So far, we’ve been gathering market intelligence on what the next iPhone models will have and sources seem to agree with each other that all three major devices will have the same TrueDepth camera as seen on the iPhone X, allowing for Face ID, Animoji and other such features.

Well, it looks like competition has fired up for who gets to produce the component as ETNews reports that two unnamed Chinese companies are positioning themselves with LG Innotek and Sharp. One of the anonymous firms is referred to as an up and coming player while the other is more familiar for its semiconductor packaging. While many subcontractors’ assembly plants are planted in China, it’s rare that Apple interacts with a Chinese company proper for a high-profile component such as this one.

No major improvements to the TrueDepth camera are expected this year. However, according to Atherton Research principal analyst Jean Baptiste Su in a column on Forbes, his firm is envisioning a smaller footprint to impose on the new iPhones’ designs. In a render, the “notch” that contains the Face ID camera, the selfie camera and other sensors is being imagined to be much thinner than the current look of the iPhone X — much like how recent views of the Huawei P20 show a similar notch design, but much more compact. Atherton also has put an under-display fingerprint sensor to bring back Touch ID, just because Su is of the opinion that “Face ID is just not as versatile and reliable than Touch ID” after months of testing.

Take a lot more skepticism into this render as it sounds like this design is more of a whim than of evidence.