When it comes to the camera quality of the main sensor, Samsung’s flagships easily make it to the top 3 spots alongside Google and Apple’s flagships. But there is one area where the Chinese manufacturers like Huawei, Oppo, OnePlus, etc. have clearly taken a lead over Samsung, and that area is the quality of the telephoto lens.

Image Source: engadget.com
Samsung certainly knows that this is one of the key weaknesses of their flagship phones and to combat this situation, Samsung Electro-Mechanics has developed a 5x optical zoom camera module and its ready to debut in the devices that the company will release later this year. This 5x optical zoom has been achieved by using a periscopic setup identical to similar setups on the OPPO Reno and Huawei P30 Pro.

Image Source: xda-developers.com
At just 5mm thick, Samsung’s new 5x optical zoom camera module is thinner than even some of the 2x zoom lenses present in the market. In recent years, Samsung’s flagships have gotten rid of the camera bump which is still present on their competitor’s flagships and this new camera module will help Samsung achieve 5x optical zoom without any sort of a camera bump. This might not be good news for Apple as the iPhone 11 is rumored to have a massive camera bump.

Image Source: 9to5google.com
Meanwhile, with the 5x optical zoom being already present on devices like Huawei P30 Pro and Oppo Reno creates huge pressure on Samsung to get this tech available on their devices as soon as possible. But it is highly unlikely that we’ll see this camera module in the upcoming Galaxy Note 10 as there have been no reports or rumors suggesting Samsung switching to a new camera setup for the upcoming Note.

Moreover, in a recent leak from a popular Samsung insider, Ice Universe revealed that it will be the Galaxy A-series of smartphones that will be seeing more of the “radical innovation” whereas the Galaxy S-series and Note series will be for those “looking for stability and maturity” further hinting that this 5x zoom tech will first make its appearance on a Galaxy A-series smartphone which will release later this year.
Further Reading:
- OnePlus 7 Pro: Everything You Need to Know About The “Flagship” Killer
- Top 10 Smartphones Of 2019 so far
- Intel, Qualcomm Join Google in the Battle Against Huawei Amidst Trade War
- OnePlus announces new India- specific features on Oxygen OS