Back in 2018, writing about smartphones with 48MP cameras felt like it was a joke. A year later, we were greeted with 64MP sensors and a whopping 108MP sensors. While we still think they are overkill for a smartphone, they do come with benefits especially in depth-of-field, detail quality, and low-light performance. And if you think that’s the last thing we’ll hear about it, a source claims that Samsung wants to develop high-pixel sensors that go up to 600MP, a technical spec that even “limits of the human eye”.
The source is none other than Ice universe (via @UniverseIce Twitter), a well-known insider of the mobile tech industry. He’s been dropping tips and hints about Samsung Mobile Division’s steps before they even get to the public. And so far, his claims have been accurate. After checking, Samsung is indeed aiming for 600MP.
When it comes to smartphone cameras, there’s more to it than the number of MP. As the general saying goes, the larger the better. But with mobile technology, the sensor is paired with software optimization in which the tech world calls it “computational photography”. Every part of the image is captured, analyzed, and processed in a split second. But even software has its limits. Flagship phones today may still have the best photo quality, due to software, even without using high-MP sensors, but hardware innovation brings improvements that make non-flagship phone nearly on-par with them. For starters, this includes incredible zoom quality.
Don’t expect 600MP phones yet though. Samsung wants to expand its reach, specifically into rapidly-emerging markets such as autonomous vehicles, IoT and drones. So, there’s a chance that we’ll see this type of sensor first on other machines.
READ: 3 Reasons Why 108MP Smartphone Camera Is Worth Getting
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