Top smartphone trends for 2019: More cameras to ‘punch hole’ screens

From phones with multiple cameras to punch hole screens, here are the top tech trends in 2019. (Express photo by Anuj Bhatia)

The year 2018 will go down in the annals of tech history as the year even mid-range smartphones started sporting AI-powered chipsets, dual cameras on the rear, high-resolution screens and other cutting-edge features. We reached out to leading analysts to weigh in on some of the emerging tech trends that could become the standard in 2019. Here are the top four trends to keep an eye on.

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Top tech trends of 2019: Multiple-camera smartphones, 3D rear cameras

Now that dual camera configurations are seen across smartphones, don’t be surprised if triple, or even quad, cameras become the new standard in the coming year. Huawei, Oppo, and Samsung have already launched smartphones with multiple cameras. So, yes, expect more manufacturers to follow these brands and bring smartphones with more multiple cameras to the market. HMD Global, for instance, is rumoured to be working on one with as many as five lenses on its upcoming Nokia 9 PureView flagship device.

“Number of cameras will be a big marketing hook, as we will see three or four cameras at the back becoming a standard from mid premium segment onwards,” says Navkendar Singh, Associate Research Director – Devices and Ecosystem: India & South Asia, IDC. “Of course, it remains to be seen as to what will be the exact specific utility of each camera – bokeh, wide angle or portraits,” he adds.

Prabhu Ram, Head-Industry Intelligence Group, CMR agrees that manufacturers will focus on putting multiple cameras on a smartphone this year. The evolution of multi-camera smartphones (with more than four lenses), he says, will become a norm in 2019. Prabhu is of the opinion that a 44-megapixel camera will become the “new default” among many upcoming smartphones in 2019.

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By now, you may have probably heard a thing or two about 3D camera sensors. Smartphone manufacturers have tried to create phones with 3D cameras in the past, but the technology never took off. This year though, we might see a slew of smartphones with 3D camera sensors on the rear.

“We might see a few flagship launches in 2019 with the 3D camera set up for the back camera, which will enable 3D scene capturing, depth perception and help create use cases in AR on phone for gaming, shopping etc,” says Navkendar.