Future iPhone cameras may be able to transfer high-resolution image data from the CMOS sensor to the main Apple chip at higher speeds, boosting live streaming and augmented reality apps over high-speed 5G cellular data networks (based on the mmWave standard).
The news arrived this morning via DigiTimes, a Taiwanese trade publication. The company will reportedly achieve that goal by using circuit boards based on liquid crystal polymer (LCP).
LCP-based printed circuit boards may be massively adopted in ‌iPhone‌ camera lens modules in the future to support high-speed image transmission, the sources said, reasoning that image data will be increasingly complicated in the 5G era and high-speed transmission will be needed to allow high-resolution images in live streaming and augmented reality applications.
While some iPhone 12 models this year are expected to support mmWave 5G technology, the DigiTimes story isn’t clear on when iPhones might include LCP-based camera module circuit boards capable of faster image transmission, as noted by MacRumors.
DigiTimes said in a separate report the current suppliers are experiencing strong order pull-ins from Apple ahead of 5G iPhone launch later this year. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted 5G iPhones will use a Modified PI (MPI) antenna technology replacing the current Liquid Crystal Polymer solution used in the 2019 models as an intermediary step towards 5G adoption.