Samsung launched the first 0.7 µm image sensor late last year and today announced four new sensors based on 0.7 µm pixels. The company’s goal today is to create small and thin modules, sensors use ISOCELL Plus, all before making the leap to ISOCELL 2.0 at the end of 2020.
Compared to 0.8 µm sensors, 0.7 µm is up to 15% smaller and modules will become up to 10% thinner. The Korean manufacturer has been working on the new sensors for a long time before officially launching them on the market.
The five new sensors
The main one that stands out above all of them is the new ISOCELL HM2, a 108-megapixel lens, the third of this caliber that comes to meet the needs of taking photographs in very high quality. It uses nine-pixel array technology, can zoom 3x without losing quality, supports Super-PD autofocus, and records 4K video at 120 FPS.
ISOCELL GW3 has a 48 MP 0.8 µm sensor size, but delivers 64 MP resolution, uses Tetracell, Smart-ISO to efficiently capture light, records 4K video at 60 FPS, and has electronic image stabilization. ISOCELL GM5 is to be used with periscopic and ultra-wide zoom cameras, it has a resolution of 48 MP, so it will record FUll HD at 480 FPS and 4K at 120 FPS when using the ultra-wide module.
ISOCELL GH1 for example reaches 43.7 MP, in 4K recording, it reaches 60 FPS and it is a lens that will come into play in the mid-range line. ISOCELL JD1 comes designed to be a pop-up selfie camera and also to be included in a drilled hole.
Availability of the new sensors
Samsung already mass-produced the new ISOCELL HM2, GW3 and JD1, while the GM5 series was shipped to various manufacturers before launching it. The announced sensors are expected to arrive in the next few weeks in some new devices from the firm, the 108 MP will arrive in a high-end range