LG Innotek could take smartphone telephoto cameras to the next level
The year is coming to a close, and we’re already looking forward to several upcoming hardware and software launches in 2023, includingAndroid 14and theSamsung Galaxy S23. However, the first tech event in the new year will be the Consumer Electronics Show 2023 (CES). The event begins in just a few days, and LG Innotek has already announced its plans to showcase a new telephoto camera module for smartphones at the event.
Contemporary smartphones either rely on digital zoom paired with AI, or a telephoto lens with an actuator designed to change the effective focal length and offer crazy magnification like theGalaxy S22 Ultra’s 10x optical zoom. The latter approach doesn’t degrade image quality but uses a significantly complex periscope lens arrangement. The lens also takes a heavier toll on the battery than a fixed focal length camera, takes up more space, and features delicate moving parts.
LG Innotek’s new telephoto lensmodule can achieve between 4x and 9x optical zoom. It also offersoptical image stabilization(OIS), a nice-to-have feature to avoid blurry photos when you’re zoomed in all the way. The company states the actuator varying the focal length of the arrangement can move with micrometer precision. The company also claims the new lens design and structure saves space, and the actuator is more power efficient.
We don’t yet have the key details like sensor resolution will get to see more of this new camera module at CES 2023, but LG Innotek is certainly targeting the smartphone market with this lens. It doesn’t share details pertinent to the new telephoto shooter but says ongoing work with Qualcomm could result in faster-focusing cameras and better image quality. LG Innotek adds it is helping the chipmaker optimize software for zoom lenses, and the results will apply to theSnapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC.
We still don’t know when this tech will make its way to smartphones, though. It is unfortunate that LG’s smartphone wing shut shop before giving usthe LG Rollable, but the company’s Innotek wing could be up to something great here.
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