Kuo sees improvements coming to iPhone 16 and iPhone 17 cameras،
It's often been said that TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is so hip to Apple that he can tell you what the soup of the day will be in the Cupertino cafeteria in a year or two. Kuo is now talking about a front-facing FaceTime camera upgrade for next year's iPhone 17 series. In a blog postKuo expects revenue to increase over the next two years for Genius, the company that is Apple's primary supplier for the lens used on the iPhone's FaceTime camera.
One of the reasons for this high-end expansion for Genius is an upgrade to the front camera of the iPhone 17 lineup, from the current 12MP, also expected for this year's iPhone 16 series, to 24MP. The FaceTime camera will also use a six-element lens on the iPhone 17 compared to the five-element lens used for the FaceTime camera lens on the iPhone 15 and iPhone16 lines. This should help improve the quality of video chats using the FaceTime camera as well as the quality of images taken or recorded using the camera. The unit price of six-element (6P) lens is 100-120% higher than the cost of 5P lens.
Kuo says iPhone 16 Pro models (iPhone 16 Pro render is on the left) will have a 48 MP ultra-wide camera
With the largest 6.3-inch screen expected for the iPhone16 Pro this year, we should see the Tetraprism periscope zoom appear not only on the iPhone 16 Pro Max but also on the iPhone16 Pro. While Largan remains the main supplier of the periscope lens for iPhone, Genius also supplies both iPhone16 Pro series models with periscope lenses will begin shipping late in the second quarter of this year or early in the third quarter.
The company will also be the exclusive supplier of the ultra-wide lens for this year's show. iPhone16 Pro series which will be upgraded to 48MP with 0.7um pixel size and 1/2.6″ sensor size. This compares to the 12MP ultra-wide camera in the iPhone 15 Pro series with a pixel size of 1.0um and a sensor size of 1./3.6″.
Genius will be Apple's exclusive supplier of the thin, flat “pancake lens” used on the Vision Pro. It will also provide the ultra-wide lens for Huawei's new flagship P70 series, expected in the first half of this year.
Kuo's track record may have declined a bit, but when it comes to Apple, you still have to listen to what he says.
