Full article here: https://www.i-micronews.com/will-3d-depth-cameras-return-to-android-phones/
Some excerpts:
Apple started using structured light for facial recognition technology in the iPhone X in 2017, ushering in an era of 3D depth imaging in the mobile field. Within the next year, in 2018, Android players Oppo, Huawei, and Xiaomi also launched front 3D depth cameras, using very similar structured light technologies to Apple.
The Android camp attempted to use another 3D imaging technology, indirect Time of Flight (iToF). It was used for rear 3D depth cameras, for quick focus and imaging bokeh and some highly anticipated AR games and other applications.
The hardware for this technique is more compact than structured light, requiring only a ToF sensor chip, and a flood illuminator. The distance is computed by the time difference between emission and reception. Compared to structured light, it does not need much computing power, software integration is relatively simple, and overall, it has cost advantages.
LG, Samsung and Huawei used this kind of technology both for front and/or rear implementations.
For a while, no Android player included 3D depth cameras in their flagship phones. However, during Mobile World Congress 2022, Honor unexpectedly released the Magic 4 Pro with a 3D depth camera on the front of the phone. Will 3D depth cameras return to Android phones?
Market report: https://www.i-micronews.com/products/3d-imaging-and-sensing-technology-and-market-trends-2021/
"Honor unexpectedly released the Magic 4 Pro with a 3D depth camera on the front of the phone"
ReplyDeleteThat's actually well expected. Honor's Magic serie descends from Huawei's Mate serie, which has been using iToF for front-end facing locking since 2019 and is probably the most persistent costumer of iToF.