Samsung really might revive this 2019 camera feature just to take on Apple

We heard rumors late last year that Samsung could be looking at variable aperture cameras again, reviving a feature it dropped years ago. A new industry report now adds some real weight to that idea, suggesting Samsung is keen not to let Apple get a competitive edge on that front.

According to South Korean outlet ETNews, Samsung Electronics has asked multiple camera module partners to develop variable aperture hardware and is already testing early samples. Samsung Electro-Mechanics and MCNEX are said to be involved. The report stresses that the work is still at an early stage, with no final decision yet on whether the technology will ship in a consumer device.

Variable aperture isn’t a new idea, and long-time Galaxy fans may remember it well. The feature lets a camera physically adjust the amount of light reaching the sensor, using wider apertures in low light for brighter photos and narrower apertures in bright scenes to avoid blown-out highlights and keep more of the image in focus. Samsung last used this approach on the Galaxy S9 and S10, where the camera could switch between two aperture settings depending on conditions.

Samsung eventually dropped the feature in 2019, citing added cost and increased camera thickness. At the time, rapid advances in computational photography made software-based solutions feel like the better trade-off. That balance may be shifting again. ETNews notes that newer actuator designs could reduce both thickness and cost, making variable aperture less of a compromise than it once was.

The timing is unlikely to be a coincidence. Apple is widely expected to introduce a variable-aperture camera on the iPhone 18 Pro, marking the first time the feature appears on an iPhone. That looming move may be pushing Samsung to reconsider a hardware solution it once led on, rather than watching a former Galaxy highlight become an Apple advantage. Other Android brands, including HUAWEI and Xiaomi, have already returned to variable-aperture systems in recent years.

None of this confirms that variable aperture is coming to the next Galaxy phone — or any specific model at all. But with the evidence mounting, it seems likely that the refreshed tech isn’t far off.