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Future iPhone Cameras Expected to Transmit High-Resolution Images at Faster Speeds

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Apple's iPhone cameras could in future adopt circuit boards based on liquid crystal polymer (LCP) in order to allow them to transmit high-resolution images at higher speeds, according to industry sources in Apple's supply chain (via DigiTimes).

iphone12dummycameras.jpg

The use of LCP-based flexible PCBs in camera lens modules has been linked to the introduction of high-speed 5G in Apple's smartphone lineup, as well as to the increasing prevalence of live-streamed video and augmented reality apps.
LCP PCBs may also be massively adopted in iPhone camera lens modules in the future to support high-speed image transmission, the sources said, reasoning that image data will be increasingly complicated in the 5G era and high-speed transmission will be needed to allow high-resolution images in live streaming and AR applications.
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The tidbit appears in a report concerning the increased activity of Apple's supply chain partners to provide volume production of mmWave antenna boards for iPhones in 2021. mmWave, which also uses LCP-based PCBs, is the fastest 5G network technology that carriers are currently rolling out.

At least some iPhone 12 models this year are expected to support mmWave, but the report isn't clear on when Apple's iPhones are expected to include LCP-based camera module PCBs capable of faster image transmission.

Apple is expected to release high-end 6.7 and 6.1-inch iPhones with triple-lens cameras, while the new lower-end 5.4 and 6.1-inch iPhones are thought to feature dual-lens cameras.

The higher-end iPhone 12 models could feature an improved telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, improved from the current 2x optical zoom. The high-end 6.7-inch iPhone in 2020 is rumored to be getting sensor-shift image stabilization technology, which could potentially bring image stabilization to the ultra wide-angle lens on those devices.

Apple could also include new camera modes on the higher-end iPhone 12 models, allowing them to shoot 4K video at 120 and 240 frames per second. The new camera modes are reportedly referenced in iOS 14.

In addition, rumors suggest at least one of the new iPhone models coming in 2020 will feature a 3D camera, which sounds like the LiDAR Scanner feature that Apple added in the 2020 iPad Pro models. LiDAR is essentially able to map the surrounding environment at the photon level at nano-second speeds.

Article Link: Future iPhone Cameras Expected to Transmit High-Resolution Images at Faster Speeds
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/09/03/5g-iphone-cameras-transmit-images-high-speed/
I hate how 5G is used in marketing speak all over now. 5G is not at all the driver for this. An iPhone 11 Pro of today could already saturate a 5G connection with video data upload if it had a 5G modem.

The real reason for this is on-device machine learning - the faster data can get to the CPU, the more latency is removed from any post-processing effects on that video when sent to the display. That plus calculating geometry for AR applications, combining the lidar sensor data with the live video feed.
 
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I don't recall the numbers, but I feel like the throughput and processing on the iPhone for photography for the past several years has already been insane. Maybe it was more around the computational stuff happening for every photo you take.
 
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all this talk about the camera has me worried it will be the only upgrade. Maybe 5g iPhone is further down the road then we think.
 
A friend recently took some panoramas on his iPhone 5s and they look just as good as photos I took on my 4s or my X. I think most of these camera upgrades each year have become an accumulation of gimmicks that most folks use maybe a couple times after buying the new phone.
 
My iPhone 11 Pro Max can't even support the High-Perf transfer of 4K @ 60 fps from the image sensor & ISP into DRAM !

The cycle-to-cycle timing is ALL OVER the place !

And that's with a 12.2 Mpx image sensor !

The iPhone 12 models will very-likely include Sony's IMX686 64 Mpx image sensor in the Back Wide Camera, so 64 Mpx @ (probably) 15 fps & 16 Mpx @ 30 fps.

Those represent a 2.67x & 1.33x Perf Improvement in capture relative to the status quo, but could be hard to achieve.

I'm testing a select part of that capability this week on my 11 Pro Max !

The bottleneck, IMO, is the Perf Controller & the DDR PHY Controler (both on the A-series processor).

LPDDR5 could help considerably, which I believe at least the two 12 Pro models will get !
 
Mr. Dee said:
A friend recently took some panoramas on his iPhone 5s and they look just as good as photos I took on my 4s or my X. I think most of these camera upgrades each year have become an accumulation of gimmicks that most folks use maybe a couple times after buying the new phone.
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I disagree. I went from the 7 to the XS and the picture quality was noticeably improved, so I can't believe how you don't see the difference from a 4s/5s to an X. There is also a lot of potential in the machine learning side of things that Apple has been taunting but haven't really nailed, I think Google and Samsung are way ahead on that realm and they boast less about it.

With all that said, I do think iPhone cameras have improved and I have been able to notice it (I have had several versions throughout the years). I also think that Cameras are important and one of the few points where smartphones have a lot of room to innovate. It is also one of those things non-tech general consumers look for.

Cosmosent said:
My iPhone 11 Pro Max can't even support the High-Perf transfer of 4K @ 60 fps from the image sensor & ISP into DRAM ! The cycle-to-cycle timing is ALL OVER the place ! And that's with a 12.2 Mpx image sensor !

The iPhone 12 models will very-likely include Sony's IMX686 64 Mpx image sensor in the Back Wide Camera, so 64 Mpx @ (probably) 15 fps & 16 Mpx @ 30 fps.
Click to expand...

Good points. I wish Apple would at least consider Samsung ISOCELL GW1 sensor instead of Sony, although I guess it is already too late in the game for that. So far implementations of Sony's sensor have shown horrendous results (although that may well be attributed to the manufacturer -Redmi, OnePlus- rather than to Sony). Samsung's sensor on the other hand has proven to be amazing.
 
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An upgrade to the iPhone (and iPad) camera sensor readout speed is long overdue. The fact that the iPhone 11 still is not capable of full-sensor video capture is a major drawback in 2020. I don’t care about frame rates...I just want the better coverage and light gathering that actually using the entire sensor would allow. If cameras from Sony, Nikon, Panasonic, and Canon can do full-sensor 4K capture on sensor modules 36x the size of those in the iPhone, then surely Apple can finally do the same.
 
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Uh, cool and all... but can we for the love of god please move past USB 2.0 transfer speeds out of the only I/O port on the phone? I just want to transfer hardwired (not AirDrop or cloud syncing) without ripping all of my hair out. Is that so much to ask in 2020? TWENTY YEARS later after USB 2.0 was introduced??
 
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Mr. Dee said:
A friend recently took some panoramas on his iPhone 5s and they look just as good as photos I took on my 4s or my X. I think most of these camera upgrades each year have become an accumulation of gimmicks that most folks use maybe a couple times after buying the new phone.
Click to expand...
There are certain milestones where improvements are night and day. For example, smartHDR and night mode. In these cases, the previous gen iPhone were simply unable to match the new gen. The trick is to recognize when these milestones will occur, as the improvements in between are minimal.

Eg. From iPhone 6 to 8/X, difference is minimal, But then comes the XR/Xs with smartHDR, and it’s night and day. The 11 series continued with night mode. If the 12 only has lidar/higher megapixel sensor, then IMO the difference will be minimal vs the 11 series.

It makes sense for Apple to trickle things down like this since majority of people don’t upgrade yearly. You may not feel there are huge improvements on the new iPhone camera features, but someone from an iPhone 7 or 6s will definitely appreciate the difference.

What I am expecting is for some features like deep fusion to be on all the time regardless of modes. Maybe with the A15 chip.
 
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