‘There is a shortage of cameras with low resolutions due to cheap smartphones’

Cheap smartphones with multiple cameras lead to shortages of cameras with low resolutions, various Chinese media claim. As a result, the prices for those parts are currently rising. It is unknown what the consequences will be.

This concerns cameras with a maximum of five megapixels. With cheaper smartphones, these are often used as a camera with an ultra-wide-angle lens or depth sensor. Manufacturer Galaxycore makes around a hundred million per month, but that is not enough, writes Laoyaoba. Sohu and TWGreatDaily also report the shortages. The sites report that, in addition to cheap smartphones, the trade dispute between Japan and South Korea is at the root of the shortages. This probably makes it more difficult to import raw materials for the camera modules.

Manufacturers will have to pay more per camera for the time being. The price has gone up from about 30 cents to 43 cents for a 2-megapixel camera and from 50 cents to 73 cents for a 5-megapixel camera. It is unknown what happens if camera suppliers can’t make enough, but it is obvious that smartphone makers put fewer cameras on new models or that models become less readily available.

In recent years, more and more models of smartphones in more and more price ranges have been set up with two or more cameras. Smartphones use the depth sensor to take portrait photos with blurred backgrounds.

Cheaper smartphone with depth sensor as a third camera