ZTE was the first manufacturer to mass-produce an Under-display Camera phone. And recently, the brand launched the latest generation of Under-display Camera phone— the AXON 30. We all know that the performance of the first generation Under-display Camera on Axon 20 was not perfect. So can the Axon 30 finally give us a complete full screen experience?

Let’s find out!

ZTE Axon 30 Review: Under Screen Display Camera

The experience of using this screen is excellent most of the time. Because there is no hole-punch, the full screen is particularly good when watching videos.

The front camera area performs almost identically to the other areas at normal viewing distances. So performance of the new generation Under-display Camera is much better than the Axon 20, and it’s finally a usable technology.

But! Be warned, if you’re being fussy, there’s a lot more to talk about this screen.

Why?

Well, the display is not really perfect. Not to mention that this screen can’t do 2k resolution. Since it has to add an Under-display Camera, it uses RGB Delta pixels, so the detail is a bit lower than Diamond-like pixels.

Secondly, there will be rainbow lines in the oblique view, and the Under-display Camera area will be easily visible under the influence of these rainbow lines. Even if you look at it from the front, some traces of the Under-display Camera can still be seen, at close range.

In low brightness, this will be even more obvious. Further, In extreme cases, you’ll find the appearance of tiny text around the Under-display Camera area. Since the chip controlling the Under-display Camera area can only control multiple pixels with a single circuit, the text edges will appear noticeably jagged. Of course, these drawbacks are rare in everyday use, so whether you would give up some high-end screen features for a full screen is entirely up to your own preference.

Axon 30 Review: Selfie Camera Quality

Now that we have talked about the quality of the screen, it’s time to talk about its front camera photo quality. If you’ve seen our MIX 4 Hands on Review, you’ll know how bad the Under-display Camera can be. Thanks to the AI processing, the front camera’s photo results are at the passing line. Although many details of the image have been lost, but at least the look and feel is not bad. But when it comes to video recording, which AI can’t handle, it’s probably only a little better than a laptop’s camera. So users who like to take selfies should choose other phones.

ZTE Axon 30 Review: Hardware & Gaming Performance

The Axon 30 features the Snapdragon 870 as its SOC, which we all have come to love. In Antutu Benchmark it scores 688,114, while in 3D Mark it gets a score of 4223, and in Geekbench 961 in single-core, and 3081 points in multi-core.

The Benchmark performance is conservative, but the gaming performance is not bad. PUBG basically runs at full 60fps throughout. While Genshin Impact does not run at full 60 fps, the frame rate curve fluctuates less and there is no frame lock. The average frame rate of 40.7FPS will still ensure a good gaming experience. Brightridge also performs similarly and has good temperature control. If you’re not looking for extreme frame rates, this phone is still pretty good for gaming.

ZTE Axon 30 Review: Rear Cameras

The two large circles in the middle of the camera housing are inspired by the lights of a sports car. The top one is the 64MP IMX682 main camera, and the bottom circles are the 8MP Ultra wide lens, Macro lens and Depth lens respectively.

Main Camera

The main camera performs quite well in the daytime, with bright colors and the samples being clear. At night, the dynamic range is lower in normal mode and the details in the dark are no longer clear. But night mode improves this problem significantly and gives you very good photos at night.

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Ultra-wide camera

Ultra-wide lens and main camera tuning are basically the same, so it has the same problem at night. However, since Ultra wide lens does not have night mode, try to choose a place with better light for taking wide-angle photos at night.

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Macro Camera

The Macro lens of Axon 30 performs beyond our expectations and is much better than the Macro lens of other phones. The image quality is very good and the usability of the photos is very high.

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ZTE Axon 30 Review: Battery & Charging

The Axon 30 comes with a charger in the box, and the phone’s maximum charging power is 65w without wireless charging. It charges to 22% in 10 minutes, 65% in half an hour, and it takes 50 minutes to 100%. Although the body only weighs 189g, it comes with a plastic back and features a 4200mAh battery capacity in exchange. Half an hour of Tiktok consumed 6%, half an hour of 1080p video consumed 4%. One PUBG game dropped the charge further by 11%, while in Genshin Impact the phone lost 12%, and in Brightridge 13%. With this battery life, it looks like if you want to use this phone for an entire day without charging, then you must use your phone less.

ZTE Axon 30 Review: Verdict

So Why did ZTE release the Axon 30 as a phone? Because I think ZTE has big dreams. It set the starting price for a phone with the latest generation of Under-display Camera technology at $500. It’s obviously to popularize this new technology and make more people appreciate how enjoyable it is to have a full screen. We have to thank ZTE for providing an option for those who like to try something new and are on a budget.

So that’s all about our quick review of the ZTE Axon 30!

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Xiaomi has announced a new model in its MIX series today in China. Unlike the MIX Fold, Xiaomi’s first foldable phone, this does not have a screen that folds. However, the MIX 4 is also a phone with some unique features. It is the manufacturer’s first phone with an in-display camera and Ultra Wide Band support, and also the first phone in the world to be powered by the Snapdragon 888 Plus processor.

MIX 4 Design

The MIX 4 is positioned as a business flagship and Xiaomi has kept the design clean but classy. The display is slightly curved and the back is covered in ceramic which is now 30% lighter. There is a large square-shaped camera housing on the back that is home to three rear cameras.

Xiaomi will sell the phone in three colors – Ceramic White, Ceramic Gray, and Ceramic Black.

MIX 4 Specifications

The MIX 4 has a 6.67-inch AMOLED 3D curved display with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. The screen is a 10-bit TrueColor panel with a 500,000:1 contrast ratio. Xiaomi says there is also Gorilla Glass Victus protection on the display.

The display uses a micro-diamond pixel technology that reduces pixel sizes and increases pixel brightness. Xiaomi says that the re-designed display allows for better camera zone transparency.

Xiaomi’s new phone is also the first in the world to be powered by the Snapdragon 888+ processor. The chipset is paired with up to 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.

One of the highlights of the MIX 4 is its in-display camera technology which Xiaomi has dubbed CUP (camera under-panel). It is a 20MP 1.6μm 4-in-1 Super Pixel sensor.

On the rear are three cameras – a 108MP HMX f/1.9 main camera with 7P lens and OIS, an 8MP 50x periscope camera with OIS that offers 5x optical zoom, and last is a 13MP f/2.2 free-form ultra-wide-angle camera. The free-form lens on the ultrawide angle camera means that distortion is reduced to about 1% compared to the 20% on a standard lens.

There is a 4500mAh battery capacity with support for 120W fast charging and 50W wireless charging. The latter has a default mode that takes 45 minutes to charge the phone to 100% while a Boost mode takes just 28 minutes. For wired fast charging, boost mode charges the phone in just 15 minutes while normal mode takes 21 minutes. Xiaomi claims that the maximum rear temperature of the phone while charging at 120W is 37°C.

Xiaomi has equipped the Mi MIX 4 with a cooling technology that has a surface area of 11588mm². It includes a 4584mm² graphene sheet, a 1232mm² graphene heat spreader, a second 5070mm² graphite sheet, and a 702mm² graphite sheet in between the wireless charging coil and the ceramic back.

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The MIX 4 has stereo speakers tuned by Harman Kardon. It also has 19 antennas, support for 42 frequency bands, and a signal optimization mode that works in 8 scenarios where there is usually high traffic such as at the airport, hospital, and subway station. Xiaomi has also added support for 500MHz Ultra Wide Band that allows for precise spatial positioning.

There is also an impressive Find-My-Phone feature that keeps the MIX 4 connected to a network even after the SIM card has been removed. Users will also be able to find the phone if it is turned off.

MIX 4 Price and Availability

The MIX 4 is available in four configurations and below are their prices:

• 8GB RAM + 128GB = ¥4999 (~$770)
• 8GB RAM + 256GB = ¥5299 (~$817)
• 12GB RAM + 256GB = ¥5799 (~$894)
• 12GB RAM + 512GB = ¥6299 (~$972)

The MIX 4 will be available for pre-order starting today and will be available for purchase starting on August 16 at Mi Home stores, Xiaomi’s online store, Youpin, and authorized partners.

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Samsung has been working on its next-generation foldable smartphone under the Galaxy Fold series, dubbed Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. It’s almost confirmed that the phone will feature an in-display camera sensor.

Now, a new report coming from Ice Universe suggests that the South Korean giant has opted to go with a different approach for implementation of under-display camera technology for better results.

Fold3's UPC transmittance is as high as 40%+, which is much higher than any other brand UPC solutions you have ever seen.

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) June 4, 2021

pic.twitter.com/3YBZkXYkai

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) June 6, 2021

The company will reportedly use technology that works by dividing the display into two portions — a small area with a different pixel structures and lower resolution than the main screen that allows light to get to the camera sensor, along with the main display.

So, with this new type of implementation, what you get is an unbroken screen. But the downside is that the camera is visible on light backgrounds, something that the current implementation on ZTE Axon 20 5G takes care of.

But the upside for this new approach for the under-display camera sensor is that it has a higher light transmittance than the existing solutions, resulting in better image quality for the photos captured. To know for sure how the camera technology implementation looks and what the results are, we will have to wait for the official launch.

Given that it’s a pretty new technology and only a couple of companies have made it to the commercial phase, we expect to see rapid and noteworthy development in the coming months as more companies jump the bandwagon.

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ZTE is expected to launch a new Axon smartphone this year. Last year, it launched two Axon series – the Axon 11 and the Axon 20, the latter being one of the first smartphones to have an in-display camera. ZTE has now released a teaser for a successor which should launch as the Axon 30.

The teaser poster hints at the upcoming phone having an in-display front-facing camera just like the Axon 20. However, unlike its predecessor which launched as a mid-range smartphone, the Axon 30 will be a flagship with a Snapdragon 888 processor under its hood.

The Axon 30 will feature ZTE’s second-gen under-display camera technology and we hope it offers better results than the Axon 20. We also expect the phone to pack better cameras, run Android 11 out of the box, have support for at least 30W fast wired charging. Other features it should have are NFC, up to 12GB of RAM, and up to 256GB of storage. The Axon 30 may also come along with siblings some of which may not be flagship phones. However, there is a chance they all will have 5G support.

There is no info on the launch date but there are speculations it will be announced after the Chinese New Year holiday which is in mid-February. However, a message from the president of Nubia, a ZTE-owned brand, hints at the phone arriving sooner. The phone should launch first in China before making its way to other countries.

We expect more details will surface in the weeks leading up to the launch.

UP NEXT: ZTE Axon 20 5G teardown shows how the under-display selfie camera works

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A few months ago, in September last year, ZTE launched the Axon 20 5G smartphone, making it the first smartphone in the world to feature an in-display fingerprint sensor. Now, the Chinese company is gearing up to launch its successor.

Ni Fei, President of ZTE’s Terminal Business Unit and President of Nubia Technologies, has now officially confirmed through a Weibo post that the company’s new smartphone with an under-display camera will soon get launched.

It’s noteworthy that ZTE will be launching a second-generation smartphone model with an in-display camera sensor while most companies are still in the Research & Development stage and have been trying to launch an in-display camera smartphone for at least a couple of years, including the likes of Samsung, Xiaomi, and OPPO.

Although Ni Fei has revealed that the upcoming device will soon get launched, he has not revealed what the phone is called. However, reports indicate that the product in question could be the Axon 30 smartphone.

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ZTE had previously confirmed that the company will be launching Axon 30 and Nubia Z30 series flagship smartphones in the market this year, powered by the newly launched Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset.

If the smartphone teased by the company is set to get launched anytime soon, then we will soon be getting more information about it in the coming weeks. It will be interesting to see what the company has up its sleeves for this second-gen model.

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Smartphone manufacturers have been working on under-display camera technology for years, and now it is ready for a commercial launch. ZTE is all set to launch the world’s first in-display camera smartphone in a couple of days.

Now, ahead of the launch, ZTE has confirmed that the upcoming Axon 20 5G smartphone is using third-generation in-display camera sensor technology. As per the report, this was confirmed by ZTE’s executive Lv Qianhao in response to a user’s question on Weibo.

In this technology, only two-thousandth of the entire screen is used for the camera sensor behind the display, which is just about a small square-inch. The company adds that its Research & Development team managed to achieve the desired output after working day and night to fine-tune the technology.

Furthermore, the screen is also divided into seven different layers — cover glass, polarizer, encapsulation glass, cathode, OLED, array, and substrate glass. It has been given an anti-reflective treatment to maximize transparency and suppress optical diffraction.

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ZTE’s confirmation about using third-generation in-display camera technology comes at a time when Xiaomi has also showcased its own third-gen tech. It revealed the technology showcasing a working prototype and detailed the improvements. It utilizes a self-developed pixel arrangement and achieves light transmittance through the sub-pixel gap area. The company said that the tech is ready for mass-production and will be in the market in 2021.

As per the reports, the ZTE Axon 20 5G smartphone features a 6.92-inch OLED display with a screen resolution of 2460 x 1080 pixels without any kind of notch. It is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G along with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.

On the back, the device has a quad-camera setup that includes a 64MP primary sensor, an 8MP secondary sensor, and two other 2MP sensors. On the front side, it is equipped with a 32MP snapper for taking selfies and video calling. The device is expected to be available in four color options — Black Hole Gravity, Streamer Sea Salt, Phantom Orange Wind, and Purple Moon. To know more about the phone, it’s pricing and availability details, we will have to wait for the official launch on 1st September, just a couple of days from today.

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Under screen camera is going to be the next big thing in the smartphone market. Companies are working very hard to perfect in-display cameras because of the tremendous aesthetic upgrade that it brings to smartphones. Without a notch or a punch hole on top, smartphone screens will have no distractions up front, ensuring a true, full screen visual experience.

We already know that ZTE will soon announce the world’s first commercial under screen camera smartphone, the Axon 20 5G. But Xiaomi didn’t want to miss out on the party as it decided to reveal its third generation under screen camera technology today. Not only did the company show off a working prototype with the new in display camera, but it also revealed how the technology was improved to make it as good as a traditional front camera.

The company developed the first generation under screen camera technology last year in June 2019. We also got to see a video of the prototype in action but a closer inspection revealed that the display on top of the camera wasn’t perfect and the pixel density in that area was low.

Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun revealed that the second generation version of the under screen camera technology was developed in October 2019. And today, it has announced the third generation version of the tech, which it believes is almost perfect and comparable to a traditional selfie camera shooter.

How does Xiaomi’s Under Screen Camera Work?

In a detailed post, Xiaomi explained how it achieved ‘near perfect’ camera quality in its third generation in-display camera solution. The company revealed that the first two generations managed to make the display above the front camera transparent by sacrificing the pixel density in that area. In fact, the pixel density of the display above the camera was only half as compared to the rest of the OLED panel.

Xiaomi explained that early implementation of in display cameras could only reserve 1 in 4 pixels for the display as the remaining three pixels had to be made transparent for better light transmission by changing its internal structure and material.

However, the third generation solution solves this problem by utilizing a self developed pixel arrangement. The company has managed to achieve light transmittance through the sub-pixel gap area. Also, the company has doubled the number of pixels in both vertical and horizontal arrangement to achieve an overall pixel density similar to the rest of the display. As a result, the display area on top of the under screen camera manages to achieve a similar level of pixel density, color accuracy, color gamut, and brightness as the rest of the OLED panel.

The company has also improved the OLED pixel driving circuit to improve the light transmittance above the camera. Finally, Xiaomi claims that its self developed camera algorithm is capable of delivering the same image quality as traditional selfie shooters making its latest solution ‘almost perfect’.

Editor’s Pick: Visionox Under Screen camera display is ready for mass production

Xiaomi shows off a working prototype

Xiaomi is has never been shy to show off its upcoming technologies. The company first revealed its prototype under screen camera phone back in June 2019. More than a year later, we have a video of a working prototype using its third generation under screen camera technology.

In the video shared by Lei Jun on Weibo, Xiaomi’s under screen camera prototype looks like a modified Mi 10 Ultra. The video compares the prototype with the standard Mi 10 Ultra and the increased pixel density above the camera seems to completely hide the camera below the display.

Lei Jun says that the third generation under screen camera solution is ready for mass production and should end up on smartphones by 2021.

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Smartphone manufacturers have been trying to introduce devices with under-display camera sensors for years and now the technology finally seems ready to be used on a commercial smartphone.

ZTE has confirmed that the company will launch its Axon 20 5G smartphone on 1st September, making it the world’s first smartphone to feature an in-display camera sensor. Other companies like OPPO and Xiaomi are also working on similar technology.

Along with them, TCL is also working on the same, as revealed through a patent application a couple of months ago. However, it seems that the company is quite ambitious in this regard and isn’t stopping at an in-display camera but wants to hide all the camera sensors.

A new smartphone design patent filed by TCL has been surfaced online without any visible camera sensors on the device — neither on the front side nor on the back. The patent, first reported by LetsGoDigital, also includes product sketches, giving us an idea about the phone.

The images show a smartphone with relatively thicker bezels around the display. There’s definitely an in-display camera sensor at least for the front-facing camera. But interestingly, no camera module is visible on the backside.

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The top part on the backside is significantly bigger than the rest of the area and it may have something to do with the camera module but nothing has been revealed in this patent. There’s another theory as well.

For the invisible camera module on the backside, the company could be using technology we saw on the OnePlus Concept One smartphone. The back could have a glass panel which becomes transparent when cameras are in use and becomes opaque when not in use.

Do note that this is just a patent so there’s no certainty that the company plans to launch a device with such design and technology. The company is more likely to launch its in-display camera smartphone first before unveiling a device with all camera sensors hidden.

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TCL is known as a TV manufacturer across the world. But the company also sells phones under brands like Alcatel. But this year, it even started launching smartphones with its own branding. That being said, the company has now patented a smartphone design with in-display camera.

The race for perfect full-screen smartphones is still on. Companies have been trying various solutions such as notches, pop-ups, and punch-holes. But the ideal solution is in-display/under-display cameras.

Xiaomi and Oppo have already showcased prototypes featuring in-display camera last year. But the tech is still not ready for the public. But earlier this week, Visionox announced that it has begun to mass manufacture this solution and a report even suggested that it could be exclusive to Huawei for the time being.

Keeping that in mind, we can see how this TCL design patent can be a reality someday. But for now, we can only mesmerize this design in our imagination.

The phone seems to have a curved display with visible bezels all around. At the back, it has a quad-camera setup and dual-LED flash separated from each other.

Also, this TCL phone looks to sport a screen with 21:9 aspect ratio just like the recently launched Sony Xperia 1 II.

The Chinese tech company is known for affordable TVs. It is trying to build its reputation in the smartphone market by launching one of the cheapest 5G handsets in the US called TCL 10 5G for only $399.

Since TCL has been targeting customers at the end of the spectrum for years, we can expect the company to bring phones with in-display camera for the masses in the near future.

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(Via)

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Chinese display manufacturer, Visionox, announced today that its under-screen camera display solution is ready for mass production. The Suzhou-based company also released a video showing off the technology.

Called InV See, Visionox said they had to improve the transparency of the camera area by using new organic and inorganic film materials with higher transparency for the main screen. The new materials not only have improved transparency but also reduce diffraction.

China’s display manufacturers, Visionox, has just announced the world’s first mass-produced under-display camera solution. The world’s first under-display camera phone will be released. pic.twitter.com/QWkQioy2LZ

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) June 8, 2020

Visionox also revealed they created an “industry-first drive circuit and pixel structure design” that minimizes interference.

It is important to know that hardware is only one half of the technology as the software will also play its part. Visionox says it is working with manufacturers to develop a special algorithm for the technology. This software algorithm will handle glare, brightness, and fogging effect so photos and videos captured with the selfie camera turn out great.

At the moment, it appears Visionox’s InV See will be exclusive to AMOLED displays. So expect LCD displays to keep having notches and punch holes for the foreseeable future.

InV See is ready for mass production but it is still unknown when the first commercially available phone will be announced. We are still in the first half of the year, so there is still a chance we may see it appear in phones before 2021.

Which manufacturer do you think will be the first to launch a phone with an in-display camera?

UP NEXT: Huawei patents a smartphone with an Under-Display Selfie camera

(Source, Via: 1, 2)

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Most of the smartphone manufacturers are working on premium smartphones with higher screen-to-body ratio. For this, the companies have tried different types of technologies, including punch-hole display, pop-up front camera, and others.

Nowadays, companies are working on yet another technology — under-display camera sensor. While brands like OPPO and Xiaomi have already showcased their in-display camera technology and Samsung has revealed that it is working on the same.

Now, OnePlus has also joined the list as the company has filed a patent for a technology that hides the camera when not in use. The patent seems to be similar to the implementation of the Concept One smartphone that was showcased by the company at CES 2020 last month.

From the photo included in the patent application, it is clearly visible that there are no punch-holes of pop-up camera mechanism for the front-facing snapper and the entire surface is covered by the screen.

This could mean that the device will come with an in-display camera sensor for the front panel. The back of the phone seems similar to the OnePlus 7T but there seems a plastic flap on top of the lenses which can hide the camera module when not in use.

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However, the back camera system seems like a mechanical design and has nothing to do with the under-display camera-type technology. The back camera flap seems like a design choice to better protect it from dust and dirt.

If this is indeed the camera with an in-display front-facing camera system, we don’t expect to see the smartphone available commercially in near future. At this point in time, the technology isn’t fully developed and there seems to some issues with the image quality.

Meanwhile, the company is now gearing up to launch its next-generation flagship smartphones — OnePlus 8, 8 Pro, and 8 Lite. While the launch date is not yet known, we expect it to go official in the coming weeks.

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(Source)

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Smartphones and their components have become increasingly more complex and difficult to manufacture. Each individual component, especially the lens, requires advanced hardware with precise software to manufacture. Furthermore, it is estimated that the demands from smartphone OEMs for camera lenses will increase even further by 2020. This is due to various companies adopting the new triple or quad camera modules on their smartphones, Chen explained.

Chen further stated that smartphone makers are expected to consistently upgrade lens module specifications; and GSEO hopes this can lead to a hike of its overall gross profit margin. Currently, GSEO specializes in mid range and high end smartphone’s camera lens modules and declines orders with low gross margins. Kuo Ying-Li, President of GSEO, also added that the company has been developing lens modules like waterdrop notch, black-coated, under-screen, OIS (optical image stabilization), periscope and ToF models that offer high gross margins.

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Notably, the company also reported on developing automotive cameras, but certification for such products is time-consuming and shipments might not begin until the second half of 2021 or 2022. In other words, we might also be seeing a new breed of smartphone cameras in the near future.

Kuo also stated that the popularity of camera modules with 10MP or higher sensors have been increasing and now account for almost 47 percent of its entire business operations comprising of NT $8.265 billion for the first three quarters of 2019 (or roughly 271 million USD).

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(Via)

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Xiaomi Mi Mix 4 flagship smartphone has been in the rumour mills for a long time. When the company was expected to launch the phone, we instead got the Mix Alpha concept device. However, the rumors and leaks about the Mi MIX 4 are still going strong.

The Chinese smartphone maker has filed a new patent which is believed to be for the upcoming Mi MIX 4 smartphone. The patent titled “Dispaly Structure and Electronic Equipment” describes a hidden camera under the phone’s screen that does not take up any space on the display.

In the patent, it is shown that the display structure includes a screen and a light adjustment part located on a light emitting side of the display screen. The working state of the dimming component includes a light transmission state and a polarization state. It also includes a first region and a second region that can be independently controlled.

The display also includes multiple independently controllable pixels. In addition, when the first region of the light adjustment component is in a light-transmitting state, pixels corresponding to the first region in the screen are disabled to allow light emitted from the first region to pass through the display screen.

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A few months ago, in June this year, the company had shared a small video clip showcasing the company’s new under-display camera technology. It was revealed just moments after Oppo’s video of the exact same tech was shared online.

The video showcased Xiaomi Mi 9 smartphone next to what appears to be a notchless Xiaomi Mi 9. The video shows the lack of a notch, and then continues to showcase that the invisible selfie camera works just fine.

Since the company has been making progress with regards to this under-display or in-display camera technology, we expect to see a smartphone featuring the same tech in the coming months. It is widely believed that the Mi MIX 4 will come with this technology and we’ll have our eyes set for the launch during CES and MWC in the coming months.

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(Via)

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Tech companies are obsessed with achieving a true 100% screen to body ratio on their smartphones. And the front camera is the biggest obstacle that comes in between this dream. We have already seen technologies such as a punch-hole camera, pop-up camera, and even a rotating camera to maximize the screen real estate on smartphones. However, future implementations are going to be even more exciting with the front camera going under the display. And it looks like we could see our first under-display camera (UDC) module as soon as early 2020 as a report reveals that Samsung is already prepping the technology for mass production.

South Korean media website, The Elec reports that Samsung’s Under Display Camera Technology (UDC) will make its way on to a smartphone by the first half of 2020. Samsung Display has brought two pieces of equipment to its campuses: the HIAA1 and HIAA2. The term HIAA stands for Hole In Active Area which reportedly helps Samsung to cut out a display in the OLED for the camera.

Samsung is reportedly testing the HIAA1 equipment for standard punch-hole displays while the HIAA2 will be used for the Under Display Camera technology. While the HIAA1 was brought to Samsung’s campus back in August, the HIAA2 was brought to the facility this month. Mass production of the UDC OLED panels is expected to kick off around H1 2020.

Editor’s Pick: Xiaomi shares video of under-display selfie camera, looks great!

How Will Samsung’s Under Display Camera Technology Work?

The Elec reports that Samsung will use the HIAA2 equipment to create a transparent display where the UDC will be placed. The equipment comes with a laser to drill a number of tiny holes in the display to improve the transmission of light to the camera below it. The process is called Laser Etching.

Samsung’s current R&D team is focused on reducing the size and number of pixels in that area and increasing the transparency and permeability of the substrate. The current OLED substrate is not transparent and has a yellow tint.

After testing out HIAA2 this month, Samsung Display will reportedly send it out to mass production facilities early next year. A true Under Display Camera smartphone from Samsung can be expected by the first half of 2020.

The First-Gen Under Display Cameras May Not Be Great

Samsung has a lot of challenges to overcome in order to perfect this technology. Apart from making a specific area of the OLED display transparent for the camera underneath, the company will also have to work on the algorithms to effectively balance the yellow glow and slight blurriness of the photos captured from the camera.

While this might take some time, the UDC technology is expected to improve in the coming years, just like the under-display fingerprint sensor which improved after a couple of generations.

There Could Be Multiple Smartphones Featuring UDC In 2020.

Samsung would most likely use this UDC technology on an S series flagship, possibly the S11. But it is said that this technology is more likely to end up on the successor to the Galaxy Fold next year.

Samsung could be the first smartphone company to release an Under Display Camera smartphone but it could soon be joined by multiple companies. OPPO, Xiaomi, and Honor have confirmed that they are working on an Under Display Camera smartphone. In fact, Xiaomi and OPPO both have showcased their technologies a few months back.

But will they be any good? We’ll have to wait and see!

Nevertheless, exciting times ahead.

UP NEXT: Samsung patents a unique triple-stacked display smartphone design

(Source, Via)

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A couple of days ago, Oppo revealed that it will be announcing its new under-display camera smartphone at Mobile World Congress 2019 Shanghai which will be held from 26th June to 29th June. Now, the company has confirmed that the smartphone with an in-display camera will be unveiled on 26th June.

The Chinese manufacturer has also shared a teaser video which showcases the evolution of the front-facing camera housing technology for Oppo. It shows the rotation selfie camera of Oppo N series, waterdrop notch, the pop-up camera setup on the Oppo Find X and now the shark-fin setup on the Oppo Reno.

This clearly hints at the next logical evolution for the technology, which puts the front-facing camera sensor behind the display. In the final frames, the company shows an Oppo smartphone where the front camera is not relying on any mechanical structure and has a true full-screen design. This will be the world’s first smartphone to feature an in-display front camera setup.

In a short video clip previously shared by the company on the Chinese microblogging platform Weibo, a phone with an under-display camera was shown. It has a front-facing camera that doesn’t need a notch, teardrop, hole punch, pop-up, or even sliding mechanism and keeps the edge-to-edge display uninterrupted.

At that time, Brian Shen had said that the under-screen camera technology is still in its early days. He added, “At this stage, it’s difficult for under-display cameras to match the same results as normal cameras, there’s bound to be some loss in optical quality. But, no new technology jumps to perfection right away.”

Notably, Oppo isn’t the only smartphone manufacturer working on a technology that puts the front-facing camera inside the phone’s display. Other manufacturers like Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, and Samsung are also working on the same.

In fact, just hours after Oppo shared a video of its technology, another Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi also showcased its own under-display camera technology. The video shows a modified Mi 9 smartphone with a working selfie camera under the display.

Up Next: Alleged all-screen Xiaomi CC9 smartphone shows off its display in a live photo leak

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Under-screen cameras are the next big thing in smartphones. The technology is still being developed by a number of smartphone manufacturers in the market right now, including OPPO. In fact, OPPO revealed its under screen camera prototype a few days back. While we saw the real phone in action, we didn’t get any specific details about the technology. Today, OPPO’s R&D team engineer sheds some more details about the development of this next-gen technology.

For those seeking the perfect, notchless smartphone screen experience – prepare to be amazed.

You are taking a very first look at our under-display selfie camera technology. RT! pic.twitter.com/FrqB6RiJaY

— OPPO (@oppo) June 3, 2019

According to an engineer working for OPPO, the company started studying under-screen cameras as early as 2017. To recall, the industry’s obsession with full-screen displays really kick-started after the launch of the Xiaomi Mi Mix around late 2016. There have been multiple solutions for a truly bezel-less smartphone since then, with the recent emergence of pop-up front cameras. But it’s clear that under-screen cameras are the future of smartphones. And it’s only a matter of time until we see a commercial device sporting this technology.

OPPO’s engineer reveals that the biggest challenge in implementing this technology is that no one has actually managed to successfully do it yet. He compares its development to crossing a river by just feeling the stones under it as there are numerous difficulties associated with bringing it to a commercial smartphone.

The under-screen camera has to work with other hardware flawlessly and algorithms are needed to perfect the camera experience. But if implemented properly, the under-screen cameras will perfect the smartphone screen experience. The engineer adds that it doesn’t add any weight to the body and even the display area above the camera functions perfectly. So, there’s no need for any ugly notches or moving parts to bring a truly full-screen experience.

Unfortunately, it looks like it will still take some time before someone manages to perfect the technology. We know companies like OPPO, Xiaomi, and Honor are working on a prototype, but what they revealed last week was just a proof of development. It’s similar to how Xiaomi demoed the 100W fast charging technology earlier this year. It’s still in development and a commercial release is at least a few months away.

So for now, it looks like companies will focus on tweaking existing pop-up camera solutions similar to what we saw in the Zenfone 6.

UP NEXT: 8 New Xiaomi Products Heading Your Way At Tomorrow’s Launch!

(Via)

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In the span of two years, the appearance of phones has changed a lot. Thick bezels have been dropped for thin ones. The top bezel has even been replaced with notches (all sorts) or punch holes in some cases while others have adopted a slider design or the use of pop-up/flip cameras. It appears the next step in this design evolution is the in-display camera.  A few manufacturers have already patented their own take and Xiaomi is the latest manufacturer to do so.

A diagram from a Xiaomi patent has surfaced online and it shows a device with an in-display selfie camera. The patent which was applied for back in November 2018 shows there is a camera behind the screen as well as a light sensor. A rough translation of the patent description says there is a secondary display under the main display. The light sensor works with both screens in a way that the camera can become visible at required times or invisible when not in use. It is a bit hard to explain since the description isn’t in English.

There are rumors in-display cameras may be the trend in smartphone designs for the second half of the year or next year at the latest. A few weeks ago, it was reported that OPPO will showcase a phone with an in-display fingerprint scanner later this year. The phone may be the pioneer device for this new design.

(Via: 1, 2)

UP NEXT: OPPO may bring back its rotating camera design according to this patent

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Smartphone manufacturers are in a competition to offer a device with minimal bezels or no bezels at all. In a pursuit of that goal, the companies started embracing notched display, which enables manufacturers to offer higher screen-to-body ratio and house the front-facing camera and other sensors inside the notch.

After the trend of offering display with rectangular notch, waterdrop or dewdrop notch, smartphone manufacturers have now started offering devices with slide-out mechanism, where the camera sensors are housed on the slider.

Recently, we came across a new patent from Samsung which revealed that the South Korean giant might be working on a full-screen smartphone with an in-display front-facing camera. Now, a recent patent from LG shows that it is also working on a similar phone design which eliminates the need of notch and bezels.

LG has filed the patent in South Korea and showcases two different design approaches — curved model with full-screen design that has slanting edges and other one called straight model which has the straight screen with rounded edges.

However, the concept seems similar to what we’ve already seen where an oval-shaped cutout houses the front-facing camera module with either one or two camera sensors, along with other sensors. Further, the patent shows that the module can be placed in three locations — top-middle, upper-left corner, and upper-right corner on the front panel.

With such designs, the ultimate aim of the company is to offer nearly 100 percent viewing area with virtually no bezels. It’s good to see LG is still involved in making innovative smartphone products given that the company’s mobile division is struggling.

Read More: Microsoft foldable Surface phone patent hints at single flexible screen rather than different panels

While the patent suggests a full-screen smartphone with in-display front-facing camera from LG, this does not mean that the patent will actually materialise into a commercial device. Even though the company actually makes such phone, we’ll have to wait a few years before we get our hands on such devices.

(Source)

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The OPPO R15 that was unveiled in March this year had arrived with a notched screen. Two months ago, the OPPO R17 was released as the successor of the R15 phone. The waterdrop notch display design allowed the R17 to deliver a higher screen-to-body ratio than the R15. Popular tipster IceUniverse has revealed that the Chinese manufacturer is working on OPPO R19 smartphone. He has also claimed that the R19 will be arriving with an in-display camera which will make it possible to produce even higher screen space than the R17.

Shown below is the render of the upcoming OPPO R19 smartphone. As it can be seen, except for the slightly thick bottom bezel, the display of the alleged OPPO R19 is surrounded by super-slim bezels. The handset features a notch-less display. Instead of the notch, it features a small selfie camera hole at the top portion of the screen. The smartphone is also equipped with an in-screen fingerprint reader.

The rear design of the phone is almost identical to OPPO R17. The R19’s rear seems to be made out of glass. The bluish-green color gradient rear has a vertical dual camera setup followed by an LED flash. Below it is the logo of the company.

There is no confirmation on whether the above render is genuine. IceUniverse has had a consistent track record for leaking information on forthcoming smartphones. Hence, there is a possibility that that R19 may sport the in-screen camera display design. OnePlus has been borrowing its display design for its smartphones. For instance, the front appearance of the upcoming OnePlus 6T resembles with OPPO R17 and R17 Pro. Hence, there is a possibility that the OnePlus 7 smartphone arriving next year may also feature in-display camera like the OPPO R19.

• Read More: Oppo K1 is now available for pre-order in China, pricing starts at 1,599 Yuan ($231)

As of this writing, there is no information available on the specifications of the smartphone. The above poster reveals that the R19 may debut in March 2019. It can be speculated that the handset may feature an AMOLED screen of around 6.4 inches, Gorilla Glass 6, Snapdragon 710 and 8 GB of RAM.

(source)

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