High-resolution camera sensors are becoming the craze in the smartphone market right now. All the phones like Huawei P20 Pro, Huawei Mate 20 Pro, Huawei P30, and the Huawei P30 Pro, come with a 40MP sensor. Not only this, but the industry has gone a step ahead and introduced 48MP camera sensors to a lot of mid-range phones as well. This year we got to see the launch of Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro which also comes with a similar 48MP camera sensor, and the Sony IMX586 sensor powers this. Some other phones with a 48MP camera sensor come with Samsung’s ISOCELL GM1. However, now Samsung has introduced world-first high-resolution 64MP ISOCELL Bright GW1 image sensor. Besides, Samsung has also introduced the successor to its previous 48MP sensor – the ISOCELL GM2 as well.
ISOCELL 64MP GW1 to Sport 4-in-1 Pixel Binning
The new 64MP ISOCELL Bright GW1 and the 48MP ISOCELL Bright GM2 sensors make their entry into Samsung’s 0.8um image sensor line-up. Samsung has also announced that currently, the 0.8?m is the smallest pixel size available in the market. In the previous years, such pixel sizes were impossible to achieve because of the deficit which they used to create in the low light, however, to tackle this problem, Samsung is deploying the 4-in-1 pixel binning. Using this, cameras will be able to deliver high-resolution photos in daylight, and for the low light images, the camera will provide slightly low-resolution pictures which will be pixel binned for better noise reduction, dynamic range, and per-pixel detail.
Out of the two sensors which Samsung has launched, the Bright GW1 64MP sensor will be able to produce the highest resolution in Samsung’s 0.8um pixel image sensor line-up. The sensor also comes with the Tetracell technology similar to other high-resolution ISOCELL sensors, and it also packs the proprietary Samsung’s remosaic algorithm. Tetracell is the technology which enables 4-in-1 pixel binning that merges four pixels into a single pixel which manages the pixel size appropriately in low light conditions. Samsung has claimed that the GW1 will be able to render bright 16MP images in low light conditions and “highly detailed” 64MP photos in brighter settings.
ISOCELL GM2 to be the Next Major 48MP Sensor from Samsung
As per Samsung’s claims, the GW1 also comes with real-time HDR with support for up to 100 decibels. The company has asserted that the dynamic range of a conventional image sensor is somewhere near 60dB. The human eye, on the other hand, is considered to be around 120dB. If the claims by Samsung are correct, then any phone using the ISOCELL GW1, would be the new dynamic range leader in camera and imaging.
The ISOCELL GW1 will also make use of Dual Conversion Gain (DCG) which in turn will make the sensor optimize its full well capacity (FWC) by collecting light more efficiently in well-lit conditions. The sensor will also make use of the 4-in-1 pixel binning technology alongwith high-performance phase detection autofocus technology, and it will be able to record slow motion videos at 480fps in 1080p.
The ISOCELL GM2 which is another newly launched sensor from Samsung is a 48MP one, and this one also comes with Tetracall technology. This sensor has also been claimed to bring “highly detailed” photos with “natural and vivid colours.” The GM2 also makes use of DCG for better performance and Super PD for fast autofocus just like the GW1.
Samsung has also said that currently these two sensors are in sampling and they will go into mass production in the second half of this year. It is quite possible that these sensors could make their way to the upper rungs of the Samsung A series or even the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.
