smartphones

Entering passcodes on smartphones can be difficult for the blind, as they can't see the screen, nor can they tell if someone else is peeking at it. The OneButtonPIN app is designed to help, by utilizing vibrations instead of visuals.

Last year, Samsung demonstrated the power of its monstrous 200-megapixel camera sensor by printing a billboard-sized cat photo taken on a phone. Now the company has started mass producing its successor, the Isocell HP2.

Although smartphones now shoot amazing video, their form factor still makes them difficult to hold steady while filming. The SmallRig P20 is the latest device designed to address that shortcoming, and it folds into a compact capsule when not in use.

OnePlus has once again tapped Hasselblad for the camera system of its new flagship smartphone. The camera array gets a resolution bump, the 11 5G is powered by Qualcomm's latest chipset, and fast charging juices the battery in under 30 minutes.

With a few notable exceptions, most smartphone cameras zoom either digitally or via a few optical zoom presets. That could soon change, however, as LG Innotek has announced its new Optical Telephoto Zoom Camera Module.

Xiaomi joined forces with imaging titan Leica last year for the 12S Ultra flagship smartphone, and now the company has repeated the formula for the 13 Series, which is also one of the first to be powered by Qualcomm's latest mobile chipset.

Oppo has announced the launch of a second-generation folding phone, plus its first challenge to Samsung's Flip. Both have launched in China, but the flip-style handset will become Oppo's first foldable to be released in global markets.

There's been talk of including a retractable lens in a smartphone camera array for a while now, with both Xiaomi and Oppo throwing their hats in the ring. But seemingly out of nowhere comes the Phantom X2 Pro from Tecno, which sports just such a lens.

Earlier in the year, Honor launched a flagship foldable smartphone called the Magic V, but the former Huawei sub-brand released the handset in China only. Now its second folding phone, the Magic Vs, is pegged for international availability.

While time-lapse videos can be striking, creating them involves leaving the camera in one place for the duration of the shoot. A new app allows such videos to be recorded on a smartphone, which can be moved and used for other things between shots.

Imaging titan Leica has given its first smartphone a processing and sensor update, and has again essentially repackaged a recent Aquos handset from Japanese consumer tech outfit Sharp for the launch of the Leitz Phone 2.

Xiaomi snuggled up with Leica back in June for the launch of the 12S Ultra smartphone featuring a 1-inch-type image sensor and Summicron optics. Now the companies have partnered again on a concept version with a lens adapter for mounting Leica glass.