Ryan-Thomas Shaw / Android Authority
TL; PhD
- Huawei has applied for a patent for a smart phone camera design with a variable aperture.
- The camera system uses a six-piece aperture design to increase or decrease the aperture.
Huawei has applied for a patent for a smartphone camera with a variable aperture.
be found LetsGoDigital, this patent The design uses a six-blade diaphragm design. By moving the blades in or out, the smartphone will be able to increase or decrease the aperture and control the amount of light hitting the camera sensor. Unlike a fixed-aperture camera, this also allows the phone to control the depth of field effect in real time.
It is worth noting that Samsung has implemented similar systems on Galaxy S9, Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note 9. These devices have two aperture settings, namely f/1.5 and f/2.4. Recently, Sony introduced two aperture settings for the telephoto lens of its flagship Xperia 1 III. It is not clear whether Huawei’s design will also be limited to two aperture settings, or whether it can control the aperture more smoothly.

Although Huawei’s design will add some volume to the smartphone’s camera array, it may be worthwhile for more serious mobile phone photographers. It is not clear which sensors or lenses Huawei can pair with this aperture system, and the accompanying hardware will also play a key role, but it may be very suitable for low-light photography.
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Of course, more and more brands are addressing the low light limitation by increasing the sensor pixel size or simply adopting a fixed larger aperture design. These solutions do not require any moving aperture blades.
It is not clear whether Huawei will introduce this design to any future smartphones. The existence of the patent does not clearly guarantee that the company will use it. In other words, Huawei has traditionally pushed the boundaries of photographic performance on its flagship products. Whether this design will have a considerable impact remains to be seen.