I was intrigued by a post by Chris Foresman on ARS Technica earlier today. Apparently, Steve Jobs was interested in incorporating imaging technology from Lytro into future iPhone cameras. While the article contains multiple links on how the technology works, Chris details the gist of the technology in the following blurb:

Lytro’s technology relies on capturing far more information about a scene than a fixed grid of colored pixels. Using high resolution sensors combined with a specially designed micro lens array, the sensor captures the intensity, color, and direction of light rays entering a camera through a lens. That data can then be processed into the kind of flat, two-dimensional image that many of us are accustomed to.

However, that data can be mathematically manipulated to change various aspects of the image, including focus point, focal length, depth of field, and even perspective shift. All these details can be recalculated after the image is captured, removing the need to think about them while shooting.

What I find interesting about such technology is that it would potentially both simplify both the iPhone physical lens mechanism and make taking pictures easier at the same time. Such a combination would be a tough act to follow.