AI pictures drives pattern towards fewer smartphone cameras

How many cameras does your smartphone have? My iPhone 16 Pro, just like the Google Pixel 10 pictured above, has 4, which is above the present common in accordance with new information from Omdia’s Smartphone Model Market Tracker 2Q25 which exhibits that the variety of cameras in smartphones is falling.

Smartphones that shipped within the second quarter of 2025 had (on common) 3.19 lenses, which is down from 3.37 throughout the identical interval final 12 months.

This quantity covers each rear and entrance cameras, and as most telephones nonetheless solely have one on the entrance, the drop is pushed primarily by fewer rear cameras.

The common rear digital camera rely is now 2.18, in comparison with 2.37 final 12 months. The determine has been falling for 13 consecutive quarters after reaching a peak of two.89 within the first quarter of 2021.

“The reduction in camera lenses not only lowers costs but also frees up space for larger batteries,” stated Jusy Hong, Senior Research Manager at Omdia.

By cargo share, twin rear-camera fashions made up 41 p.c of the market in 2Q25, whereas triple-camera gadgets accounted for 36 p.c. Smartphones with a single rear digital camera elevated their share to 21 p.c, helped by launches akin to Apple’s iPhone 16e and Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge.

As lens counts are falling, so sensor decision is rising, with 50MP-class cameras making up 58 p.c of shipments in 2Q25 and sensors above 100MP hitting 9 p.c. Lower decision cameras have rapidly fallen out of favor, with cameras below 15MP dropping to simply 12 p.c, in contrast with 54 p.c simply 5 years in the past.

“With advances in AI-driven photography, the number of lenses will continue to decline,” Hong added.

Focus for cameras is altering

Omdia’s report suggests producers are transferring away from what number of lenses a smartphone has, as a substitute specializing in how succesful every sensor is, with higher consideration given to computational pictures, picture high quality, and vitality effectivity.

For producers, fewer lenses additionally simplify design and permit extra room contained in the cellphone for bigger batteries or different elements.

The transfer has implications for suppliers as effectively. Reflecting the diminished want for lenses, Omdia forecasts international demand for smartphone CMOS picture sensors (CIS) will fall 4.3 p.c 12 months on 12 months in 2025, reaching 4.19 billion items.

The marketplace for smartphone pictures {hardware} is clearly coming into a brand new part. While multi-camera setups as soon as dominated advertising campaigns, the steadiness is transferring towards fewer however greater high quality sensors, with AI inevitably taking up a bigger function in enhancing pictures.

What do you consider fewer smartphone cameras however greater resolutions? Let us know within the feedback.