As several rumors have already indicated in recent weeks, a camera with a periscope lens should appear for the first time on the next generation of iPhones. It is a technological solution that has already been used for several years in the Android world (the first major smartphone to use it was the legendary Huawei P30 Pro in 2019) which allows you to reach very high zoom levels; according to the latest rumors, the component will be an exclusive of the most prestigious model of the series, i.e. iPhone 15 Pro Max (which according to some could pass to the commercial name “Ultra”).
Just a few hours ago, Chinese Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo released his latest forecast, according to which Largan will be the sole supplier of the periscope lens for this generation of iPhone; next year, however, Genius will be added. Apparently the component will cost an average of 4 dollars per unit, well below the 4.5 or 5 dollars which are the current market standard; this means that Largan will have substantially zero margins, and will fail to profit from its production. The price of the lens is expected to come down further next year as the new supplier enters the picture.
It is worth noting that it is not yet perfectly clear whether with the iPhone 16 the periscopic telephoto will also arrive on the “regular” Pro model or if it will still remain exclusive to the Max. Kuo himself leans towards the second hypothesis in his latest forecasts. However, insiders seem to agree that the following year, therefore with the hypothetical iPhone 17, there will be both models.
Periscope lens aside, the analyst observes that one is coming true difficult situation for suppliers of optical components of the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max; Largan’s revenue, for example, fell 21% month-on-month in February, despite having more business days. Apple’s Target orders will prove very weak in the second quarter of 2023, also according to Kuo, with declines between 35 and 40% from the previous quarter and between 30 and 40% from the previous year.
