Hole-punch camera to dominate 2019

While 2018 proved to be the year for the notch, in terms of smartphone design, as Android phones either copied the iPhone’s notch or adopt extreme measures to avoid it, 2019 is expected to belong to hole-punch selfie camera as phone makers looks to cut on bezels and bigger screen size to attract customers.

Huawei sub-brand, Honor, is first to market with front-facing camera housed in a hole punched in display instead of a notch, a trend likely to stick in 2019.

With Samsung also unveiling a mid-range handset with similar design and Galaxy S10, likely to be launched on February 20 expected to sport it, the design is here to stay.

The hole, which wastes less screen space compared to the notch, is also expected on multiple upcoming smartphones regardless of our views.

The hole (or hole-punch camera) is feature for housing the front-facing camera(s). Like the notch, this is a cut out portion of the physical display. However, it differs from the notch in that this cutout area is not part of the phone’s outer frame. It sits within the display with the screen surrounding it.

With the industry trending towards larger displays, other OEMs would like to adopt such an idea if its profitable.

However, manufacturers are unlikely to drop the notch, which has a mixed opinion about it, entirely next year — it might be the next best option if display holes prove too expensive.

However, it is likely that display holes will outnumber display notches on the major Android flagships.