Rumor: iPhone 7 Plus may feature dual-lens, multi-aperture LinX camera and improved performance

Based on the news that Apple acquired Israeli camera technology company LinX Imaging last April for $20 million, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is now suggesting that the iPhone 7 Plus will likely have a dual-lens camera system.

If this rumor proves to be true, and Kuo has been very reliable in the past, the iPhone 7 Plus could have vastly improved imaging capabilities. LinX cameras provide images with better exposure and less noise than previous iPhone cameras, which you can read more about here. Showcasing noticably less noise, the low light and indoor photos captured by the LinX sensor are quite impressive.

Specializing in multi-aperture cameras for mobile devices, a LinX camera utilizes multiple smaller sensors rather than a single larger one, which means that the camera doesn't need as long of a lens, perhaps meaning that an iPhone 7 Plus with LinX technology would not have the protruding camera lens found on iPhone 6/6 Plus and iPhone 6s/6s Plus models.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other benefits include better color accuracy and uniformity, higher dynamic range, higher resolution, lower costs, zero shutter lag, and the possibility for thinner mobile devices. It is important to keep in mind that this is just a rumor, as Apple acquires companies frequently and does not always utilize their acquired technologies in tangible ways. Further, the claims of "DSLR-like" quality seem suspect, although there is certainly a large difference between the iPhone 5S and LinX 8-megapixel 1x2 array images seen above. It would be interesting to see the LinX 8-megapixel 1x2 array go up against the newest iPhone 6s models.

For more information on LinX camera technology, including their 3D depth mapping technologies and different array configurations, see here. 

(Seen via MacRumors. Index image of iPhone 7 mock-up from Computer Bild)