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Author Topic: Toshiba's new sensor and processing technology in the Nokia 808 PureView  (Read 2151 times)

BJL

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An interesting side story is that Toshiba is apparently behind a lot of the camera technology in the new Nokia 808 PureView, like the claimed ability to do video by reading all 36MP in the 16:9 frame crop and processing it on a dedicated "downsampling/cropping" chip. So I think, or maybe I just hope, that Toshiba has plans beyond just providing sensors to the foundering giant Nokia. My guess is first a fixed lens pocket camera, with a lens designed for the high angular resolution needs, so maybe a prime like the Sigmas, or otherwise a modest zoom range. That could use exactly the same sensor. But then if a new upsized version is made ...
An M4/3 system with a sensor with similar design would make for a wonderful travel camera.
That (maybe with about 2 micron photosites instead of 1.4, for a more manageable 90MP?), or a more modest upsizing from its 5/6" format to Nikon's new 1". But then Nikon's USP of in-sensor PDAF could be a problem. Since both Olympus and Nikon outsource their CSC sensors, they are more likely to do this than Canon, Sony or Samsung, who seem set on in-house sensor development.

So, perhaps Olympus should join Nokia in this grand attempt to reverse the poor fortunes of recent years.
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BJL

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Toshiba's(?) new sensor and processing technology in the Nokia 808 PureView
« Reply #1 on: February 29, 2012, 03:35:50 pm »

P. S. As Pierre Vandevenne has pointed out, at about 0:38 to 1:01 in this video interview
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ZheH4PjEows
Damian Dinning of the design team for the Nokia 808 says of the sensor
"we had to develop that, with our partners [plural], literally from scratch, to our own specification and our own designs"
having previously mentioned Sony and Toshiba as examples of sensor makers who did not have a 41MP sensor just waiting for Nokia to buy and use.

So it is not so clear to me now who designed the sensor.

[Added] Another interview with a few more details:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3rIu7ug59Q
Nokia is clearly claiming some input to the design of sensor and also to the processing, rather than being a passive customer. In that sense, this is like Nikon, which has often worked with Sony on sensor designs, rather than simply buying whatever the Sony sales reps show up on the door with, even with sensor designs that Sony also uses itself or sells to others after some period of Nikon exclusivity.
« Last Edit: February 29, 2012, 03:58:23 pm by BJL »
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