Sharp on Tuesday announced the development of a new 20.2 million-pixel CCD image sensor (20MP) for compact digital cameras. According to the company the 1/2.3-inch sensor will have the highest pixel count of any 1/2.3-inch CCD image sensor that uses an interline transfer method for compact devices.
Sharp claims that the new image censor also packs in more pixels on a cell size of 1.20x.1.20?m, approximately 20 percent smaller than Sharp’s last 1/2.3-inch CCD which came in with a pixel count of 16 million.
The new system uses Sharps proprietary light collection technique to increase the amount of light going into the cell even as cell size is reduced.
According to Tech-On :
“Sharp increased the amount of light that the cell takes in while reducing cell size and ensured a sensitivity of 105mV, which is equivalent to that of the RJ23E3BA0LT. Also, it can output high-definition (720p) video with a frame rate of 30fps. Its smear and saturation power are -86dB (standard) and 400mV (minimum), respectively.”
The company will show off the new Sharp CCD sensor on April 26, 2012 and the expected cost is $33.60 per sensor. Sharp plans to ship 200,000 units per month starting in August 2012.
With 20 megapixel compact cameras arriving on the market consumers could once again see the cost of lower-end cameras tumble. As someone who is satisfied with the quality provided by 12MP and 14MP cameras I have to admit that I’m never sad to see higher end options come out that push down the prices for the middle-of-the-road cameras I purchase.
