heads. Why would Apple remove a feature that worked so well on older models?
“According to Apple’s own iOS 26 User Guide, this omission is intentional “by design.” While Apple has not issued a formal press release explaining the decision, industry experts and tech sleuths have some theories. The most likely culprit could be a conflict in resolution. The new iPhone 17 Pro camera hardware is incredibly advanced, capable of capturing super-high-resolution 24MP images in Portrait Mode. In contrast, standard Night Mode photos are typically limited to 12MP. It is possible that the system simply cannot merge these two specific formats effectively yet.
Others in the tech community speculate it could be related to hardware placement. Some keen observers have noted that the LiDAR sensor, which helps with depth sensing for portraits, is positioned differently on the new models. This slight shift might interfere with how the camera gathers light and depth data simultaneously in dark settings.
What This Means for Your Photos
For the average user, this might not be a dealbreaker, especially with the other massive upgrades like the 48MP Fusion cameras and the crystal-clear 24MP front camera for selfies. The iPhone 17 Pro still takes breathtaking photos, and its low-light performance in standard Photo mode is better than ever thanks to the A19 Pro chip’s image processing.
However, if you are someone who loves taking dramatic, moody portraits at dinner parties or during evening walks, you might feel this loss. You will now have to choose between the blurred background “bokeh” effect of Portrait Mode or the brightness of Night Mode. You can no longer have the best of both worlds in a single shot.
Conclusion
The iPhone 17 Pro remains a powerhouse of smartphone technology, setting new benchmarks for performance and display quality in 2025. While the removal of Night Mode for Portrait shots is a puzzling and disappointing step backward, the device’s overall camera system is still arguably the best on the market. We can only hope that Apple might find a way to bring this feature back in a future software update. Until then, we will just have to rely on the iPhone 17’s other incredible features to light up our photos.
