The worst is thought to be over as 2015 comes to an end, a quick overview of developments in the past year show product prices have reached new historical lows in the past year. The elimination race has escalated with restructures becoming the new norm in the industry.

Last week Samsung denied plans of implementing unpaid leave for its LED business sector, and in an act to seemingly to quell negative rumors regarding its LED business, the company unveiled its latest mid-power LED package LM561B+ for high quality color performance last Thursday.

As flash LEDs became a standard spec in smartphones instead of a market gimmick to sell phones, many LED manufacturers are vying after this potential market.

Photos of a new HTC smartphone model featuring three LED flash lights have been leaked on Chinese media Weibo recently, reported CNMO.com.

A China Times report has highlighted five major LED market trends in 2015:

With the increasing demand for smartphones, the market request for mobile phone pixel has been rising. To provide the best photography effects for customers, mobile phone manufacturers require the specification of phone flash should be upgraded. At present, the brightness range of Flash LEDs is between 180~280lm, with each smartphone using 1-2 LED pieces. Benefitting from the booming up smartphone market, the usage volume of Flash LED has continued to grow.

Apple’s iPhone 6 is finally here. The company’s CEO Tim Cook unveiled the phones at Apple’s Special Event which took place during the twilight hours in Taiwan on Sept. 10, 2014 (Taipei time). Some of the rumors about the iPhone 6 specs proved true, such as the phones coming in two different sizes. The smaller 4.7-inch phone has been coined iPhone 6 by the Cupertino company, while the larger 5.5-inch has been named the iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple’s iPhone 6 is finally here. The company’s CEO Tim Cook unveiled the phones at Apple’s Special Event which took place during the twilight hours in Taiwan on Sept. 10, 2014 (Taipei time). Some of the rumors about the iPhone 6 specs proved true, such as the phones coming in two different sizes. The smaller 4.7-inch phone has been coined iPhone 6 by the Cupertino company, while the larger 5.5-inch has been named the iPhone 6 Plus.

Loyal Apple fans have probably started the countdown to Sept. 9, 2014, when the company will be unveiling the much anticipated iPhone 6 at Flint Center for the Performing Arts in Cupertino, California, U.S. Staying true to its secretive nature, the company’s press conference invitation uses the catchy phrase “Wish we could say more.” With less than one week left on the clock, many in the industry believe Apple will be showcasing the iPhone 6, 12.9-inch iPads and iWatches at the event. 

With display screens in mobile phones and camera module pixels increasing, demand for brighter flash LED has grown. Global flash LED shipment volume reached 1.03 billion units in 2013, according to a report by LEDinside. It is anticipated that shipment volume will grow to 2.07 billion units by 2018. Revenue for flash LED in 2013 hit US $561 million and is anticipated to reach US $764 million in 2018. 

Sonny Dickson has leaked more images of the Apple iPhone 6 dummy. If the images and information is correct, the new model seems to have taken a step back in terms of LED flash compared to previous models. 

Package free products have been making waves in the LED industry since 2013. LED manufacturers have been investing in R&D for package free and CSP (chip-scale package) products, including Samsung who recently announced the release of  a new CSP product. The company is launching their completely new 1.3mm x 1.3mm flash LED which uses CSP technology, called FC1313. The CSP FC1313 is small in size, has more design flexibility, and low power consumption. It has become known as the world’s smallest flash LED product.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced component solutions, introduced a range of leading-edge LED component solutions today for use in advanced mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.

Smartphones are driving up demands for flash LED. Aside from Philips Lumileds, Cree, Osram and other leading global manufacturers in the flash market, Taiwanese and Korean manufacturers are also entering the market. Samsung plans to switchits flash LED package specs from 4139 to 2016. Following various manufacturers  production launch, industry insiders estimate larger price cuts for flash LEDs in 1Q14.

LED chip manufacturer Genesis Photonics flip chip components have obtained Japanese smartphone manufacturers certification to be used to make smartphone flashes.