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Apple could stick with an 8-megapixel camera sensor for its upcoming iPhone 6S, according a new report.
Analyst Jeff Pu reckons the Cupertino, California-based company won’t increase the sensor resolution on its next flagship smartphone due to limited supply.
Pu says that Largan Precision Co, a major camera lens supplier for Apple, will face ‘limited earnings growth’ (via Taipei Times), because of a slow transition to higher-resolution cameras for smartphones.
It’s a fair suggestion – the majority of flagship smartphones use between 8-megapixel and 16-megapixel sensors.
Sony managed a 20.7-megapixel shooter on its Xperia Z3, but that’s largely thanks to the fact it produces the lion’s share of smartphone CMOS sensors.
Related: Camera Test: iPhone 6 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S5 vs LG G3
It’s worth noting that an 8-megapixel sensor on a smartphone is by no means underwhelming, and has limited effect on the actual quality of photo produced.
“On the other hand, we expect the specification migration in high-end models to be from new features, such as optical image stabilisation and fast autofocus, which benefit module makers more than lens makers, in our view,” explained Pu.
Apple finally added optical image stabilisation to its smartphones last year with the iPhone 6 Plus. The iPhone 6, however, missed out in the tech, using less impressive digital image stabilisation.
The company could be looking to make up for a lack of increase in sensor resolution through other features for the iPhone 6S, namely OIS.
