OmniVision has received an Apple order for 3.2 megapixel CMOS image sensors for Apple’s next-generation iPhone, says Digitimes. Furthermore, the company is said to have secured an order for 5 megapixel CMOS image sensors for a different Apple product to be released later this year.
Hmmm. I’m not sure what to make of this one. Both cameras beat out the 2 megapixel camera currently used in the 3G iPhone. But if the recent rumor that Apple is planning to release both a high-end, next-gen iPhone and a lower-end ‘iPhone nano’ for emerging markets this year is true, the timing doesn’t seem right. Assuming of course that the 3.2 megapixel sensors are for the iPhone nano and the 5 megapixel sensors are for a full-powered version.
Would Apple really announce nothing more than a stripped-down iPhone for emerging markets at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June? I don’t think so. Apple, and Steve Jobs in particular, is a marketing machine. The next-gen iPhone hype has been bubbling for so long now, it would be against everything Apple believes to launch a low-end phone. Or maybe the nano won’t have a camera. That could mean that the 3.2 MP camera is for a full-powered iPhone, while the 5.0 MP version could be for an MID or netbook. What do you think?
