With Smartphones and cameras of different brands battering one another with improved specs or features, it won’t be wrong to say that companies are at war. Reviving the “war of megapixels,” Toshiba has surpassed the 16-megapixel sensors with the latest 20-megapixel image sensor to produce highest ever resolution for the compact point-and-shoot cameras.
Dubbed the “TCM5115CL,” the a 1/2.3-inch, backside-illuminated CMOS sensor makes use of pixels capable of absorbing 15 percent more of a charge, and thus more light, to counter the noise and sensitivity problems arising with a compact design. The war of megapixels is on and Toshiba seems to be an undisputed winner right now. However, digital wars shift momentum radically, all we can do is just wait and watch for another shot out of the blue.
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Toshiba Launches Highly Sensitive 20MP BSI CMOS Image Sensor
– Industry’s highest level resolution brings enhanced image quality to digital still cameras –
TOKYO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Toshiba Corporation (TOKYO:6502) today announced that it will launch a new 20-megapixel (MP) CMOS image sensor, the TCM5115CL, as the latest addition to its sensor line-up for digital still cameras. TCM5115CL offers the industry’s highest resolution in the 1/2.3 inch optical format, using backside illumination technology (BSI) to improve sensitivity and imaging performance.
Sampling of the new sensor will begin at the end of January 2013 and mass production will follow in August 2013.
Continued advances in the resolution offered by compact digital cameras-now in the range of 10- to 16MP-have brought with them the challenge of improving performance and picture quality with smaller pixels. The TCM5115CL does just this by achieving a 15% improvement in full well capacity-the amount of charge an individual pixel can hold before saturating-against Toshiba’s previous generation 16MP sensor (pixel size = 1.34μm).
TCM5115CL is designed to meet the demands of high quality, fast frame rate image capture and HD video recording supporting smooth, slow motion playback, and delivers the high frame rates 60fps at 1080p and 100fps at 720p.
CMOS image sensors are the main product of Toshiba’s Analog and Imaging System business. The addition of the TCM5115CL to its CMOS sensor line-up for digital cameras will reinforce the business and support the company in securing its target of a 30% market share in 2015.
Features
Part Number: TCM5115CL
Optical Format: 1/2.3 inch
Resolution: 20 megapixels
Pixel Size: 1.2 micrometers
Frame Rate: 30fps @ 20M pixel, RAW10
60fps @ 1080P
100fps @ 720P
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