iPhone 7 Dual Lens Camera Testing Underway [REPORT]

We’ve heard for quite some time that the iPhone 7 will sport a dual-lens camera, and now that rumor has been refreshed yet again. Of course we’ve heard in past years that Apple was planning to add a dual-lens camera to previous models, but it hasn’t happened yet. This time could be different though as it seems to support another rumor we heard recently about there being two versions of the iPhone 7 Plus.

Likelihood of a dual-lens camera in the iPhone 7?

DigiTimes said today that Largan Technology, which is based in Taiwan, and lens manufacturers in China and Japan have shipped samples of their cameras to Apple for testing. The website cites sources within the iPhone maker’s upstream supply chain. Currently Largan supplies more than 60% of the cameras for Apple’s iPhones, however, so the website adds that the company might choose dual-lens cameras from other manufacturers in order to cut production risks.

It would certainly be a good idea for Apple to add a dual-lens camera to the iPhone 7 as it is basically playing catch-up to competitors. Chinese smartphone makers like Huawei Lenovo, Qiku and ZTE already have dual-lens cameras in their smartphones.

Of course Apple’s brand is worth a lot, even in China where cheaper smartphones with some more advanced components are available. As a result, consumers are clearly willing to overlook the fact that the company’s smartphones lag others in terms of some basic components.

Two versions of the iPhone 7 Plus?

We also heard this week that Apple might be planning two different versions of the larger iPhone 7 Plus, and the testing of dual-lens cameras appears to be in line with KGI Securities’ Ming-Chi Kuo’s report. The analyst has been pretty reliable in terms of reporting details about the iPhone maker’s upcoming products, and this time, he said that one of the two models being tested has a dual-lens camera, while the other has the same rear-facing iSight camera.

According to Mac Rumors it’s expected that Apple will utilize the imaging algorithms developed by LinX Imaging for the dual-lens iPhone 7 Plus as it acquired the Israel-based firm last year. Other rumors we’ve heard about this year’s iPhone lineup include long-range wireless charging and the elimination of the standard headphone jack.