Sony has developed a small, phone-sized 17.7-megapixel camera sensor that would overcome much of the performance bottlenecks of earlier technology. The technique, described by Nikkei, can process several pixels’ input in parallel and takes up to 75 percent less time to generate the final image. At 34.8Gbps of bandwidth, it’s about five times faster than a typical phone camera and can handle burst photography or high-speed video that wouldn’t have been an option before.
The CMOS-based Exmor sensor can shoot video at its maximum resolution at up to 120FPS if the device processor and storage can handle the footage; it would more likely shoot at lower resolutions or use the extra speed for continuous still shooting. A new underlying design also reportedly prevents the extra speed from draining extra battery power.
Sony hasn’t given a timeline for when the sensor would be used but plans to use it both in phones and in its point-and-shoot Cyber-shot cameras.
