Samsung Electro-Mechanics Receives Praise in This Year's Camera Module Market... What Is Rival LG Innotek's Strategy?

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Samsung Electronics recently released the new smartphone model ‘Galaxy S20 Ultra’ equipped with the highest resolution rear camera ever, drawing attention to Samsung Electro-Mechanics, the manufacturer of the supporting camera module.

LG Innotek, a rival of Samsung Electro-Mechanics and a supplier of camera modules to companies such as Apple, is also expected to unveil high-performance camera modules this year.

The Galaxy S20 Ultra, the top-tier version of Samsung Electronics’ recently launched Galaxy S20, features a rear quad camera system with a 108-megapixel wide-angle camera, a 48-megapixel telephoto camera, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 3D depth vision camera.

To support the Galaxy S20 Ultra’s 108-megapixel ultra-high resolution image sensor, Samsung Electro-Mechanics introduced a completely redesigned camera module structure and the first-ever 10x optical zoom. The camera module is a component that converts images received from the image sensor into digital signals and is mainly used for photo and video shooting in mobile phones and smartphones. Fundamentally, it drives the camera lens and helps prevent shaking and impact to realize the captured images.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics supplies camera modules not only to Samsung Electronics but also to Chinese companies such as Xiaomi and Oppo. Xiaomi’s 5G flagship ‘Mi10’ also features a 108-megapixel wide-angle camera. Accordingly, the unit price of camera modules is expected to rise, which is anticipated to be reflected in Samsung Electro-Mechanics’ first-quarter 2020 performance.

LG Innotek, considered a rival to Samsung Electro-Mechanics in the camera module sector, plans to enhance its market competitiveness by making large-scale investments in its Optical Solutions division. Consequently, it is expected to accelerate the development and production of high value-added camera modules.

On the 13th of this month, LG Innotek announced plans to invest 479.8 billion KRW in new facilities this year to continuously strengthen the competitiveness of its Optical Solutions business and respond to market demand. LG Innotek supplies optical components such as camera modules to Apple, Huawei, and LG Electronics.

Apple, which accounts for about 65% of LG Innotek Optical Solutions division’s sales, is unusually planning to release new iPhone models in both the first and second halves of this year. With the possibility of Apple launching iPhones featuring new technologies this year, LG Innotek is highly likely to develop and produce camera modules tailored to these products.

Firstly, the market anticipates that augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) functions will be applied to the iPhones and iPads released this year. The technology to realize this is called ToF (Time of Flight). ToF calculates the time it takes for light emitted toward a subject to reflect back, enhancing the three-dimensional effect of images in photos or videos. LG Innotek plans to expand the supply volume of ToF camera modules to implement this. Additionally, it is expected to accelerate the development of camera module products with enhanced image stabilization features to ensure stable image quality.