Xda-Developers | Samsung’s new 20MP ISOCELL Slim 3T2 sensor is designed for smartphones with display holes
Samsung Electronics has introduced its smallest high-resolution image sensor, the ISOCELL Slim 3T2, which is also touted as being the smallest image sensor in the industry at a mere 1/3.4-inches.
The Samsung ISOCELL Slim 3T2 measures only 5.1mm diagonally. With a pixel size of 0.8μm, the image sensor delivers 20MP resolution for both front and back cameras in a form factor that is appreciative of the space constraints in modern smartphones. The ISOCELL Slim 3T2 is ideal for smartphones with display holes and notch designs, as the front facing image sensor in these phones needs to be small in size. The image sensor still needs to be able to capture high-quality images, which is where Samsung's newest sensor finds its niche. The 1/3.4″ 3T2 fits into a tiny module, making more space available for the display and is ideal for the trends that we will likely see in 2019.
The Slim 3T2 boasts of providing excellent clarity and detail through its 20-million active 0.8μm-sized pixels. The sensor adopts Samsung's ISOCELL Plus technology that enables sensors to capture and absorb more light information for accurate color reproduction, even with sub-micrometer-sized pixels. In addition to this, the Slim 3T2 adopts Samsung's Tetracell technology, which merges four pixels to work as one. This lets the sensor take brighter and sharper pictures in low-light settings as the color filter array's light sensitivity increases to that of a 1.6μm-pixel image sensor at 5MP resolution.
The Slim 3T2 can be utilized for rear-facing multi-camera scenarios too, in order to provide telephoto solutions in such situations. In this use-case, the Slim 3T2 adopts an RGB color filter array instead of Tetracell technology. The small size of the image sensor reduces the height of the tele-camera module by around 7% when compared to Samsung's 1/3-inch 20MP image sensor, allowing more elegant smartphone designs. Compared to a 13MP sensor with the same module height, this new 20MP sensor claims to retain 60% higher effective resolution at 10x digital zoom that presents clearer and more accurate results.
The Samsung ISOCELL Slim 3T2 is expected to go into mass production in the first quarter of this year. We should be seeing smartphones adopt the 3T2 in the second half of 2019.
Source: Samsung Newsroom