OmniVision today revealed details of a new 8 MP image sensor that is 20% thinner than modules available on the market today. The 8-megapixel OV8850, which they are marketing as “the first CameraChip™ sensor built on a 1.1-micron OmniBSI-2 pixel architecture” is just a quarter of an inch thick and designed for implementation and smartphones and tablets.
With our new OmniBSI-2 architecture, we have further miniaturized our pixels while delivering a 20 percent improvement in peak quantum efficiency in all color channels, a 35 percent improvement in low-light sensitivity and a 45 percent increase in full-well capacity in an extremely compact and power efficient package
The module has also made improvements in its power efficiency and image quality – further making it a good fit for next generation mobile devices. 1080p/30 video recording is also supported but more interesting is that it supports 720p/60 with electronic image stabilization.
This new image sensor is set to go into mass production early next year, so it probably won’t feature in this year’s iPhone refresh – but it gives you an idea of how these tiny cameras are constantly improving and shrinking in size. An OmniVision image sensor currently resides in the iPhone 4 and reports from earlier this year suggest the company (perhaps with Sony) will also contribute an image sensor to the iPhone 5.
According to a new report from Digitimes, camera image sensor supplier OmniVision has won “significant orders” for Apple’s next-generation iPhone, set to debut later this year. Whilst OmniVision has been the selected supplier for image sensors in previous generation iPhones, iPods and iPads, surprisingly enough Digitimes claims 90% of orders will be supplied by OmniVision, with Sony shipping another 10% of units.
OmniVision has grabbed a majority of total CMOS image sensor (CIS) orders placed by Apple for the fifth-generation iPhone, market sources have claimed. Meanwhile, power amplifier (PA) supplier Avago Technologies has landed orders for the WCDMA version of the device for its first time, according to the sources.
About 90% of the CIS orders for Apple’s new iPhone will be supplied by OmniVision, while Sony takes up the remainder, the sources said. The upcoming device will feature a built-in 8-megapixel camera, the sources added.
Speculation about the iPhone 5′s camera in the past months arose to a new level when a rumor claimed Sony would be the only supplier for the device’s camera. With other reports claiming the statement from Sony CEO Howard Stinger were largely a misunderstanding or inventions from bloggers, it wasn’t clear why Apple would choose Sony over the long-time partner OmniVision, which in the meantime announced a variety of new sensors including improved 5 MP, 8 MP and 10 MP ones, some of them with 1080p capabilities.
A few weeks ago, alleged iPhone 5 parts surfaced showing a different camera flash position and thus re-igniting speculation about a different camera module in the iPhone 5, rumored to be a “minor” hardware refresh.
During the weekend, a rumor about Sony being selected by Apple as the only supplier for the image sensors in the next-generation iPhone quickly made the rounds of the Internet following some statements from Sony’s CEO Howard Stringer in an interview with Walt Mossberg at Carnegie Hall in New York City. The report came as a surprise to Apple fans and market watchers as the company has been using camera lenses provided by OmniVision in the iPhone 3GS (3.2 MP), iPhone 4 ( 5 MP), iPod touch 4th gen. and iPad 2 for the past few years.
The rumor suggested that, due to the earthquake and tsunami that damaged Sony’s Japanese facility in Sendai, shipments of image sensors to Apple would be delayed.
Stringer just said that their camera image sensor facility in Sendai was affected by the tsunami. Getting image sensors to Apple will be delayed.
The Wall Street Journal also published a blog post with a partial transcript of the interview:
Early on, he raised the irony of Sony supplying camera components for Apple devices. It “always puzzles me,” he said. “Why would I make Apple the best camera?”
It is unclear what devices he was talking about as Sony isn’t known to supply key camera components, known as image sensors, to Apple; A Sony spokeswoman declined to comment and an Apple spokesperson couldn’t be reached for comment.
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9to5mac reports Sony CEO Howard Stringer, in an interview with Walt Mossberg at Carnegie Hall in New York City, said shipments of camera sensors to Apple will be delayed due to Sony’s facility in Sendai that was affected by last month’s earthquake and tsunami. Stringer’s statements come as a surprise considering Sony has never been a supplier for Apple’s camera-enabled mobile devices (iPhone, iPad 2, iPod touch 4th gen) as the company chose to implement Omnivision’s image sensors in the past years. Omnivision’s lens modules are used in the iPhone 4 (5 megapixel sensor), iPod touch and iPad 2.
Stringer just said that their camera image sensor facility in Sendai was affected by the tsunami. Getting image sensors to Apple will be delayed.
MacRumors also points to a transcript of the interview by the Wall Street Journal itself, which seems to confirm Stringer’s hints at image sensors set to be shipped to Apple in the near future:
Early on, he raised the irony of Sony supplying camera components for Apple devices. It “always puzzles me,” he said. “Why would I make Apple the best camera?”
It is unclear what devices he was talking about as Sony isn’t known to supply key camera components, known as image sensors, to Apple; A Sony spokeswoman declined to comment and an Apple spokesperson couldn’t be reached for comment.
Following Stringer’s interview, speculation is running wild on the Internet about whether he was referring to a brand new Apple product still in early production stages, or a new version of the iPhone or iPad. A report from April of last year, however, provides more insight into Stringer’s mention of image sensor for Apple: analyst Ashok Kumar claimed that Apple had signed on with Sony for an 8-megapixel camera lens to be used in the “2011 iPhone” — which would be the iPhone 5 set to be announced sometime between summer and fall. The report from Kumar also correctly indicated that Omnivision would be the supplier of a 5-megapixel sensor for the iPhone that Jobs would announce at WWDC 2010 — indeed, the iPhone 4 with a 5 MP camera module from Omnivision. In the past months, several bloggers also speculated Apple could implement Omnivision’s new 16:9 CMOS image sensor in the iPhone 5, although the reports didn’t provide any additional details. The iPhone 5 is also rumored to feature a bigger screen, the same Apple A5 processor seen in the iPad 2, NFC capabilities and a new aluminum design with internal antenna.
