Front Camera Lens on Future iPhones Could Be Hidden With Special 'Pure Black' Coating

[code-m]

Add this to the list of iPhone features we have to look forward to for next year:

• Slightly faster chips
• Slightly better battery life
• Slightly better displays
  
• Slightly faster internet
• Slightly less visible front-facing camera

I think the iPhone is more than slightly mature. What is next?

You forgot thinner and lighter. Actually Apple has a partnership/patent to use liquid metal in a handheld mobile device. The SIM tool has been made with this for years. I am awaiting the day a liquid metal iPhone with liquid retina microLED display is released.

Not going to go into details. There is also holo displays/3D, flex displays, etc.

You are correct that the candybar form factor iPhone has matured. With the intro of the X design language what else is there to improve on, a smaller and narrower notch.

The next innovation is form factor and even the competition knows this. I give credit to Apple/Samsung partnership on the chinless AMOLED. However Samsung is forging ahead with flex displays.

I believe with the iPhone Xs single battery design, Apple is experimenting and refining its understanding of flex battery capabilities and this is being tested with the general public. Baby steps, I suspect that iPhone 2020 may have some flex aspect to it.

I am not going to go into detail as to why the Xs has a lower capacity compared to the X and why this is important for flex devices.

 

[dilbert99]

As long as there's a notch, is it really a problem that the camera is "visible from certain angles and lighting conditions"? I don't think so.

No, next year, they are going to add a coating that makes the notch invisible
You have to think of the upgrade path...

 

[CrazyForCashews]

Camera lens suppliers don’t make batteries or gorilla glass.

Now you're just being dumb and obtuse. It's funny how you first said that I should read the article and now it seems like you can't read. The irony is strong.

The poster that I previously replied to asked me what improvements would I like to see with iPhones, to which I replied to. I know those improvements having nothing to do with the camera lens suppliers that Apple uses, but all I'm saying is that those are things Apple should focus on.

 

[macduke]

Aye I do hope that TouchID comes back in some form, I've had FaceID for a week now and it's already grating on me a bit, feels so much slower and more awkward than even the 5S five (!) years ago.

What’s sad is I’ve noticed an improvement with the XS over the X and it’s still not good.
[doublepost=1538232625][/doublepost]

You forgot thinner and lighter. Actually Apple has a partnership/patent to use liquid metal in a handheld mobile device. The SIM tool has been made with this for years. I am awaiting the day a liquid metal iPhone with liquid retina microLED display is released.

Not going to go into details. There is also holo displays/3D, flex displays, etc.

You are correct that the candybar form factor iPhone has matured. With the intro of the X design language what else is there to improve on, a smaller and narrower notch.

The next innovation is form factor and even the competition knows this. I give credit to Apple/Samsung partnership on the chinless AMOLED. However Samsung is forging ahead with flex displays.

I believe with the iPhone Xs single battery design, Apple is experimenting and refining its understanding of flex battery capabilities and this is being tested with the general public. Baby steps, I suspect that iPhone 2020 may have some flex aspect to it.

I am not going to go into detail as to why the Xs has a lower capacity compared to the X and why this is important for flex devices.

Most of the iPhone models in recent years have gotten thicker and heavier. Are you paying attention?

And yes, I already understand the battery thing.

The one thing I forgot is the triple camera. The flex stuff you’re talking about is years away. I’ve already discussed around the forums multiple times for years about my vision for the iPhone that unfolds into an iPad Mini. We still have a while.

 

[code-m]

What’s sad is I’ve noticed an improvement with the XS over the X and it’s still not good.
[doublepost=1538232625][/doublepost]
Most of the iPhone models in recent years have gotten thicker and heavier. Are you paying attention?

And yes, I already understand the battery thing.

The one thing I forgot is the triple camera. The flex stuff you’re talking about is years away. I’ve already discussed around the forums multiple times for years about my vision for the iPhone that unfolds into an iPad Mini. We still have a while.

I had the X and returned it shortly. FaceID seemed limited, AMOLED in cold climate conditions was also unresponsive too many times for my likening (maybe a bad batch), battery life was not great either.

Xs has improved on all those concerns, not quite cold enough to observe if the AMOLED has been resolved. However I am generally pleased with the Xs, plus with 4GB RAM this thing has the performance of my iPad Pro and should last for 4-5 years considering the X and Xr has 3GB RAM.

Thicker and heavier due to glass material. Liquid metal has the benefits of plastic/glass and metal in one package. One Apple moves to this material for the casing the device weight and thickness will revert.

I figure flexible iPhones are about 4 years away, AW on the other hand about 2 years, barring any production development delays.

Apple has a patent for a battery strap for the AW, consider it swapable battery tech coming back around to the Apple product cycle. No need to upgrade the main/core AW device when you can carry a few battery straps and you are good for a work week trip.

 

[bbednarz]

Those thoughts are realistic.

An indestructible phone with a battery that lasts for days and is smaller/lighter than their current phones while dropping the price, but if any current features are removed it'll be labeled as a budget phone by most everyone. Battery technology doesn't exist for this. Materials don't exist for this. While a lot of what you said are things that would be great to have, it is not realistic.

 

[Tech198]

Although this would "sound" cool, the fact will be "potentially un-seeable" would send shivers down my spine, from a pure privacy standpoint..

 

[Sill]

In real life, you enjoy eye contact because it instinctively makes the conversation more intense.

A camera in the middle of the device behind the display would be the solution.

But then the sticker I use to block the front camera would really mess up the display.
[doublepost=1538308183][/doublepost]

It's clear we are headed toward total edge to edge screens without compromise.

Its also clear we're headed towards cameras hidden in everything, and the only thing compromised is our privacy.
[doublepost=1538308329][/doublepost]

In my fantasy ideal world I would have them remove the front facing camera and Face ID and do in-display Touch ID with no notch because I hardly use my front facing camera and like being able to quickly unlock my iPhone when it's on a desk without having to scan my face. But they will never do that.

I'd prefer an iPhone with no user-facing camera at all. Talk about something they'll never do...

 

[0958400]

The article is misleading quoting Jony Ive talking about a notchless screen. Having a black coating means the camera wont be visible on a black background, but it doesn't imply in any way a under the screen camera placement.

I'd guess what they'd really want is a screen on top of a camera, so the notch is "behind" the screen.

 

[Rockadile]

Apple has pattents to get around, there are prototypes that get around it. There’s a way around it, it’s definitely possible, it’s just not possible in a consumer product YET
[doublepost=1538156005][/doublepost]

But that example doesn’t work.

The notch and bezels are not just an iPhone problem, every phone has them, there isn’t one phone without them. You just have to pick weather you like a forehead and chin or a notch, there’s no other choice right now

iPhones don't need a chin anymore, there's no home button.

 

[spinedoc77]

Why waste time on something like this? This is almost as much of a waste as Google slightly rounding corners out in Android every 6 months. I suppose people have to justify their jobs in all industries.

 

[Cankoda]

iPhones don't need a chin anymore, there's no home button.

I didn’t say they did?

 

[Rockadile]

I didn’t say they did?

"You just have to pick weather you like a forehead and chin or a notch, there’s no other choice right now"

Do you even know what you type before posting?

It's either a forehead or a notch.

 

[Cankoda]

"You just have to pick weather you like a forehead and chin or a notch, there’s no other choice right now"

Do you even know what you type before posting?

It's either a forehead or a notch.

Samsungs still have a chin, a lot of phones still have chins. I was talking about all phones people choose from, the iPhone isn’t the only phone out there.

Educate yourself, pay attention and do some research before you comment next time

 

[Rockadile]

Samsungs still have a chin, a lot of phones still have chins. I was talking about all phones people choose from, the iPhone isn’t the only phone out there.

Educate yourself, pay attention and do some research before you comment next time

Yes, you did talk about all phones...so I narrowed it down to the iPhone because does anybody here really care about switching to other phones?

 

[Cankoda]

Yes, you did talk about all phones...so I narrowed it down to the iPhone because does anybody here really care about switching to other phones?

Yes...they do...not everyone here is a diehard fanboy. Sure if you want an iPhone there isn’t a choice, but there are other phones out there without one if it really bothers someone. Plus most of those phones are pro notch now anyways, and the ones that don’t have a notch have a forehead and/or chin so those are really the only choices you get right now. My original argument was that the phone industry is completely different than cars. There’s no obvious high end great design model here, you’ll get the same basic design in a $1000 and a $500 phone. Sure there’s advantages to the $1000 one but it’s not like comparing a Ferrari to a Honda Civic like the original comment I replied to said.

YOU narrowed it down, not me, and then gave me the bull that I don’t know what I’m typing

 

[Rockadile]

Yes...they do...not everyone here is a diehard fanboy. Sure if you want an iPhone there isn’t a choice, but there are other phones out there without one if it really bothers someone. Plus most of those phones are pro notch now anyways, and the ones that don’t have a notch have a forehead and/or chin so those are really the only choices you get right now. My original argument was that the phone industry is completely different than cars. There’s no obvious high end great design model here, you’ll get the same basic design in a $1000 and a $500 phone. Sure there’s advantages to the $1000 one but it’s not like comparing a Ferrari to a Honda Civic like the original comment I replied to said.

YOU narrowed it down, not me, and then gave me the bull that I don’t know what I’m typing

If you are on a rumor site of a particular brand than you're a diehard fanboy of said brand. We are all Apple diehards here.

 

[Cankoda]

If you are on a rumor site of a particular brand than you're a diehard fanboy of said brand. We are all Apple diehards here.

Look around....not everyone here is a diehard fan, a lot of casual users looking for news and tips and even haters here. It’s the internet, even an Apple sites will have Apple haters and the same with all sites. This it first and foremost a news site that just happen to primarily report on Apple, and even Apple users will look at differ phones