Broadcom VideoCore IV Processor Capable of 1080p recording, 20MP camera, due 2011

mrk

mrk

mrk

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Mydgitiallife reports on the next gen camera sensor which integrates a full GPU with many other features ready for next gen smart phones.

We should see these by 2011 they say....

Source- http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/...lLife+(My+Digital+Life)&utm_content=Google+UK

Previously we mentioned about Omnivision QV5650 full HD (High Definition) 1080p capable camera sensor module, now there is an even more powerful module from Broadcom targeted for next generation smartphone products. Named as BCM2763 VideoCore IV, it is claimed to be able to provide 20MP of digital camera still resolution on top of full HD 1080p video capturing capability with advanced feature sets suitable to various mobile applications.



The BCM2763 is based on 40nm CMOS technology so you can expect a much smaller foot print, cheaper cost and much thermally efficient as compared to its predecessors that were based on 65nm process technology. The power figure of around 490mW for full HD H.264 encoding and merely 160mW for media playback and graphics rendering are few significant improvements that can prolong the portability with four to six hours of full HD video recording and up to ten hours of continuously mobile playback. Besides, the tiny module integrates all the functions including GPU, 128MB LPDDR2 graphics and video memory, USB 2.0 as well as HDMI video output. Other advanced features include face detection, image stabilization, multiple shots per second and many more that make it a perfect solution for high end smartphones.

No pricing information yet, the next generation mobile smarphone based on BCM2763 processor is expected to reach consumer market by 2011.
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That's pretty impressive, 20MP resolution, less heat generated so less image noise, a faster image buffer, image stabilisation...definitely no need for a notebook with HDMI at that time :p
 
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20MP, seriously? Why? Don't the vast majority of cameraphone images just get uploaded to the web anyway? Just how much cropping are the users planning to do? :p
 
Well with a 20MP sensor you could choose 10MP in settings and be sure you'll be getting perfect quality images :p
 
mrk said:
Well with a 20MP sensor you could choose 10MP in settings and be sure you'll be getting perfect quality images :p
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Just wish they would stick with 5-8 (max) and deal more with the noise. That many pixels on a sensor the size of a pin (well not quite), just imagine what they could do with the noise if they only stuck to a normal amount of pixels.

(Bearing in mind most DSLR's have less than 20MP with only the Professional £2000+ cameras with just more (22-24mp usually)).
 
Noise cannot be avoided at all because the size of the sensor itself. It can only be minimised by newer build processes like this new Broadcom one at 45nm - which makes it run cooler and thus have less image noise - the only alternative is to increase sensor size like on a DSLR but that's never going to be possible on a phone sized device so the build process has to be improved (hence 45nm) as it improves speed, efficiency and heat generation.

It's only going to continue to get smaller as well.
 
1080p recording on a mobile? :cool:

Can't wait to see what the phone that is the first on the market that can do that looks like. Probably be a right ugly thing. :D

Just in time for the Olympics I guess. :p 1080p coverage of Usain Bolt looking like a blur.
 
Well you can bet it will be a HTC phone, those guys kick out new hardware every few months with new features, new speed and a shiny new Android OS as it will be from now on.

So everything will be awesome!
 
And very expensive I'm sure.

Maybe one day we will have a device that can do everything well. (If someone says the iphone does I might have to kill them.)

Having 1080p recording in your pocket sounds like a great idea though, perhaps this technology will also be used in dedicated recording devices too, making them even smaller.
 
The best thing about this chip though is not the camera itself but the fact that its a GPU as well so unifies a lot of the phone's internals on one chipset and being 45nm will make it quite efficient on battery life.

I'd be interested for that aspect alone but the camera is certainly mouth watering on paper :p
 
mrk said:
Well you can bet it will be a HTC phone, those guys kick out new hardware every few months with new features, new speed and a shiny new Android OS as it will be from now on.

So everything will be awesome!
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Could well be. Wonder if it'll look nice or not though. :p
 
Well considering every Android HTC phone to date was called ugly then suddenly it was given the "it's grown on me" status I can predict the exact same :p
 
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