The ever-thinning chassis of today's smartphones have become a dilemma for phone manufacturers most especially for those aiming to advance mobile phone photography. The thin chassis leaves little room for more advanced camera hardware to be incorporated into its design.
The only possible way for manufacturers to solve this problem to put in more advanced camera hardware was to have the component protrude into an unsightly bump. Chinese phone maker Oppo has developed a novel idea to solve the dilemma that could potentially wipe out the physical design eyesore.
According to TechSpot, borrowing the concept of submarine periscope optics, Oppo's new approach in a dual-lens system is to position one of the lenses at a 90-degree angle. The lens is then placed horizontally across the width of the device.
Oppo then employs a prism to divert light to the angled telephoto lens. The process delivers a level of clarity at any zoom level, Oppo claimed. Additionally, optical image stabilization is incorporated in the design to keep targeted images steady even when zoomed in.
What Oppo essentially did was crack the code of putting in higher zoom levels to a smartphone device, eliminating the need for it to have the typical bump associated with higher-powered photo lenses. The periscope system of putting lenses at different focal points seemed to have solved this.
Furthermore, Oppo did not just unveil its concept in a presentation. The company brought in a working model of its concept at this year's MWC 2017, held in Barcelona, Spain. According to Tech Crunch, the prototype Oppo brought was in the shape and size of a typical handheld phone. It was reportedly not a working phone, but a proof of concept device that shows off the Chinese phone manufacturer's new approach in phone camera technology.
Apparently, the device Oppo brought in was capable of delivering 5X zoom from a phone's rear camera without adding a camera bump. The company refers to its new system as "lossless zoom." The company claims its approach produces a far better image than most cameras of getting tight shots without image degradation.
It remains to be seen if Oppo will incorporate its new phone camera concept into its future models. However, it is noteworthy to point out that its approach cannot be just limited to actual phone cameras. Oppo's approach could also be employed in digital cameras. It could potentially expand the camera's capability by adding the feature than just relying solely on the main camera lens.
