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Is there anything to do about the tiny sensors in mobile phones?

• rpeden 10y ago
  The short, trite, unsatisfying answer: keep improving the quality of tiny sensors. Due to size constraints, we can't shove massive sensors into smartphones. But we can keep improving what small sensors are capable of, and we can probably still make improvements to the software that processes the raw data the sensors capture. We can also hope for innovation in the technology behind digital image sensors. We've seen lots of innovation, but the fundamentals behind the CMOS and CCD sensors we use now haven't changed in a long time. I'm not qualified to comment on the viability of it, but perhaps something like this will end up being useful: https://www.dpreview.com/articles/1365289912/invisage-brings-long-promised-quantum-film-smartphone-sensor-to-market https://www.dpreview.com/articles/1365289912/invisage-brings...
  • foldr 10y ago
    >Due to size constraints, we can't shove massive sensors into smartphones. Interestingly, though, it's not really the size of the sensor that's the issue but the focal length of the lens required to give a usably narrow field of view with a larger sensor. You could probably squeeze an APS-C sensor into a smartphone, but you couldn't use it with an 8mm focal length. So there are two potential routes to go here. Progress in telephoto designs for very small lenses, and multi-lens cameras.
• _wmd 10y ago
  As foldr mentions they're a feature, the remainder of the optical system scales quite shockingly in proportion to the sensor. I'm sure there are plenty of further incremental improvements to be made to small sensors, but there are real physical limits on how much charge a tiny cell can capture before becoming saturated. For that reason, even if advancements are made in small sensors, a physically larger sensor with access to the same tech will likely always have a dynamic range advantage