Next iPhone lineup may bring smaller notch, better sensor-shift cameras

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iPhone 12 review
We're used to the notch now, but we wouldn't say no to a smaller one.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple will finally shrink iPhone’s notch for its next-generation devices, according to a new report citing sources in the company’s supply chain. Plus, all of the devices will pack even greater sensor-shift stabilization cameras.

It is believed design changes and upgrades to the iPhone’s front-facing Face ID camera and sensors will make the notch shrink possible.

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard that Apple will decrease the size of the iPhone’s notch this year. Earlier this month, relatively reliable Japanese blog Macotakara, citing its own sources, first reported the claim.

Now, just a couple of weeks later, Digitimes is making the same prediction — and offering more information about the next-generation iPhone lineup’s rear-facing cameras.

iPhone’s notch goes on a diet

“The next-generation iPhones’ Face ID system will see some design changes with the size of the notch at the top of the screen to shrink and their ultrawide angle lens upgraded from 5P to 6P,” reads the report.

One of the changes Apple is expected to make, according to the sources, is to integrate a number of the sensors used by Face ID into a single camera module — similar to that of the LiDAR Scanner in Pro models.

It’s not yet clear how small the notch will be. Previous rumors have suggested it will remain the same length, but its height will be reduced so it doesn’t extend as far into the iPhone’s display.

Sensor-shift for all

The same sources for Digitimes also claim that the sensor-shift stabilization technology found in iPhone 12 Pro’s rear-facing cameras will be extended to the entire next-generation iPhone lineup.

Sensor-shift, a technology previously available only in DSLR cameras, stabilizes the cameras (rather than the lenses) in iPhone 12 Pro for improved stabilization and greater photo quality.

All next-gen iPhones reportedly will use the same 7P lens modules we see in iPhone 12, while the CMOS Image Sensors in the next Pro models will be upgraded to deliver “resolution improvements,” the report adds.

Apple also could extend the LiDAR Scanner to all new iPhone models, according to the report. And mmWave 5G — currently a U.S. exclusive — could also expand its reach when new devices roll out this fall.

Via: MacRumors

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