The world's first mobile phone with a camera was released in 1999. Throughout the late 2000s, the world has transitioned into the age of smartphones that can run applications to perform various tasks such as sending and receiving e-mails, browsing the Internet, and viewing multimedia content. The global smartphone shipments peaked in 2016 at close to 1.5 billion units. Since then, smartphone cameras began to evolve into 'multi-cameras' equipped with multiple camera modules.
Having multiple cameras mounted on a device enabled users to perform a wider range of shooting techniques, such as applying different angles of view modules to create zoom lens effects, detecting distances using parallax between two cameras, or using software to manipulate images to recreate better quality pictures. Multiple cameras allowed smartphone manufacturers to overcome the physical limitations of ‘thin and lightweight’ devices and imitate a professional photo shooting experience that only DSLR and mirrorless cameras could previously offer.
