Samsung unveils ISOCELL HPC: a new 200MP sensor for better low-light photos

Samsung unveiled its 200-megapixel ISOCELL HPC mobile camera sensor today and says the new DeepPix design is built to get better image quality out of ultra-high-resolution phone cameras.

The 1/1.3-inch sensor uses 0.6-micrometer pixels and, by Samsung’s numbers, allows each one to hold 60% more light.

Samsung says that extra full well capacity, along with a larger photodiode, a larger shared floating diffusion, a reworked microlens layer, and an anti-reflective coating, should translate into brighter highlights, deeper shadows, and less noise in low-light or HDR shots.

The company also says the ISOCELL HPC supports single-frame 16-bit HDR across five in-sensor zoom levels, from 1x to 4x, along with 8K at 30fps and 4K at up to 180fps. Full-pixel autofocus, though, tops out at 4K 120fps.

If zoom, night photography, and tricky high-contrast scenes matter to you, this one is worth keeping an eye on, since 200MP sensors usually give up some light capture to chase detail.

Samsung hasn’t said which phones will get the ISOCELL HPC first, but it could show up in a future Galaxy S Ultra, and maybe in flagship phones from Oppo or Vivo too.