Artificial intelligence and periscope lenses could become standard smartphone equipment
Artificial intelligence i periscope target are novelties that we are slowly getting used to in the last couple of years, but only when it comes to the highest class smartphone models. Are the forecasts that we will see them more often and on models where we have not expected them until now realistic?
Market smartphones is slowly recovering, with a large number of manufacturers announcing in their quarterly reports that the period of industry adjustment over the past three years seems to be coming to an end.
Recently he is the president MediaTek-a, Ming-kai Tsai, stated that the overall environment will continue to improve in 2024, and smartphone applications will return to the growing trend.
A Taiwanese company Largan Precisionoften seen as a relevant indicator of smartphone demand, also stated in its recent earnings report that “the demand for high-quality lenses is growing“. Analysts interpreted this as a signal that the market has stabilized, especially after two consecutive pessimistic years.
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In addition, Lee Kuo, managing director of smartphone lens supplier GSEO, said in its earnings report on November 24 that demand from US and Chinese buyers was better than expected for mid- and high-end smartphones on which the company focuses on.
As the market revives, so do the spec upgrades. Future upgrade directions for smartphone lenses include increasing the number of lenses, reducing sizes and increasing optical magnifications, he said DigiTimes. Periscope lenses may become standard equipment for various smartphones, which we could not even imagine in the next 3-4 years.
BenchmarkSupply chain sources indicate that the current standard specification for periscope lenses is 1G (aspherically molded glass) + 4P (plastic). By mid-2024, this could rise to 1G + 6P. By choosing hybrid lenses, users can reduce the height of the lens to match slim designs and avoid smartphones becoming too thick.
The shift from telephoto lenses to periscope lenses with refractive optical lengths is indeed the future trend for smartphone lenses.
However, current challenges include high precision requirements, a difficult manufacturing process, and higher average selling prices. As a result, mass production in the short term is not feasible. All vendors mentioned that “the shift from telephoto lenses to periscope lenses with refractive optical lengths is indeed the future trend for smartphone lenses.”
Periscope lenses are entering the focus of an increasing number of brands
Recently, Asia Optical, which specializes in high-quality smartphone components, indicated that after iPhone 15 Pro Max adopted the multi-reflective Tetraprism system periscope lens architecture, the demand for periscope lenses from other smartphone brands has increased. Asia Optical's multi-vertical periscope lens architecture product has achieved a 64 million pixel solution with 5x optical zoom.
At the same time, industry experts who are familiar with smartphone lenses believe that the current trend in their development is towards light and thin models. However, limited space inside those models means brands can't directly install heavier lens sets with better optical performance and larger photosensitive sensors onto the phone. This leads to problems like noise, artifacts, blur and overexposure, all of which affect the quality such.
Considering that consumers pay a lot of attention to the function of the camera, using software-supported hardware to improve the functionality of the camera has become an important solution, almost like periscope lenses. Additionally, artificial intelligence to improve image algorithms and optimize photography can be a new direction to improve performance smartphone camera.