Apple patent bid hints at changeable iPhone lens
![A US patent application made public on Thursday hinted that Apple may be toying with the idea of letting picture-loving iPhone users change lenses for the smartphone cameras. More American adults now own smartphones than basic mobile phones, according to a recent survey](https://scx1.b-cdn.net/csz/news/800a/2012/moreamerican.jpg)
A US patent application made public on Thursday hinted that Apple may be toying with the idea of letting picture-loving iPhone users change lenses for the smartphone cameras.
Apple's application for a "back panel for a portable electronic device with different camera lens options" included a diagram reminiscent of an opened iPhone with labeled parts.
The application described a design to let users change lenses that typically are fixed in the backs of smartphones to act as eyes for cameras.
"It would be desirable to provide a structure for a compact device that allows the end user to reconfigure the optical arrangement of the device while retaining the benefits of assembling the device using a pre-assembled digital imaging subsystem," said a copy of the patent application available online.
(c) 2012 AFP