Samsung’s latest 200MP sensor could be a fantastic upgrade for Galaxy S27 Ultra
Samsung debuted the first 200MP smartphone camera sensor back in 2022, and it has offered a variety of 200MP sensors since then. The pixels on these sensors are tiny, though, which isn’t great for im…
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Samsung debuted the first 200MP smartphone camera sensor back in 2022, and it has offered a variety of 200MP sensors since then. The pixels on these sensors are tiny, though, which isn’t great for image quality. However, the company’s latest 200MP camera sensor brings an interesting solution.
Samsung has quietly announced the ISOCELL HPC camera sensor (thanks, Dylan H!). At first glance, this 200MP sensor has a lot in common with the ISOCELL HP2 used on the Galaxy S26 Ultra and its predecessors. That means a 1/1.3-inch sensor, 0.6-micron pixels, and Super Quad Phase-Detection autofocus.
However, the ISOCELL HPC is Samsung’s first smartphone sensor to use so-called DeepPix technology. The company describes this as a new pixel structure that improves full-well capacity by 60%. Full-well capacity refers to the amount of charge or electrons that can be stored in a pixel. A greater full-well capacity enables improved dynamic range, reduced noise, and better image quality in general.
Unsurprisingly, Samsung says you can indeed expect brighter highlights, richer shadows, and HDR images with reduced noise. It also says the new sensor offers 16-bit single-frame HDR, achieving four times greater color capture than standard HDR. It also offers 16-bit RAW capture compared to 12-bit and 14-bit RAW seen on previous 200MP Samsung sensors. For what it’s worth, Sony’s LYT-901 200MP sensor seems to top out at 12-bit HDR.
There’s good news for videographers, too, as the ISOCELL HPC brings key upgrades. Expect 4K/180fps video capture for smoother slow-mo clips as well as 1080p/360fps capture. Otherwise, video recording still tops out at 8K/30fps.
Samsung says the ISOCELL HPC is currently in mass production, so it’s possible that we could see this camera sensor on some next-generation Android phones. I hope to see this on the Galaxy S27 Ultra, as it would be a fine replacement for the identically sized ISOCELL HP2, which has been used as the primary camera since 2023’s Galaxy S23 Ultra. Furthermore, the new camera sensor and its expanded dynamic range come as more brands embrace LOFIC sensors, which also offer increased dynamic range.
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