We recently published an insight on the Top Trends in Smartphone Component Technology for 2021 and Beyond where we note that smartphone technology is witnessing a strong innovation pipeline leading to faster product launches and smartphone refresh cycles. Component vendors are witnessing high customer demand in the smartphone market.  Given the direction the industry is heading, we raise key points below on the smartphone technology trends and needs.

Smartphone experience is driven by innovative display technologies
The display has become an important aspect in smartphones which has seen massive improvements in terms of panel resolution, refresh rate, size and form factor which aids in next generation smartphone use-cases. This brings us to the following questions on display,

• Which are these display technologies and what are the associated benefits with it?
• How are displays changing in smartphones today?
• Will OLED display adoption reach mass-market devices?

Camera in smartphones is becoming better but not good
The evolution in smartphone camera capabilities is driven by the superior pixel technology and functionality developed by the smartphone supply chain ecosystem. This is bringing DSLR like photography applications in flagship smartphones. In cameras, we note that the following questions will actively be looked upon,

• CIS count is growing at a rapid pace, but will it stop?
• What needs to be addressed in smartphone cameras?
• Will high-resolution sensors continue to see demand from customers?

Battery in smartphones have not advanced for a while now
Increased smartphone usage has pushed the industry to seek out higher battery capacity across their key product portfolio.  These trends also result in the following unsolved questions,

• Cell capacities are increasing within smartphone but lead to issues in weight
• What is the progress so far in achieving new battery technology?
• Can batteries be thinner and offer high capacity?

Memory capacity needs are growing in smartphones
Demand for smartphones with better and faster memory is continuing to be a key ask to enable a smooth experience for use-cases around high-speed downloads and data accessibility, multitasking and gaming.  Such trends lead us to the following questions,

• How is 5G playing a role in memory storage demand?
• What are the prospects of MicroSD cards in smartphones?
• What are the benefits of having the latest memory technologies in smartphones?

Strategy Analytics covers research on display panels, image sensors, battery and memory markets for smartphones and can provide analysis and data in these markets. Please reach out to us if you are interested to explore these topics in detail.