Well-connected industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says we may not see any significant hardware updates to the iPhone’s camera lenses through at least 2022.
Kuo’s comments came in a research note shared by MacRumors. The note is focused on a new price war between lens suppliers Largan and Genius Electronic Optical that will affect profitability for the suppliers.
We predict that Largan will bargain the ASP of iPhone mid-to-high-end lenses by about 15-25% in 1H21 in order to increase its capacity utilization rate. Yujingguang’s [Genius Electronic Optical’s] order proportion, capacity utilization rate and gross profit margin will be directly affected. The impact of the price war will begin in January 2021, and Yujingguang’s January revenue may only grow in single-digit YoY or even decline.
Kuo predicts that there will be “no significant upgrade of the camera lens in 2022,” saying Genius Electronic Optical’s challenges could last several years “unless the structural challenges of the lens industry are significantly improved or Yujingguang can significantly reduce its dependence on Apple orders.”
While there may not be any “significant” hardware improvements for the iPhone’s camera lenses, we’ll still likely see software updates that will improve overall camera performance.