Sony and camera startup Light team up for multi-lens smartphone
Light will use Sony lenses in its computational imaging tools.
Camera startup Light, best known for its multi-lens cameras, announced today that it is teaming up with Sony to put its tech to work in new ways. The partnership will be focused on developing new versions of Light's multi-image sensors using Sony lenses. The companies will also work on finding other applications for Light's technology, including working to create a smartphone that uses four or more cameras.
While the companies didn't provide much detail about what their partnership may bring, the pairing makes sense. Light has mastered multi-camera technology -- perhaps most notably with its L16 camera, a device that uses 16 individual lenses packed into a smartphone-sized frame to snap photos and stitch them together into a single 52-megapixel image. Sony, meanwhile, produces image sensors that should fit right into Light's products.
Light has been kicking around the idea of applying its tech to smartphones since last year. The company has produced some concepts for creating phones with up to nine lenses built in but hasn't brought those ideas to fruition yet. By partnering with Sony, a company that makes smartphones, Light will finally have a shot at testing the application of its multi-lens setups on a mobile device.
