Wired
According to foreign media reports, Xiaomi has designed a smartphone with a pop-up camera.
This pop-up camera can be used for self-portraits or as a rear camera to take ordinary photos and videos, so users can take more beautiful selfies because the front camera is usually not as good as the main camera.
And this technology requires fewer cameras, saving space and cost.
By using reflective components, the camera module can also be integrated separately from the printed circuit board, making it less vulnerable to damage and leaving more space for other necessary components.
Xiaomi’s patent for “electronic equipment and hidden camera”
Xiaomi applied for a patent called “Electronic Equipment and Hidden Camera” for this design, and it was approved by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in January 2021.
This technology requires the use of multiple camera modules and a reflective component such as a mirror. The camera module faces upward, and the reflective component is used to mirror the image to the imaging module, and then the imaging module attaches the image.
The retractable reflective part can also be rotated using a rotating motor. Therefore, both selfies and ordinary photos can use this clever pop-up camera system.
In addition, by rotating the mirror, you can also take photos from a specific angle. This technology can be used for shooting and recording videos, as well as for face detection and phone unlocking.
However, it is still unknown whether and when Xiaomi will integrate this special pop-up camera system into one of its mobile phone models.
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