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iPhone X Will we ever see a flush camera again?

U

UKapple73

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Sep 13, 2014
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One thing I would really love to see in a new iPhone design is a flush camera. The bulge doesn’t bother me all that much and I know there’s a lot to pack in and they want a thin design, but it would be really nice to put your phone down on a table and it not wobble!
Maybe it won’t ever happen what with the camera always improving and the drive for thinner and thinner phones

Another thing that would really change the game would be TRUE wireless charging. At the moment you’re still kind of tethered to the charge mat, now I know there are people working on tech that can harvest energy from electromagnetic radiation in the air all around us, like Wi-Fi, mobile signal etc.
In a way the technology isn’t that far removed from solar powered, as it’s simply collecting electromagnetic energy and converting to electrical energy.
The issue is that the energy in the atmosphere is very small, but let’s say it took 300 hours to fully charge truly wirelessly, that would still mean you were getting a trickle charge all the time which would translate into amazing battery life.

Would be good to hear people’s thoughts on those 2 possible iPhone developments
 
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UKapple73 said:
One thing I would really love to see in a new iPhone design is a flush camera. The bulge doesn’t bother me all that much and I know there’s a lot to pack in and they want a thin design, but it would be really nice to put your phone down on a table and it not wobble!
Maybe it won’t ever happen what with the camera always improving and the drive for thinner and thinner phones

Another thing that would really change the game would be TRUE wireless charging. At the moment you’re still kind of tethered to the charge mat, now I know there are people working on tech that can harvest energy from electromagnetic radiation in the air all around us, like Wi-Fi, mobile signal etc.
In a way the technology isn’t that far removed from solar powered, as it’s simply collecting electromagnetic energy and converting to electrical energy.
The issue is that the energy in the atmosphere is very small, but let’s say it took 300 hours to fully charge truly wirelessly, that would still mean you were getting a trickle charge all the time which would translate into amazing battery life.

Would be good to hear people’s thoughts on those 2 possible iPhone developments
Click to expand...
One of the reasons I am still on the iPhone 6s+ and one of the reasons I won't be upgrading to another Apple iPhone.

At a certain point you realize that Apple considers the camera boil to be a design element and they aren't going to change it.

Plenty of other manufacturers though who can and do make it flush. I'm not tied to Apple.
 
Well, a flush camera would basically mean making the whole phone fatter for it to level it out. Some people want that because it could translate into a bigger battery but think about it this way. Most statistics say that over 75% of smartphone users use a protective case and in the case of the iPhone some statistics say that over 87%.

If you made the camera flush, when you add a case the whole phone would get way thicker and the camera would be in a slight groove, currently, with a "bump" people can put a case on it and have a phone that would be as thick as it would if they would "level out" the camera.

This is my take on the camera bump. Why can't a camera be slimmer? Well, lenses need a focal distance, and if you ever tear apart an iPhone you will see that the camera is pretty thick, if you add on top of that OIS it gets even thicker.
I guess flatter camera sensors are even farther away than wireless electricity because the priority of phone camera makers is still to improve quality, not downsize everything.
 
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UKapple73 said:
Well none of it matters really I mean it’s only a phone, but you’re here so........
Click to expand...

If it's flush people will be crying that their iPhone is chunky.

Most people put their phone in a case of some kind anyway, which means the case is cut to fit the camera and will be flush regardless. I have the official Apple iPhone X Leather Folio case which makes the entire thing as flush as can be. Even if I didn't it still wouldn't matter.
 
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Steve121178 said:
It doesn't matter.
Click to expand...
It doesn't matter to you.

I'd appreciate you asking my opinion first before before making unilateral statements which don't account for my opinion.
[doublepost=1536068052][/doublepost]
Steve121178 said:
If it's flush people will be crying that their iPhone is chunky.

Most people put their phone in a case of some kind anyway, which means the case is cut to fit the camera and will be flush regardless. I have the official Apple iPhone X Leather Folio case which makes the entire thing as flush as can be. Even if I didn't it still wouldn't matter.
Click to expand...
I don't use cases.
[doublepost=1536068091][/doublepost]
puma1552 said:
A flush camera would look strange now.
Click to expand...
I disagree.
 
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eyoungren said:
It doesn't matter to you.

I'd appreciate you asking my opinion first before before making unilateral statements I don't agree with.
[doublepost=1536068052][/doublepost]
I don't use cases.
[doublepost=1536068091][/doublepost]
I disagree.
Click to expand...
I don't mind the bulge, love my 7+ but agree with everything you said. I use cases but many folks don't. I really wouldn't mind a phone with the thickness of my first iPhone, a 4. Not all glass though - too heavy.

Point is there are different case uses and would be happier with a bigger battery (as well as more efficient use of that battery through software) than annoyed with a bit more bulk.
 
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The bump doesn’t bother me in the least. And I don’t use cases.

I guess I could see it bothering some, but to me the phones performance totally makes up for any kind of cosmetic bump.

And besides the iPhone X is gorgeous, best looking phone on the market.
 
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decafjava said:
I don't mind the bulge, love my 7+ but agree with everything you said. I use cases but many folks don't. I really wouldn't mind a phone with the thickness of my first iPhone, a 4. Not all glass though - too heavy.

Point is there are different case uses and would be happier with a bigger battery (as well as more efficient use of that battery through software) than annoyed with a bit more bulk.
Click to expand...
Lots of people don't care about the bulge. I am in the minority that does and I've accepted that. I don't begrudge anyone their opinion about it.

I just object to broad, blanket statements that by their nature lump me in.
 
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eyoungren said:
It doesn't matter to you.

I'd appreciate you asking my opinion first before before making unilateral statements which don't account for my opinion.
[doublepost=1536068052][/doublepost]
I don't use cases.
[doublepost=1536068091][/doublepost]
I disagree.
Click to expand...
Do you use any protection like a screen protector or go totally nude?
 
Mac'nCheese said:
Do you use any protection like a screen protector or go totally nude?
Click to expand...
No case, no screen protector. Been using all my phones that way since 1999.

Here and there I've had a case on some phones, but only for a little while and usually it was for a purpose. The majority of the time it wasn't my primary phone.

Once one of my phones moves down to being a secondary phone though I pay attention less to scratches and dings. My 5 has a few, but my 6s+, which is my primary right now, is in good condition.

I have dropped my phones though. Had to replace a screen on my 6+ because of that once. Apple had issues so they replaced the entire phone for the same price as the screen replacement. Ironically, in that particular case that phone had a screen protector on it at the time. The screen shattered underneath the protector which was also glass. You'd think the screen protector would have taken the damage, but that wasn't the case.
 
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UKapple73 said:
One thing I would really love to see in a new iPhone design is a flush camera.


Another thing that would really change the game would be TRUE wireless charging.
Click to expand...

As long as Apple maintains it's love of "thin" the lens cover will bulge. Not really an issue for me.

As far as true wireless charging. Not is the foreseeable future.
 
Newtons Apple said:
As long as Apple maintains it's love of "thin" the lens cover will bulge. Not really an issue for me.

As far as true wireless charging. Not is the foreseeable future.
Click to expand...
I’m not so sure, I think we could see true wireless charging within 5 years. Will be very weak charging but it’s better than nothing and just to supplement the other 2 charge methods
 
Alvi said:
Well, a flush camera would basically mean making the whole phone fatter for it to level it out. Some people want that because it could translate into a bigger battery but think about it this way. Most statistics say that over 75% of smartphone users use a protective case and in the case of the iPhone some statistics say that over 87%.

If you made the camera flush, when you add a case the whole phone would get way thicker and the camera would be in a slight groove, currently, with a "bump" people can put a case on it and have a phone that would be as thick as it would if they would "level out" the camera.

This is my take on the camera bump. Why can't a camera be slimmer? Well, lenses need a focal distance, and if you ever tear apart an iPhone you will see that the camera is pretty thick, if you add on top of that OIS it gets even thicker.
I guess flatter camera sensors are even farther away than wireless electricity because the priority of phone camera makers is still to improve quality, not downsize everything.
Click to expand...
See I don’t see why it would have to make the phone fatter? Look at the galaxy s9 the camera is very small doesn’t hang out of the phone very much at all and the phone itself it probably thinner then the iPhone X.
 
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UKapple73 said:
I’m not so sure, I think we could see true wireless charging within 5 years. Will be very weak charging but it’s better than nothing and just to supplement the other 2 charge methods
Click to expand...

Lots will/can happen in 5 years. Still I have no problem dropping my X on the charging pad before bed.

I respectively do not think this will happen in 5 years.
 
UKapple73 said:
I’m not so sure, I think we could see true wireless charging within 5 years. Will be very weak charging but it’s better than nothing and just to supplement the other 2 charge methods
Click to expand...
I would just be ok with short distance wireless charging like a little box that plugs in and charges the phone from 15-20 feet away.
 
Technology such as the optical phased array developed at Caltech could mean the end of the bulge as it does not need lenses.
 
Steve121178 said:
It doesn't matter.
Click to expand...

eyoungren said:
It doesn't matter to you.

I'd appreciate you asking my opinion first before before making unilateral statements which don't account for my opinion.
Click to expand...

Right, it doesn't matter to him.

He didn't say "it doesn't matter to anyone". If I had to qualify every statement or opinion I made with "to me", or some other personal indicator, posts would quickly become unwieldy.

To the larger point, though, it doesn't matter to Apple either. Their phone sales continue to break records, so there's no reason to consider a change there.

Personally, the camera bump is a complete non-issue to me. I've never had a case on any of my iPhones (and I've had every flagship model since the original), and that tiny extrusion just has no impact on my enjoyment of the devices. If anything, it serves as a tactile cue on the orientation of my phone when I'm grabbing it from my pocket, or off my nightstand in the dark, etc.
 
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eoblaed said:
Right, it doesn't matter to him.

He didn't say "it doesn't matter to anyone". If I had to qualify every statement or opinion I made with "to me", or some other personal indicator, posts would quickly become unwieldy.

To the larger point, though, it doesn't matter to Apple either. Their phone sales continue to break records, so there's no reason to consider a change there.

Personally, the camera bump is a complete non-issue to me. I've never had a case on any of my iPhones (and I've had every flagship model since the original), and that tiny extrusion just has no impact on my enjoyment of the devices. If anything, it serves as a tactile queue on the orientation of my phone when I'm grabbing it from my pocket, or off my nightstand in the dark, etc.
Click to expand...
I make every effort here, when posting, to qualify my statements as being either my own opinion or acknowledging that I may be the only one holding that opinion.

I try not to assume that just because I believe one way, everyone else must believe the same way I do. I also try not to make assumptions.

You are assuming that he didn't mean "to anyone". But he never said it. You could be one hundred percent correct, but we don't know for sure because it was never stated (qualified).

I've been burned too many times not to try and qualify my statements. Maybe that's a hassle for you, but I'd rather qualify things than burn myself again. Or have my opinion assumed to be something it isn't by someone else.

In any case you're right about Apple.
 
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