Sony: Smartphone Camera Tech Will Make DSLRs Obsolete

A top Sony executive predicts smartphones will make DSLR cameras obsolete by 2024. Speaking at a business briefing, Sony Semiconductor Solutions president and CEO Terushi Shimizu said the company expects smartphone cameras “will exceed the image quality of single-lens reflex cameras within the next few years,” Nikkei Asia reports. According to the Sony presentation, “still images are expected to exceed interchangeable lens camera (ILC) image quality” within three years. In addition to the older DSLR tech that has fallen by the wayside, the ILC category also includes more modern mirrorless cameras. Continue reading Sony: Smartphone Camera Tech Will Make DSLRs Obsolete

InVisage Debuts Sensor Coating it Claims is Superior to CMOS

InVisage, a California-based startup, is introducing two new technologies to improve cameras: QuantumFilm is its proprietary nano-coating material that, says the company, results in sharper, higher dynamic range images and more naturalistic motion than silicon-coated CMOS sensors which become less efficient at transmitting light at higher resolution. QuantumCinema uses the nano-coating to replace the silicon-coated COS sensors, to offer “cinema quality” and higher dynamic range imagery for smartphone cameras. Continue reading InVisage Debuts Sensor Coating it Claims is Superior to CMOS

New Low-Light Pixel Could Have Wide Range of Applications

At Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering, Professor Eric Fossum and doctoral student Jiaju Ma have developed a new pixel with dramatically improved low-light sensitivity. Fossum, who invented the CMOS image sensor used in most cellphones and digital cameras, worked with Ma for more than three years before publishing results of their new Quanta Image Sensor (QIS) in an IEEE publication. Among the applications for the new sensor are security cameras, astronomy and life science imaging. Continue reading New Low-Light Pixel Could Have Wide Range of Applications

Canon Developing Professional 8K Camera, Reference Display

Canon is developing a Cinema EOS 8K camera and 8K reference display, for “the production of next generation content.” Also in the works is a still-image single lens reflex camera with a CMOS sensor offering 120 million pixels, which Canon says is “the world’s highest number of pixels for a CMOS sensor smaller than the size of a 35mm full-frame sensor.” The company claims that the sensor was able to capture an image showing the lettering on the side of an airplane flying 11 miles from the shooting location. Continue reading Canon Developing Professional 8K Camera, Reference Display

Canon’s New XC10 Camera Shoots Still Photos and 4K Video

Canon has released one of the first “convergence” cameras that can take both high resolution photos and videos. The XC10 can take 12 megapixel stills or 4K video with a one-inch CMOS sensor. The XC10 can also shoot video in 1080p and 8MP still photos can be taken from the video. The photos and video save to an internal CFast card, and the built-in Wi-Fi makes it easy to get photos off the device. Canon is marketing the product to journalists and other multimedia professionals who need different types of media. Continue reading Canon’s New XC10 Camera Shoots Still Photos and 4K Video