In 2019, Samsung introduced ISOCELL Slim GH1, which it claimed to be the world's first 0.7-micrometer (μm)-pixel image sensor. Now, the company is out with a smaller option.
Samsung announced today a new camera sensor that it says has the smallest size in the industry. The Samsung ISOCELL JN1 is a 0.64μm-pixel image sensor with 50MP options for both front and rear cameras.
Like other high-resolution camera sensors, the latest one from Samsung uses a pixel-binning technology that combines four adjacent 0.64μm-pixels into a single 1.28μm-pixel. What this means is that light sensitivity is increased in low-light conditions by four times to capture brighter 12.5MP images. Samsung claims a 16% improvement to light sensitivity, thanks to its ISOCELL 2.0 technology.
The South Korean tech giant noted that the product's 1/2.76-inch optical format makes it possible to use the sensor in ultrawide or telephoto camera modules. It can also help in minimizing camera bump with a 10% reduction to the height of the camera module.
With its Smart-ISO system, the sensor can help boost dynamic range by using low ISO mode in bright environments to preserve detail in the highlights and high ISO in low-light settings to minimize noise in an image. The ISOCELL JN1 can also capture videos with up to 4K resolution at 60 frames-per-second or full HD at 240fps. It's currently in mass production, so it probably won't be too long before it's incorporated into smartphones.
