Word has been circulating in some circles that Apple has courted Leica and Carl Zeiss for the next iteration of the iPhone. Recognizing the Android takeover and rise of Samsung as the smartphone powerhouse, Apple is taking great pains to make sure its next device will hit the ground running. The Leica-Zeiss rumor runs counter to Apple’s track record of guiding the market, rather than innovating within it as Samsung has done and continues to do. While we were initially skeptical, the evidence seems rather compelling that the next iPhone will be the brainchild of a team effort. Head on past the break for the full report.
Apple did not invent the camera phone, but it did show how cameras can and should be integrated into a mobile device. From the very first iPhone all the way to the iPhone 5, Apple has lead the pack in terms of camera quality. There are even courses offered at institutions like the International Center of Photography that focus on iPhone-ography. Android phones have largely been catching up until recently with the rise of Samsung and its wildly popular Galaxy S III.
Apple’s popularity isn’t necessarily waning at a rapid rate, but it is losing ground to Android. Motorola’s devices are popular, but most of the dialogue deals with Samsung and how wonderful it is. Apple’s lost enough ground that famed Apple writer Andy Ihnatko has traded in his iPhone 5 for a Galaxy S III. Something needs to be done that will give market dominance back to Apple.
The answer, it seems, lies in Germany. The word is that Apple has been in talks with Carl Zeiss AG and Leica Camera AG to produce the next iPhone. Zeiss has worked previously with Nokia, but that never really panned out. Leica and Apple are rumored to be working on the iPhone’s design while Zeiss provides the optics that will hopefully annihilate the competition. Nothing’s been said in the way of physical specifications, but many are speculating that the next iPhone will be a departure from the form factor that began with the iPhone 4 and continued with the 5.
We’ll keep you updated as more information becomes available.
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