Apple officially confirms using Sony image sensors on iPhones for a decade

Apple CEO Tim Cook is on a tour of Japan where he admitted to something extraordinary. Cook tweeted that Apple has been using camera sensors for its iPhones from Sony for a decade now. This is the first time Apple has officially confirmed the makers of camera sensors that it has been using for years now.

The tweet reads “We’ve been partnering with Sony for over a decade to create the world’s leading camera sensors for iPhone.” Cook thanked Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida for Sony’s Kumamoto facility tour and shared an endearing image to showcase the same.

Apple confirms using Sony camera sensors

Apple CEO Tim Cook has officially confirmed that its iPhones have been using Sony camera sensors for almost a decade now. For the unversed, Apple’s website gives out generic information about the sensors that it uses such as megapixels, size, and aperture, among others. However, it has never confirmed the actual camera sensor model or maker, unlike Android OEMs.

Sony has been a market leader in camera technology as evidenced by the ones that Apple iPhones use although there’s the magic of computational photography in the equation as well.

Apple’s upcoming iPhone 15 series is expected to use state-of-the-art Sony sensors with double the saturation levels in each pixel compared to conventional ones. The sensor is capable of reducing both overexposure and underexposure as well as capturing more light than before. It is said to show a person’s face perfectly against a bright backdrop which is a concern for most of the sensors out there.

Sony currently has a dominating market share when it comes to complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors. It reserved 44 percent of the share in 2021 and plans to outrun the 60 percent mark with its infusion of JPY 900 billion through 2023. Its market share is expected to increase by 2025.

Circling back to the upcoming Apple iPhone 15 series, it is slated to launch in the second half of 2023. Sony will produce the sensors at Sony’s Nagasaki plant for the iPhone 15 series.

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