Apple's big plan to revive iPhone sales in 2019: More cameras (AAPL)

Apple will release three new iPhones this year, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The phones are likely to be similar to this year's lineup, with a lower-cost model with an LCD screen and two more expensive models featuring OLED screens.
The big difference is that Apple could add a second lens to the back camera on the iPhone XR successor and a third camera lens on the iPhone XS Max sequels.

Apple has locked down its product planning for the 2019 lineup of iPhones, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Turns out, 2019's iPhones will be pretty similar to the current lineup, except for one difference: They'll have more cameras on the back.

Apple typically launches new iPhones in September. Here are the iPhones The Wall Street Journal expects Apple to release this year :

An iPhone XR sequel, with an LCD display, and a double-lens camera on the back, an improvement over this year's single camera. This year's version starts at $749.
An iPhone XS sequel with Apple's higher-quality OLED screen, and a double-lens camera on the back, like this year's model. This year's model starts at $999.
An iPhone XS Max sequel but this one will have a triple lens camera. This year's model costs $1099 or more.

The Wall Street Journal's report matches the current batch of rumors: a note from TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and an unconfirmed render from notorious leaker OnLeaks , which showed a triple-lens rear camera.

2020 may bring bigger changes to the iPhone lineup, according to the report. Apple could ditch the lower-cost LCD iPhone and go with an OLED-only lineup, although it hasn't been finalized yet.

Apple has had a difficult few months since it released the iPhone XR in the fall. Apple said it would no longer provide unit sales to investors and slashed its guidance for its all-important holiday quarter by at least $5 billion, suggesting that iPhone sales had missed Apple's own expectations by millions of units.

"I call bologna on that," Apple CEO Tim Cook said when asked if the iPhone XR was a flop. "Let me tell you how I view this. Heres the truth, what the facts are. Since we began shipping the iPhone XR, it has been the most-popular iPhone every day. I mean, do I want to sell more? Of course I do."

But it remains to be seen if additional camera lenses can reengergize Apple's customers and convince them to upgrade their older iPhones. Chinese phone makers have already introduced models with three or more cameras, which provide incremental image quality improvements.

Data also suggests that customers are getting less excited for each new generation of iPhone.

NOW WATCH: 7 science-backed ways to a happier and healthier 2019 that you can do the first week of the new year