Kuo: iPhone 13 Now More Likely to Get Upgraded Ultra Wide Camera With Improved Low-Light Performance

[MacRumors]

The iPhone 13 is now more likely to feature an upgraded Ultra Wide camera with significantly improved low-light performance, thanks to lens verification improvements and intensified competition in Apple's camera supply chain, according to noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In his latest TFI Securities investor note, seen by MacRumors, Kuo says that Chinese supplier Sunny Optical's iPad 5P lens verification has gone smoothly and it has learned a lot from the process, meaning that the probability of it shipping a 7P Wide Angle lens for the iPhone 13 in the second half of 2021 has increased significantly.

Kuo expects Sunny to begin mass shipments of its iPad 5P lens in the middle of the first quarter of 2021, supplying Apple with around 15% of those parts due to limited initial production capacity. It is not specified in the report which iPad model the 5P lens is destined for, but shipment proportion for both 5P and 7P lenses is expected to further increase to between 15-20% and 25-30% in 2022.

According to Kuo, Sunny Optical's greater competition will also put pressure on Largan, which is currently fueling a price war due to its significant technological advantages over other iPhone lens suppliers.

Back in November, Kuo predicted that the Ultra Wide cameras on the two high-end iPhone 13 models will be significantly upgraded to f/1.8, 6P (six-element lens) with autofocus. All the current ‌iPhone 12‌ models are equipped with f/2.4, 5P (five-element lens) Ultra Wide cameras with fixed focus.

However, Barclays analysts Blayne Curtis and Thomas O'Malley have since suggested all four iPhone 13 models will feature an upgraded Ultra Wide camera lens with a wider ƒ/1.8 aperture, so there is conflicting information as to exactly how many models will get the lens upgrade. Kuo expects the upgraded Ultra Wide lens to expand to the rest of the flagship iPhone lineup in the second half of 2022.

Article Link: Kuo: iPhone 13 Now More Likely to Get Upgraded Ultra Wide Camera With Improved Low-Light Performance

 

[farewelwilliams]

it does seem like an odd experience that a user suddenly sees black when switching to ultra wide lines because the ultra wide can't get enough light in. very un-apple like. this makes sense.

 

[Keniutek]

... and the water is wet.

 

[iJustines]

Really? We get that more ultra ugly camera lens and smaller notch is coming to the iPhone 13.

 

[windywalks]

Maybe I'm jaded, but tiptoeing towards upgrading the three cameras one by one in subsequent iterations looks like nothing but a money grab. Sure, Apple is all about the profits, can't blame them, they're not a charity, but these tiny upgrades in subsequent generations just look silly.

 

[LFC2020]

Maybe I'm jaded, but tiptoeing towards upgrading the three cameras one by one in subsequent iterations looks like nothing but a money grab. Sure, Apple is all about the profits, can't blame them, they're not a charity, but these tiny upgrades in subsequent generations just look silly.

That’s why a lot of people don’t upgrade every year anymore, smartphone market has matured, I’ll be keeping my 12 pro max for another year when the 12s/13 arrives, then hello you sexy thing apple foldable iPhone 2023 😁

 

[skippermonkey]

Would prefer a better zoom or macro over super-duper-ultrawide, which sound like it's almost fisheye by this stage.

 

[Roller]

Better camera performance is great, but it's going to take more than that, a smaller notch, or some other non-functional design change to interest me in an upgrade. An effective under-screen fingerprint sensor, for example.

 

[macintoshmac]

Really? We get that more ultra ugly camera lens and smaller notch is coming to the iPhone 13.

View attachment 1724817

It will happen. And that will be the highlight of that year. A solution to the problem that was their own creation.

 

[boss.king]

Would prefer a better zoom or macro over super-duper-ultrawide, which sound like it's almost fisheye by this stage.

I don’t think they’re doing anything to the field of view, they’re just bringing its lowlight ability up to par with the main camera.

 

[Mike_Trivisonno]

I bet people would rather have a wider selection of colors and etched designs...which will just get concealed by a 3rd party case. Ok, how about a magsafe thingy that clicks on to the rear of the iPhone so it sits flat instead of wobbling on the hideous camera bump?

 

[MrGimper]

That’s why a lot of people don’t upgrade every year anymore, smartphone market has matured, I’ll be keeping my 12 pro max for another year when the 12s/13 arrives, then hello you sexy thing apple foldable iPhone 2023 😁

I'm in the UK and because of our lockdown I've still been unable to do my Apple Upgrade from my 11 Pro Max to 12 Pro Max... and you know what, I'm not actually that fussed. OK so I've been forced not to upgrade, and may have thought differently had I not been able to due to stock or some other factor instead, but it's been eye opening.

 

[profets]

Sounds like it’s going to be a solid S year (not that anything is wrong with that - S years usually give a lot of nice improvements).

 

[nikaru]

I couldn't be less excited about any camera improvements. Since iPhone 6, the camera of the iPhone is sufficiently good for me and the vast majority of users. Unless you are an instagramer or some kind of professional relying on taking some super high-quality photos with your phone, all these improvements are completely useless. Same applies to the display. Small jumps in quality which normal person cant really appreciate nor use in any practical way. The FaceId was the last iPhone improvement that I really enjoyed as it improved my experience with the phone. Everything else, is meah.

 

[n0va]

i mean, yeah

 

[Hjalnar]

Why do people care about/like the ultra wide camera? I find it to be the most useless out of the 3, and quite frankly would much rather have 5x or 10x than 0.5x. If the iPhone 12 had 1x and 2x I would buy it over the pro, the only thing that makes its camera system VERY underwhelming is having that pointless 0.5x

 

[Megakazbek]

I have iPhone 11 and there were numerous situations I wished it had better zoom and telephoto camera, but I never had any desire to shoot an ultrawide photo of anything, apart from just checking out ultrawide camera in the first few days.

 

[profets]

Why do people care about/like the ultra wide camera? I find it to be the most useless out of the 3, and quite frankly would much rather have 5x or 10x than 0.5x. If the iPhone 12 had 1x and 2x I would buy it over the pro, the only thing that makes its camera system VERY underwhelming is having that pointless 0.5x

I felt like I used the 2x quite often. But after using the 11 Pro for a year I found that I actually used the 0.5x much more than the 2x. A lot of indoor and outdoor use. This will be a welcome improvement. The indoor shots and light sensitivity is honestly quite poor on the 0.5x. Kind of surprised they even shipped it like that.

Though I do feel like they need to make some improvements on both the ultra wide and tele photo. Some of those 5x and 10x optical zoom and even 100x digital on some android phones look awesome.

 

[tridley68]

I phone. 13 is looking well worth the upgrade

 

[xxray]

View attachment 1724817

This is so cringey 🤦‍♂️

 

[techfirth]

Why do people care about/like the ultra wide camera? I find it to be the most useless out of the 3, and quite frankly would much rather have 5x or 10x than 0.5x. If the iPhone 12 had 1x and 2x I would buy it over the pro, the only thing that makes its camera system VERY underwhelming is having that pointless 0.5x

I don’t get it either. I have an iPhone X and I’m very happy with it, but I would’ve upgraded this year had the iPhone 12/12 Mini included a telephoto lens. I don’t care about ultra wide, very few photos that I capture would’ve been better in an ultrawide format than they were in the 1x / 2x equivalents.

 

[ian87w]

Maybe I'm jaded, but tiptoeing towards upgrading the three cameras one by one in subsequent iterations looks like nothing but a money grab. Sure, Apple is all about the profits, can't blame them, they're not a charity, but these tiny upgrades in subsequent generations just look silly.

It's because Apple is not targeting the previous year's iPhone users anymore, nor the two previous iPhone generations. The upgrade cycle of consumers on smartphones are getting longer since, well, even the iPhone 6s is still being supported in iOS14, and performs well for its age.

Apple doesn't force us to buy iPhones on a yearly basis. That's on us, it's our own money afterall. Let's upgrade wisely, only when the exact set of features meets your current needs.

Right now, my iPhone 7+ that I bought last year performs really fast and well. I have zero needs to upgrade to a newer iPhone (added on the ridiculous markup Apple put in my country). I'll be waiting for the 3rd gen SE for my upgrade.

 

[Corsig]

I’ve gotten a new phone every year since the 4 but it’s getting to the point where a slightly improved camera isn’t a reason enough to do it anymore

 

[williamyun7]

Why do I need to pay more and more for camera improvements?

Isn't it just a phone?

Please show us innovation from iPhone not just camera every new model seriously.

 

[ian87w]

I don’t get it either. I have an iPhone X and I’m very happy with it, but I would’ve upgraded this year had the iPhone 12/12 Mini included a telephoto lens. I don’t care about ultra wide, very few photos that I capture would’ve been better in an ultrawide format than they were in the 1x / 2x equivalents.

I wish Apple would use one of those high MP sensors (eg. 108MP sensors that Samsung uses), thus they can provide enough pixel density for a good digital zoom. With some ML magic, I'm sure it's possible to have good enough 2x digital zooms. Pixel phones can do it with old 12MP sensor, so I don't see why Apple couldn't.