TrueDepth Camera System is Primary Reason for Slow iPhone X Production

[Radon87000]

This isn’t true. Craig Federighi told John Gruber Touch ID under the display was plan B. Gruber also confirmed the same with Apple engineers who said they’ve been working on Face iD for over a year.

Source for this interview?

 

[nexusrule]

And miss out on all the huge queues and hype around who has and hasn't got one? No, better to have short supply and drip feed the masses while they save up to pay for it.

You are making no sense. If the industry leaders for these type of camera systems builder can not build it fast enough, what change would that make to buy a factory or a company? It's not like the factory workers are lazy or they are not using full capacity, you can't have these camera built faster than that because nobody knows how to build them faster, it's the first time they are doing them.

 

[RqThrottle]

...However, I do think it would be nice if Apple could identify users who upgrade every single year and make sure they receive stock ahead of other users. You are loyal, but currently there's no way to really know because you're not grouped together with people who always upgrade. Have I made that distinction clear? It's kinda tricky to explain. I was just like you before this program came out.

That would be discriminating against new users, which is what any company that wants to grow and prosper for a long time desperately tries to avoid.

 

[nexusrule]

Source for this interview?

You can easily find it googling "Craig Federighi John Gruber Interview"

 

[LarsDay]

Following a report claiming Apple's suppliers are shipping only about 40 percent of the components originally planned for initial production of the iPhone X, a new report suggests the TrueDepth camera is the primary bottleneck.

The word comes from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who said the facial recognition system is "far more complex" than those on competing devices, which is making it challenging for Apple to achieve mass production.

An excerpt from Kuo's research note obtained by MacRumors:Kuo said shipments of iPhone X components will likely ramp up in mid to late October. Given pre-orders begin October 27, with in-store availability starting November 3, all signs point towards the iPhone X being in extremely short supply.

Kuo believes iPhone X pre-orders have the potential to exceed 40-50 million units, so it's clear the device won't achieve supply-chain balance for quite awhile.

Article Link: TrueDepth Camera System is Primary Reason for Slow iPhone X Production

If China did not exist then Apple would not exist.
China actually owns Apple.

 

[Kabeyun]

This doesn't sound right to me... Why does it need a structured light and time of flight sensor? They keynote made no mention of time of flight-- only the structured light and 2D infrared imager.

Looks correct. Also looks like prior iPhones also have TOF sensors.

 

[Gasu E.]

doesn't apple have like $200 billion in the bank? like jesus christ buy some factories, companies, or whatever to get production what it needs to be smh

"How hard could it be"?

 

[Bako-MacAddict]

Something must have happened where they decided later than normal that they wanted to do Face ID over Touch ID. The fact that the couldn't get Touch ID underneath the screen forced them to use their backup technology that they may have been planning for future iPhones, but not for the X

This makes very much sense.

 

[rjjacobson]

My sentiments exactly, with one minor correction. I'll be waking up at 2:45 a.m., just to make sure that everything is ready to go on a moment's notice!

Since I am on the apple upgrade gonna do the preset up of the order that I can do before the 27th so hopefully just selecting my already setup order on the 27th (right at 2 AM central) will at least get me one this year, and perhaps on opening day -- ;-)
[doublepost=1506360762][/doublepost]

You have to step back and see how pampered we've become. Whining how a miracle of technology isn't instantly in our possession while some people are wondering where their next meal is coming from.

Amen, exactly, I love my 7plus 256, and hope to via apple upgrade program to get a X before years end. But this is the reality and we are very, very spoiled in the west sigh

 

[AlphaGuitarist]

Since I am on the apple upgrade gonna do the preset up of the order that I can do before the 27th so hopefully just selecting my already setup order on the 27th (right at 2 AM central) will at least get me one this year, and perhaps on opening day -- ;-)

I'm buying outright, using the Barclaycard Visa with Apple Rewards (18 month interest-free financing). I already have my configuration of choice saved to favorites in the Apple Store app, so I hope that it'll help speed up the process.

 

[jamesrick80]

Now I'm thinking the iPhone X was never intended to be released this year. Something is so off about this entire release. Apple may have been working on this for a few years but this is a mess of a future release. Beta testers enjoy your iPhone X.

 

[rjjacobson]

I'm buying outright, using the Barclaycard Visa with Apple Rewards (18 month interest-free financing). I already have my configuration of choice saved to favorites in the Apple Store app, so I hope that it'll help speed up the process.

Yes I also have the Barclay Visa since back when I got a Mac Pro and so will be using on this purchase. I have not noticed a favorites configuration option on the X yet must have missed that ;-)

 

[jamesrick80]

This isn’t true. Craig Federighi told John Gruber Touch ID under the display was plan B. Gruber also confirmed the same with Apple engineers who said they’ve been working on Face iD for over a year.

And you believe everything that Craig says. If the sky was falling would you believe it as well. Sounds like Craig Federighi was trying to "save face". Things probably didn't go as planned with under the screen touch ID which ultimately led to face id being implemented and used in the actual iPhone design earlier than expected. Plus they had to give the fans something to brag about for this year's anniversary like it or not.

 

[Analog Kid]

Looks correct. Also looks like prior iPhones also have TOF sensors.

Huh. Found a more detailed discussion here too: http://www.techinsights.com/about-t...f-flight-sensors-and-the-starship-enterprise/

Sounds like it first turned up in the iPhone 7. Not what I'd thought the meant (a time of flight imager), but crazy sophisticated tech for what's basically a head detector...

 

[kdarling]

Apple is keeping their promise of making the iPhone X the phone of the future.

Well, at least until the next big biometric authentication sensor method comes along 🙂

This doesn't sound right to me... Why does it need a structured light and time of flight sensor? They keynote made no mention of time of flight-- only the structured light and 2D infrared imager.

I was going by various articles which claimed it used both.

I thought it sounded odd, too, but perhaps it's used to sense when something/body is close enough to turn on the dot projector. Plus help with calculating 3D from the relative XY dot distances.

 

[Karma*Police]

Something must have happened where they decided later than normal that they wanted to do Face ID over Touch ID. The fact that the couldn't get Touch ID underneath the screen forced them to use their backup technology that they may have been planning for future iPhones, but not for the X

I think the most logical explanation is the one given by Kuo... Truedepth cameras are bleeding edge and components are hard to secure in mass quantities.

Home button/Touch ID on the glass seems like a waste of space... they might as well have kept the bezel if they were going to adopt that approach. If anything, Touch ID under glass/back of phone was probably the backup in case Face ID didn’t work as well or better than today’s Touch ID.

 

[Macalway]

IMO, the X is the best design, even though I really like Touch ID. There is no other option than Face ID. They tried to engineer touch into the screen, and it doesn't work, and THAT'S where the confusion comes from. If we had never heard that, there wouldn't be the confusion.

Touch ID just takes up too much space on the front screen, and once we go down this path there's no turning back. The button will look old soon. Sure the 8 is great for now. Bye Bye.

 

[Givmeabrek]

Let's see. 10,000 per day. Orders for 50 million. So around 14 years to fill the orders. Somewhere early 2031 we should all have them. Can't wait. 🙁

 

[maikerukun]

So get this, the design model that should of been the choice for ALL the iPhones this year is delayed due to a "feature" literally no one wanted or asked for.
LOL

I 100% want this feature and doubt I could even go back after watching it demoed on stage. It's literally amazing.

 

[AlphaGuitarist]

Yes I also have the Barclay Visa since back when I got a Mac Pro and so will be using on this purchase. I have not noticed a favorites configuration option on the X yet must have missed that ;-)

Based on some anecdotal evidence I've seen on this forum, the favorite option only appears in the app if you select the "one time payment" option.

 

[RuffyYoshi]

Told you it was the notch, didn't I.

 

[Sheboygan]

This doesn't sound right to me... Why does it need a structured light and time of flight sensor? They keynote made no mention of time of flight-- only the structured light and 2D infrared imager.

I suspect they work together and have to. The structured light is needed to track and bound the target/face (in all lighting conditions via IR) and the time-of-flight is what creates the 3D map using some type of phase coding in the dots.

 

[M.PaulCezanne]

That's not how things work.

It's really not that far off from how they work. Apple's already hinted at investing in production to have more control over it (in fact they've already done it). They just keep using China to get bigger margins, massive human rights violations be dammed.

Despite the ostensible altruism, Apple is a capitalist juggernaut at its core. Profits are the goal, and cheap production costs will rule until they show negative returns.

 

[Mansu944]

I wish Apple would have not shown the iPhone X and called the iPhone 8 the iPhone 7S. The iPhone X could just have been the iPhone 8 in 2018 with some improvements here and there. No reason to rush it out the door.

As much hype as there was, their stock would have tanked.

 

[shareef777]

Wrong forum for logic.

The money isn't to overcome physics, it's to help with scale. Whatever it costs to make 1 iPhone, they can just spend again to make a second in parallel. The only issue is that it'd eat into their profit margins. And THAT's why they won't do that. Pure Apple greed, it's their MO after all.