The camera phone
1999 (Kyocera VP-210); 2000 (Sharp J-SH04); 2007 (iPhone)
Phones with built-in cameras appeared in Japan in 1999–2000 and spread worldwide. With the smartphone they became the most used cameras in history.
How it began
In 1999 Kyocera sold a phone in Japan with a small camera for video calls. In late 2000 Sharp’s J-SH04, for the J-Phone network, let users take pictures and send them by email. Camera phones spread through the 2000s, and the smartphone, above all Apple’s iPhone of 2007, joined the camera to the internet.
How it works
Phone cameras use tiny CMOS sensors behind fixed lenses only a few millimetres long. Small sensors collect little light, so phones lean on processing: combining several frames, reducing noise and sharpening, a field called computational photography.
Why it mattered
The camera that is always with you became the most used camera in history. Photography turned into a way of talking: pictures shared instantly through messaging and social networks. Sales of compact cameras collapsed from the early 2010s.
Limits and what replaced it
Small sensors and lenses limit image quality, zoom and background blur, which phones work around with multiple cameras and software. Dedicated cameras still lead for long lenses, fast action and the largest prints.
Today
Most photographs taken today are taken with phones.