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iPhone 18 may be equipped with a new camera sensor from Samsung. Photo: Macrumors

According to information from DigiTimes , Samsung is developing a 3-layer stacked camera sensor, designed to be equipped on the iPhone 18.

This advanced image sensor promises to help the camera on the iPhone 18 respond faster, while also bringing many other benefits such as reducing image noise, enhancing dynamic range, and many other improved features.

The technology is reportedly called “PD-TR-Logic,” and it’s a camera sensor with three layers of circuitry stacked on top of each other. A leaker named Jukanlosreve revealed Samsung’s plans for the sensor last week.

Sony has long been the exclusive supplier of image sensors for iPhone cameras, so Samsung's entry into this market would be a notable move.

In July 2024, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said he expected Samsung to start supplying 48-megapixel Ultra Wide camera sensors to Apple as early as 2026 – when the iPhone 18 series is expected to launch.

It's unclear at this point whether Samsung's sensor will be used for the Fusion or Telephoto cameras on the iPhone 18, nor whether it will be limited to the iPhone 18 Pro models.

With at least three sources reporting Samsung’s plans to become the iPhone’s camera sensor supplier, this leak seems pretty solid. However, the iPhone 18 series is still more than a year and a half away, so plans could still change.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 series launching next September includes the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max and a thinner device, tentatively called "iPhone 17 Air" that will replace the Plus version.

According to multiple sources, Apple will upgrade the camera for the iPhone 17 Pro models, with a 48MP 1/1.3-inch Fusion lens, a 48MP ultra-wide-angle lens, and a new upgraded 48MP Tetraprism telephoto lens (up from 12MP on the iPhone 16 Pro models).

Watch the iPhone 18 Pro Max concept video (source: Concept Mob/YouTube):

Latest information about iPhone 17 Air with super thin design The iPhone 17 Air model expected to launch later this year will have a super thin design, only 5.5mm at its thinnest point, according to the latest information from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.