Though most people don’t even have the 2017 iPhone X yet, rumors about Apple’s 2019 iPhone are already circulating. A new report from Bloomberg suggests that Apple is developing a new “3D sensor” for the back of the 2019 phone that will be used to improve Apple’s developing augmented reality apps and services, according to The Verge.
The sensor would fire lasers out of the device and measure the time it takes for the reflection to get back to it to establish a depth map, writes The Verge. Apple currently uses dual cameras to obtain this information. The iPhone X has an infrared-based FaceID system on the notch on the front of the iPhone X. Google does it too, using dual pixels in its latest Pixel 2 camera. However, according to The Verge, Apple’s new system is being developed to produce results that are a lot more “precise and robust.”
Though Apple is reportedly looking for suppliers for the 3D-sensing system, the company has not said that they are certain the technology will make it into the 2019 iPhone. However, the TrueDepth sensors that make FaceID work on the front of the iPhone X are there to stay, and Apple is working towards creating the 3D sensor for the back so that the device has 3D awareness on both sides, writes The Verge.
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