iPhone 17 Pro Max will debut metal meta-lens: the dynamic island will become smaller

Blogger Digital Chat Station revealed that the iPhone 17 Pro Max will be equipped with a metal meta-lens, which will mainly integrate Face ID Rx and Tx, shrink and thin the structural components, and the size of the Smart Island will be further reduced.

He also revealed that this solution will also be applied to the straight-screen iPad Pro and the foldable-screen iPad. Apple’s ultimate goal is still the 3D human face under the screen, but it will take several generations. For now, the Smart Island will be slowly reduced.

As we all know, Face ID is the symbol of Apple mobile phones. It captures accurate facial data by projecting and analyzing a large number of points through a depth-sensing camera. Since key components such as infrared cameras and dot projectors cannot be completely hidden under the screen under current technical conditions, Apple has always adopted a compromised pill-screen solution.

Although the current iPhone is still in the form of a smart island, Apple has been working hard to overcome the under-screen Face ID solution. Previously exposed patents show that Apple has improved the transmittance of infrared light through innovative methods, allowing infrared light to pass smoothly through the OLED panel and achieve under-screen face recognition.

It is reported that Apple’s innovative solution is to remove adjacent sub-pixels of the same color so that infrared light can successfully penetrate the screen. These missing sub-pixels will not be noticed by the user’s naked eye because Apple will use adjacent sub-pixels to make up for the missing sub-pixels through color mixing to ensure the consistency of the overall display effect.

Currently, this technology is still in the patent stage, but with the advancement of technology, a true full-screen iPhone will eventually arrive.