Apple wants to improve the iPhone’s camera using mirrors

Cameras are one of the most important parts of a smartphone which can be an issue when you’re constantly trying to make your smartphones smaller, like Apple is doing with the iPhone. According to a recent patent, however, Apple may have a solution to this problem that comes in the form of a proposed technology called “Mirror Tilt Actuation” that will improve upon the Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) technology that the company introduced with the iPhone 6 Plus. 

In its quest to build smaller phones that still somehow offer better photo taking capabilities, Apple has revealed a new concept that would offer improved optical image stabilization using mirrors. The idea is detailed in a new Apple patent application published this week by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and first discovered by AppleInsider. Entitled “Mirror Tilt Actuation,” the newly revealed filing describes an image sensor for small, multifunction devices like an iPhone that would compensate for the user’s hand movement to improve picture quality. Apple introduced optical image stabilization in its products last year with the debut of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. The smaller iPhone 6 accomplishes this through software, while the larger iPhone 6 Plus also uses hardware OIS for superior image taking capabilities.