Before Samsung came with their 108-Megapixel behemoth of a camera sensor that is their ISOCELL camera sensor you find on the Samsung Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S22 series, Sony was the go-to people for smartphone camera sensors. Their IMX sensors proved to be some of the versatile and best camera sensors for all kinds of mobile photography needs. Of course, not everyone feels like the sensors from Sony is adequate for them and their purpose. HUAWEI, for example came up with their own Red Yellow Yellow Blue (RYYB) sensor for more natural colours on their photos.
Samsung snagged the king of smartphone photography sensor title when they introduced the new sensor that went above 100MP for their flagship smartphone. Earlier this year, Samsung made another breakthrough in their mobile photography technology. They have introduced their ISOCELL HP1 200MP sensor, a sensor that hits 200-Megapixel. If estimations are correct, the sensor could make its way to the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra model next year.
Sony is not backing down though. They are reported to be working on their own version of a smartphone camera sensor that is supposed to shoot at 100-Megapixel, rivalling the current Samsung ISOCELL sensors found in the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra and Galaxy S22 Ultra. Currently, reports points to the sensor as a part of the IMX8 series of sensors that are designed for mid-range and high-end smartphones. The sensor could also be larger than the ½-inch 64-Megapixel sensor that Sony already makes, currently found in the Samsung Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S22+ smartphones.
The idea of cramming more pixels into your smartphone camera is something that manufacturers have toyed with several years ago. Sony was the manufacturer of choice too when it comes to high-resolution sensors. For several years, the highest pixel count for a smartphone camera was 64-Megapixel until Samsung introduces their Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra last year with a behemoth of a 108-Megapixel sensor lodged in its body. We thought the Megapixel race was over, looks like we were wrong.
Source: SAMMobile