The iPhone 15 Pro Max may face delays due to the production of the four-prism lens system, and changes in specifications will put greater pressure on the camera supply chain. On Sunday, Tianfeng Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo pointed out in a report that although consumer demand for the iPhone 15 Pro Max is high, it faces "production challenges" that may lead to shipment delays.
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On Monday, Ming-Chi Kuo published a new article on Medium elaborating on the above point of view, explaining that this is entirely due to the new four-prism compact camera module used in this iPhone module.
The quadrilateral lens is an integral part of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which increases the optical zoom of the telephoto camera from 3x to 5x, while also increasing the maximum zoom to 25x. This is the only model that uses a four-prism system. The iPhone 15 Pro uses a more typical telephoto camera arrangement.
In order to deal with the CCM production yield problem of exclusive supplier LGIT, Apple improved the specifications of the lens itself and provided the order exclusively to Largan Optoelectronics. Due to the sudden increase in demand for lenses and the urgency brought by high demand, Largan Optoelectronics expanded the production line of prism lenses.
As a by-product of new challenges and the need for more resources, the unit price of lenses has increased by 20%. Apple is apparently willing to accept this cost, in part because of the relatively low cost of defective lenses, but also because of its reputation and "world-class production capabilities."
If Largan Optoelectronics is unable to meet demand under the new specifications, this may cause iPhone 15 Pro Max to be delayed in shipments to retailers and consumers.
Ming-Chi Kuo added that both iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro are expected to be equipped with four-prism telephoto cameras. However, if Apple insists on higher requirements for lens specifications, it will "raise the entry barrier for Apple's second largest lens supplier, Yujing Optoelectronics."
Analysts believe that Largan Optoelectronics will be more likely to continue to be the exclusive or major supplier of prism lenses next year.