OmniVision Technologies, Inc. announced at CES the OV48C, a 48 megapixel (MP) image sensor with a large 1.2 micron pixel size to enable high resolution and excellent low light performance for flagship smartphone cameras. The OV48C is the industry’s first image sensor for high resolution mobile cameras with on-chip dual conversion gain HDR, which eliminates motion artifacts and produces an excellent signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). This sensor also offers a staggered HDR option with on-chip combination, providing smartphone designers with the maximum flexibility to select the best HDR method for a given scene.

Built on OmniVision’s PureCel Plus stacked die technology, this 1/1.3” optical format sensor provides leading-edge still image capture and video performance for flagship smartphones. The OV48C also integrates an on-chip, 4-cell color filter array and hardware remosaic, which provides high quality, 48MP Bayer output, or 8K video, in real time. In low light conditions, this sensor can use near-pixel binning to output a 12MP image for 4K2K video with four times the sensitivity, yielding a 2.4 micron-equivalent performance. In either case, the OV48C can consistently capture the best quality images without motion blur, as well as enabling digital crop zoom with 12MP resolution and fast mode switch. Additionally, this sensor offers a wide range of features, including digital crop zoom and a CPHY interface, making it ideal for main, rear-facing cameras in multicamera configurations. The OV48C also uses 4C Half Shield phase-detection for fast autofocus support.

Output formats include 48MP at 15 frames per second (fps), 12MP with 4-cell binning at 60 fps, and 4K2K video at 60 fps with the extra pixels needed for electronic image stabilization. This sensor also offers 1080p video with slow motion support at 240 fps, as well as 720p at 360 fps.

OV48C samples are available now, and this new image sensor will be demonstrated at OmniVision’s CES hotel suite, from January 7-10.