South Korean tech giant, Samsung, has launched the new ISOCELL GN2. The new 50MP imaging sensor offers large 1.4-micrometer (μm)-sized pixels. Developed by its System LSI Business, this new sensor promises more true-to-life autofocus function for performance that is similar to how the human eye operates. Further, with enhancements over its predecessor, the ISOCELL GN1, the GN2 offers up to 100MP imaging, improved auto-focusing through Dual Pixel Pro technology, staggered HDR, and overall better results in multiple lighting conditions through Smart ISO Pro.
“ISOCELL image sensors and its technologies have made vast improvements to deliver the quality and performance one would expect from top-tier prograde cameras,” said Duckhyun Chang, executive vice president of sensor business at Samsung Electronics. “Our new ISOCELL GN2 features Dual Pixel Pro, an innovative all-direction auto-focusing solution that elevates the agility to capture moments as they unfold. Adding on Smart ISO Pro and a variety of advanced pixel technologies, pictures from GN2 are more true-to-life than ever.”
As Samsung explains, the ISOCELL GN2 is Samsung’s first image sensor to offer Dual Pixel Pro technology. It is touted to be the company’s most advanced phase-detection auto-focus solution yet. Among the many benefits of using this new technology are the improved low-light focusing and tracking of moving objects.
The new sensor also promises improved performance in mixed-light environments, such as sunsets or indoors with daylight coming through a window. For these, the new ISOCELL GN2 increases its dynamic range with a staggered-HDR feature that "uses rolling shutters over the same pixel arrays to capture multiple frames in short, middle, and long exposures." Further, staggered-HDR also promises to reduce energy consumption by up to 24-percent when compared to the predecessor’s real-time HDR mode.
As mentioned above, the ISOCELL GN2 promises detailed photographs in regular settings. However, Samsung claims that in low-lit environments such as indoors, the sensor can "simulate a larger 2.8μm-pixel with four-pixel-binning technology to absorb more light, delivering brighter and sharper images." The new GN2 also offers an option to take pictures higher than the available 50MP resolutions through a special mode to produce a single ultra-high 100Mp resolution photograph.