We all know how impressive Apple has been over the years. Loaded with a brilliant ecosystem, Apple’s iPhone is known to have dominated the field of portables. Among many entities, the camera has always been among the trademark qualities that play a significant role in Apple’s superiority over its competition. That often leads the user to ask themselves or the world of the internet: who is behind the iPhone camera?
Considering the reports from the most detailed studies, Sony and OmniVision are believed to be the manufacturers of the iPhone camera. While the former is known to have served the rear camera requirements, the latter is more concerned about the front-end sensors. However, the definite answer is still far from grasp.
Stay tuned as I decode the mystery of who makes the iPhone camera.
Who Makes the iPhone Camera: Everything You Need To Know
While the question appears to be a pretty simple one, the answer is not that straightforward. The fact that Sony and OmniVision were considered the parents for many years is not a surprise. However, Apple has never confirmed this with clear-cut and detailed answers.
Like most of the cameras used in smartphones, the ones on iPhone fall under the digital camera category. Although the categories remain the same, the ones used are typically more capable. They are home to generation-friendly sensors employing CMOS —Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor.
For those who don’t know, CMOS is a technology that helps convert light to electrons. On the whole, the sensor is brilliantly protected by a transparent cover. Apart from all these, the camera section comprises some backside illumination components that have a role to play as image processing chips.
Unfolding the History
In case you don’t already know, despite many tear-down attempts, the information about a series of components remains hidden for several older models, including iPhone 4, 4S, and the iPhone 5. No surprise, the scenes with the camera are no different.
A closer look will help you notice that the significant parts of the device were clearly labeled, and the trend continues to be the same. Sadly, it is hard to source detailed information for the smaller components. Yes, it is even hard to determine whether the names or symbols relate to Apple’s insistence.
As you can see, even traveling a few years back hardly helped us grab a transparent understanding of what the creators of iPhone cameras might look like.
Devising the Next-to-Perfect Answer
No doubt, several tear-downs ended up yielding nothing. But at the same time, many returned with some fascinating results. To name one, we’ve got the detailed tear-down of the rear camera. A thorough investigation by a team of experts revealed a tiny inscription. Although small, the inscription was hardly mistakable and confirmed Sony’s involvement.
Sony is the name that turned out to be the manufacturer of the 8-megapixel sensor. The discovered inscription indicated Omnivision to be the clear-cut answer.
Next comes the lens modules. Sadly, these lack identification marks that can help reach an accurate answer. However, reports strongly suggest that Taiwanese manufacturers that go by the name of Largan Precision and Genius Electronic Optical have been the sole supplier for the pieces of equipment (apparently for the older variants of iPhone: 4, 4S, and 5)
No hard time guessing that the company might have continued to be the supplier of the lens modules to date. Still, nothing can be accurately forecasted.
Things revolving around lens module manufacturers get even more complicated if we consider what iPhone 5 manifested back in the day. If you remember, multiple sources seemed to list the Japanese optical manufacturer Kantatsu on many occasions. They even strongly suggest their direct involvement.
Wrapping Up
Determining exactly who is behind the iPhone camera is still far from achievable. We don’t know if multiple bodies are working together or if the new era has set the scene for a single manufacturer. Nevertheless, reading this piece has already offered you ample knowledge to help you carry the research forward.
