'High-end' lenses for 'iPhone 12' to start shipping in July, Kuo says

Apple's next-generation "iPhone 12" will incorporate "high-end" lens arrays in its rear-facing camera design, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Existing manufacturing partner Largan is said to begin shipments of camera lenses bound for iPhone in mid-July, Ming-Chi Kuo said in a research note published Friday.

Compared to past years, Largan's estimated production window for the second half of 2020 has been delayed by four to six weeks, meaning peak iPhone lens shipments will fall between September and November. Previous years have seen the firm ship product to Apple assembly partners between August and October.

Though not mentioned in the note, the ongoing coronavirus is likely to blame for the manufacturing setback. Recent rumors claim the ongoing pandemic will force Apple to push its typical September iPhone launch event to October.

Kuo fails to specify the lens type Apple intends to adopt, though in prior notes the analyst pegged "iPhone 12" to integrate 7P, or seven-element, lenses. The adoption of a 7P lens design would yield slightly improved image quality over current iPhone models like iPhone 11 Pro, which uses a five-element ultra wide lens stack and two six-element arrays for wide and telephoto photography.

Which future iPhone model or models will benefit from the "high-end" arrays is also unclear. Kuo in March said 7P would find its way to at least one camera module.

Apple is widely anticipated to introduce 5.4- and 6.1-inch "iPhone 12" models this fall with dual- and triple-lens systems akin to last year's lineup. A top-tier 6.7-inch "Pro Max" model might also be augmented by a LiDAR scanner borrowed from iPad Pro. A new iPad Pro-inspired design, updated "A14" processor, 5G connectivity, 120Hz ProMotion display technology and smaller TrueDepth notch are also rumored.

11 Comments

CheeseFreeze 1334 comments · 7 Years

About 4 years ago

I’m hoping - but not expecting - for advancements in optical design. How great would it be if multiple smaller sensors can collaborate to offering what a larger sensor normally would bring? E.g 1” sensor or even closer to a four-thirds size. Combined with Apple’s computational photography advancements it would lead to a huge leap in photo and video quality and essentially remove the need to use any external camera, except professional high-end cameras.

swat671 156 comments · 9 Years

CheeseFreeze said:

I’m hoping - but not expecting - for advancements in optical design. How great would it be if multiple smaller sensors can collaborate to offering what a larger sensor normally would bring? E.g 1” sensor or even closer to a four-thirds size. Combined with Apple’s computational photography advancements it would lead to a huge leap in photo and video quality and essentially remove the need to use any external camera, except professional high-end cameras.

You're not the only one hoping that... Of course, the one big thing I'm looking forward to is better low-light performance, especially for video and panorama shots. I have a dual lens iPhone 8+, and the regular pictures are fine in low light situations. Pano and video, though, are a no-go, which I find so odd. If the pictures come out fine, why don't the panoramas and the videos? It's the same freaking camera! I love to try to capture sunsets, and like I said, the pictures come out fine. If I try to do a pano of the whole skyline, though, no bueno. Same with video. Nada. I just don't get it... So that's a MAJOR thing for me to look forward to is low light performance. I just hope that they're able to extend the 11 Pro's Night Mode to video and panoramas.

Vermelho 56 comments · 6 Years

swat671 said:

regular pictures are fine in low light situations. Pano and video, though, are a no-go, which I find so odd.

You should read how apple managed to get that lowlight performance to understand. I don’t think the 8 has the incredible performance of the 11 I have, but that matches my dslr with a 2.8 lens handheld.
It’s fascinating actually. Taking a still in the dark entails dozens of images in a burst which are analyzed for blur and combined with AI.
Obviously, this multi-image can’t be used for video or pano. They manage to build the advantages of a longer exposure aided by stabilization and these tricks to avoid blur.

melgross 33605 comments · 20 Years

Sensors can only get so large, or backfocal distance will be too great. How many smaller sensors can they have? I don’t see it. A modest increase in sensor size could be accommodated, but nothing like 4:3 total area size. That’s just impossible. Even a 1” sensor is high.

sflocal 6133 comments · 16 Years

I love my iPX’s camera. Under perfect conditions, the quality is stellar. That being said, given the same conditions it comes nowhere near close to my Canon 5DM3. When the photo matters, my Canon is my first choice, but everything else (and convenience) goes to my IPhone.