Securing a contract to provide Apple components for its iOS devices is only half the battle -- you’ve got to keep pushing the envelope or Cupertino might look elsewhere. That appears to be the case with the iPhone’s ambient light sensor, according to reports out of the Far East.
AppleInsider is reporting that Apple is less than happy with the current ambient light sensor used in the iPhone 4, and may already be testing a different component supplier for its forthcoming hardware. According to DigiTimes, Taiwan-based Capella Microsystems is in talks with Cupertino, which could potentially make them the first integrated circuit manufacturer in that country to score a lucrative contract with Apple.
"Capella, which ships over one million ambient-light sensors to HTC a month currently, has reportedly delivered its products to Apple for verification as the ambient-light sensors currently used by the iPhone 4 have been criticized for some problems," the DigiTimes report reveals.
It’s unknown if Capella might provide the ambient light sensor for the iPhone 5, which is expected to arrive later in the year. AppleInsider notes “a deal is not said to be imminent,” suggesting that the two companies may not do business until the end of the year at the earliest.
Capella isn’t alone in lining up Apple as a client in Taiwan -- AppleInsider reports that the company is “also reportedly in talks” with Integrated Memory Logic, who could provide programmable gamma buffers likely aimed at the iPad.
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(Image courtesy of AppleInsider)
