After years of using a 12-megapixel main camera for various models, Apple this year launched the iPhone 14 Pro models with a camera sensor based on pixel binning technology.
For years, the Nokia 808 held the record for the highest resolution mobile camera, with a 41-megapixel camera. In 2018, Huawei unveiled the P20 and Mate 20 phones with 40-megapixel cameras, coming close to this record. Finally, in late 2018, Huawei and Honor introduced the first phones with 48-megapixel cameras.
One of the most important features of the Huawei P20 Pro camera was its use of pixel binning technology, which, in addition to improving photo quality in low-light environments, offered benefits such as the ability to capture HDR photos without the need to combine multiple different photos. It should be noted that the Nokia 808’s camera sensor, in addition to its high resolution, was also very large. The sensor on this phone was so large that the sensors on the iPhone 14 Pro models are now almost the same size.
5G Internet; 1.5 years
The iPhone 11 series was released in 2019 with a 4G model, and Apple eventually switched to using a 5G modem for the iPhone 12 series. The main reason for this delay has nothing to do with Apple’s constant stubbornness to adopt new technologies. Rather, this issue goes back to the conflicts between Apple and Qualcomm and Intel’s failure in this area. Finally, after Intel admitted failure in the field of 5G modem manufacturing, Apple and Qualcomm put aside their legal disputes and re-signed a cooperation agreement.
At that time, there were rumors about the iPhone using modems from Samsung, MediaTek, and even Huawei, but these rumors did not become reality. After Intel’s failure, Apple decided to enter this field on its own, and so in 2019 it acquired the company’s mobile modem division for $1 billion. Some analysts believed that Apple would start using proprietary modems in 2023, but the company has apparently faced many challenges over modem-related patents.
The Galaxy S10 5G is the first phone based on this technology to be released in 2019. So overall, Apple started using this feature 18 months later than its long-time competitor.
Always-on display; 6 years (minimum)
In 2019, Apple introduced an always-on display feature for the Apple Watch 5 using LTPO panels. But after years of waiting, this feature has finally made its way to the iPhone 14 Pro models.
Years ago, when most Android phones used LCD displays, these phones could somehow simulate an always-on display feature. But apart from these phones, in 2016, phones like the Galaxy S7 and LG G5 were launched as the first phones based on always-on display technology. At the time, enabling this feature put a lot of strain on the battery, but in the last few years, the power consumption of this feature has improved a lot.
Wireless charging; 8 years
Like the always-on display, wireless charging was first introduced to the Apple Watch. In fact, the first generation Apple Watch in 2014 also featured this feature. The Palm Pre was the first phone equipped with this feature, released in 2009. For a few years, no other phone will use this feature, except for this phone and subsequent generations.
But finally, in 2012, phones like the Nokia 920 and Nexus 4 reached users using wireless charging. Initially, phones used two different standards for wireless charging, but eventually different companies agreed to use the Qi standard.
In 2017, Apple unveiled the iPhone X and iPhone 8, and these phones featured wireless charging. In 2020, MagSafe technology arrived, allowing users to magnetically charge their iPhone.
