What may be the most concrete evidence of the Galaxy S11 featuring a camera system with increased zoom capability over previous flagships has popped up online today, thanks to the folks over at GalaxyClub. According to the publication, the Galaxy S11's camera is codenamed ‘Hubble'. The codename no doubt refers to the Hubble Space Telescope, and it's as good a sign as any that rumors of the Galaxy S11 having 5x optical zoom have merit.
The Galaxy S11, which is codenamed ‘Picasso', is expected to have a 5x zoom camera that uses a ‘periscope system' that allows the camera module to sit flush with the body of the smartphone because the sensor and lenses are arranged sideways and utilize the principle of reflecting light in a telescope. Samsung has been mass producing such a camera sensor since early this year, and multiple reports in the last couple of months have said that the sensor will first be used in the Galaxy S11.
Could Hubble hint at 5x optical zoom and a 108MP primary camera?
Of course, some might say that a camera with just 5x zoom may not do justice to the Hubble codename, but these codenames usually just signify the idea behind a product and aren't meant to be taken in the literal sense. And, after two years of 2x zoom cameras on Galaxy flagships, just a move up to 5x zoom will be a notable upgrade. It might not be enough to differentiate it from the Galaxy S10, but hey, maybe that's why the S11 will have a 108MP primary camera as well.
The 108MP camera might even partly be the reason behind Samsung choosing that particular codename, but with the Galaxy S11 still a few months away, we have to take all of these leaks and rumors with the proverbial pinch of salt. Samsung recently started developing the Galaxy S11's software so it's likely to have finalized the phone's hardware, which means we should start seeing more and more leaks that give us a clearer picture of the Korean giant's next flagship going forward.
