Sony IMX586, World’s Highest-Res 48MP Image Sensor For Phone Cameras Announced

Sony’s smartphone division is falling off the course, but its image sensors are market leaders. Well, continuing the efforts, Sony has introduced a new image sensor; Sony IMX586 with a slight bump in image quality, apparently increasing the resolution to 48-megapixel (8000 x 6000), which is the highest pixel count in the industry, according to the company.

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Sony IMX586: 48-Megapixel Image Sensor

As we already know, Image quality isn’t simply a matter of adding more megapixels. Well, this Image sensor uses Quad Bayer color filter array, where the adjacent 2×2 pixels comes in the color, so that the sensor promises high sensitivity and high resolution.

Furthermore, the 0.8-micron pixels used in this sensor will be the smallest on the market. The original Sony exposure control technology and signal processing functionality is built into the image sensor, enabling real-time output and a superior dynamic range that is four times greater than conventional products.

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Sony IMX586 Specifications

• Number of effective pixels – 8000 (H) × 6000 (V) 48 megapixels; Image size – Diagonal 8.000mm (Type 1/2)
• Frame rate – Full – 30fps; Movie – 4K (4096×2160) – 90fps, 1080p – 240fps, 720p – 480fps(w/crop)
• Sensitivity (Standard value: f5.6) –  Approx. 133LSB
• Sensor saturation signal level (minimum value) – Approx. 4500e
• Voltage – Analog 2.8V, 1.8V; Digital 1.1V; Interface 1.8V
• Main functions – Image plane phase-difference AF, HDR imaging
• Output – MIPI C-PHY1.0 (3 trio) / D-PHY 1.2 (4 lane)
• Color filter array – Quad Bayer array
• Image output format – Bayer RAW

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The pixel-binning technique is not new, phones from Nokia 808 PureView in 2012 to this year’s Huawei P20 Pro have experimented. Sony is keeping the size down to 8mm diagonal, which means there won’t need for a huge camera bump.

You can expect to see the IMX586 on smartphones next year; Sony is planning to start shipping samples this September, with a unit price of 3,000 yen ($27) each.

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