Xiaomi envisions a phone with ‘bunny ears’ pop-up cameras

Xiaomi is no stranger to exploring strange camera designs, but its latest may be particularly clever — and also a bit cute. LetsGoDigital reports that Xiaomi has filed for a patent on a smartphone design that would use two pop-up cameras in a “bunny ears” arrangement.

Each unit would not only pop out at an angle, but carry a camera for both the front and back. In theory, this would make it easy to include dual front and rear cameras while eliminating the need for a notch or hole punch on the screen.

It would otherwise be a very typical smartphone with stereo speakers and a USB-C port, albeit with the flash sitting by itself on the back. As this is a patent, it could just be a placeholder design to show how the cameras would work.

Read more: Xiaomi shows under-screen camera tech for 2021 phones

As with many patents, there’s no guarantee Xiaomi will build a shipping phone based on the design. This is an idea, not necessarily a product roadmap. However, the company is no stranger to pop-up cameras, having implemented them in the Mi 9T series and multiple Redmi models.

There are also practical reasons for considering a system like this. It can be impractical to offer more than one pop-up selfie camera without compromising space for rear cameras and other phone components. A concept like this could allow for wide-angle selfies or similar tricks while keeping the cameras’ overall footprint to a minimum. Even if Xiaomi doesn’t use this exact design, the ideas involved could lead to sleeker all-screen phones.