New Samsung 16MP Camera Chip Makes iPhone 7 Thinner

While ISOCELL is supposed to help offset the light reception lost by using smaller pixels, the camera just won’t perform as well in dimly-lit environments as bigger sensors from Samsung or its rivals. It’s also significantly thinner than Samsung’s slimmest smartphone, the 5.9mm Galaxy A8.

The Korean tech company has released details of a new camera module that will allow for thinner smartphones and better photos in low light.

“Starting with 16MP sensor, Samsung plans to further expand 1.0μm-pixel product category and lead the image sensor market for high performing slim mobile devices”.

The 1.0μm pixel-based 16-megapixel imaging sensor is an industry first and has already entered mass production, sparking rumours of a potential inclusion on the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 5, a device expected to be handed an August 13 unveiling.

In addition, the S5K3P3 takes advantage of Samsung’s ISOCELL technology to deliver image quality that is on par with 1.12μm-pixel based image sensors.

“Using ISOCELL technology dramatically reduces colour crosstalk of neighboring pixels by adding physical barriers between each pixel”. This results in higher color fidelity even in dimly-lit conditions, as it essentially increases light sensitivity and explicitly controls the collection of photons.

The company stresses that the new module measuring less than 5mm will allow mobile manufacturers to have minimal camera protrusion. Samsung has responded to the challenge by revealing a new, incredibly small 16-megapixel image sensor. While others may adopt this technology in the future we’d expect to see it appear first on a Samsung, namely the Galaxy Note 5.