Samsung ISOCELL HM3 Specifications Officially Detailed

Samsung ISOCELL HM3

Samsung today officially unveiled the Samsung ISOCELL HM3 108-megapixel image sensor with 0.8µm, 1/1.33” sensor size, and nine-pixel binning which providing enhanced auto-focusing and optimum brightness. With Smart ISO Pro and Super PD Plus, that fine-tune the sensor’s performance for premium mobile imaging experiences.

According to Samsung, with a wide spectrum of advanced sensor technologies, the HM3 can capture sharper and more vivid images in ultra-high resolution with faster auto-focus and extended dynamic range. The ISOCELL HM3 supports 12-bit color depth, bringing color reproduction in mobile photography to the next level. It can express over 68 billion colors, which means 64 times more colors than 10-bit color depth.

While a pixel is just a single dot of color when in millions, these dots can be transformed into stunning snapshots of life. With more pixels, images are sharper, with fuller details that can maintain their integrity even when enlarged. Samsung has been at the forefront of bringing the most pixels to mobile image sensors as well as various supporting technologies that take sensor performances to the next level. The ISOCELL HM3 is the culmination of Samsung’s latest sensor technologies that will help deliver premium mobile experiences to today’s smart-device users.

Duckhyun Chang, executive vice president of the sensor business at Samsung Electronics.

Samsung ISOCELL HM3 integrates an improved Super PD Plus feature for faster auto-focus. The Super PD Plus adds AF-optimized micro-lenses over the phase-detection focusing agents, increasing the measurement accuracy of the agents by 50-percent. The enhanced phase-detection autofocusing (PDAF) solution helps to keep moving subjects in sharp focus and delivers optimum results in dark environments.

In mixed-light environments, such as at the end of a tunnel, the ISOCELL HM3 adopts Smart ISO Pro, a high-dynamic-range (HDR) imaging technology that uses an intra-scene dual conversion gain (iDCG) solution. Smart ISO Pro simultaneously captures a frame in both high and low ISO, then merges them into a single image in 12-bit color depth and with reduced noise. As Smart ISO Pro does not require multiple exposure shots to create a standard HDR image, it can significantly reduce motion-artifacts. Besides, with a low-noise mode, it improves the light sensitivity by 50-percent to capture brighter and clearer results in low-light environments than its predecessor.

The HM3’s pixel layout is specially arranged in three-by-three single color structures suitable for nine-pixel binning. By merging nine neighboring pixels, the 108Mp HM3 mimics a 12Mp image sensor with large 2.4μm-pixels, heightening light sensitivity when taking photographs in low-light environments. With an improved binning hardware IP, the HM3 supports seamless transitions between 108Mp and 12Mp resolutions.

8K video recordings at 30fps are optimized to enhance and bring out every detail in the frame. When recording in 4K, the sensor shoots at an incredible 120fps so that you can create the slow-motion video. Samsung also claims designs of the new sensor have also been optimized to reduce energy usage under preview mode by 6.5-percent, offering added power efficiency to the overall mobile device. And the Samsung ISOCELL HM3 is currently in mass production.

Samsung ISOCELL HM3 Specifications

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