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Flagship smartphones these days are going really competitive, especially with their camera department. Companies wanted the best of the best of their flagships so sometimes they partner up with different optics manufacturers to really up their game. Nokia has Zeiss, Vivo also recently partnered with Zeiss for their X60 flagship-grade smartphones, OnePlus has Hasselblad, and Huawei had Leica.
Notice how we used the term “had” instead of “has”? That is because Leica is reported to end its partnership with Huawei. It may have stemmed from the fact that Huawei got barred from existing, and their partnership with Leica blurs the further the years come. Leica is a German optics manufacturer, and Germany is currently aligned with the USA politically.
Although despite the reports, the rumoured Huawei P50 series still honors the “Co-engineered with Leica” badge. Although this device will also be the last time Huawei would be able to use Leica optics, and future devices would have to run on the usual Sony IMX sensors, or Samsung ISOCELL sensors without the help of Leica.
After this contract, Leica now roams free, and is now eyeing on different manufacturers, including Honor (which used to be part of Huawei) and Xiaomi. Any OEM can sign a contract with them.
In related news, there are also rumours that Xiaomi will be using HarmonyOS in the future. If Xiaomi gets the Leica partnership, they will become the next Huawei before the ban took place.
Source: GizChina