Sony on Monday announced its latest and thinnest back-illuminated CMOS image sensor that will no doubt help manufacturers create thinner smartphones. “Sony has succeeded in establishing a structure that layers the pixel section containing formations of back-illuminated structure pixels over the chip affixed with mounted circuits for signal processing, which is in place of supporting substrates used for conventional back-illuminated CMOS image sensors,” Sony explained in its announcement. “By this stacked structure, large-scale circuits can now be mounted keeping small chip size.” The chip’s features include:

• Large-scale signal processing circuits required for higher image quality and better functionality are built-in
• More compact image sensor chip size
• Even higher image quality of the pixel section by adopting manufacturing processes specialized for superior image quality
• Faster speeds and lower power consumption by adopting the leading process for the circuit section

Sony will begin shipping samples to manufacturers in March. The company’s full press release follows after the break.

Sony Develops Next-generation Back-Illuminated CMOS Image Sensor which Embodies the Continuous Evolution of the Camera Expanding Shooting Enjoyment and Advanced Functionality of Smartphones and Other Devices -

Tokyo, Japan – January 23, 2012 – Sony Corporation (“Sony”) today announced that it has developed a new next-generation back-illuminated CMOS image sensor which embodies the continuous evolution of the camera. This image sensor layers the pixel section containing formations of back-illuminated structure pixels onto chips containing the circuit section for signal processing, which is in place of supporting substrates for conventional back-illuminated CMOS image sensors. This structure achieves further enhancement in image quality, superior functionalities and a more compact size that will lead to enhanced camera evolution.

Hereafter, Sony will position it as the next generation back-illuminated CMOS image sensors, and unwaveringly strive to further develop this image sensor and expand its product lineup, thereby contributing to the further development of user-friendly cameras and to shooting enjoyment.

Features of stacked CMOS image sensor

• Large-scale signal processing circuits required for higher image quality and better functionality are built-in
• More compact image sensor chip size
• Even higher image quality of the pixel section by adopting manufacturing processes specialized for superior image quality
• Faster speeds and lower power consumption by adopting the leading process for the circuit section

Background of development

The popularization of smartphones and other devices in recent years has been accompanied by an increasingly diverse use of camera functionality. This has brought heightened demand for more sophisticated cameras, to ensure adaptability to a wider range of scenes and Sony developed this stacked CMOS image sensor to meet such demand. In addition to the higher pixel numbers, superior image quality and faster speeds which conventional image sensors pursued, the newly-developed image sensors further achieve more highly-advanced functionalities and a more compact size, thus paving the way for enhanced camera evolution.
As the first step towards the commercialization of its new CMOS image sensors, Sony has developed a model with built-in signal processing functionality, an element that usually requires external embedment. Samples will be shipped from March, 2012. Accordingly, models have been developed with Sony’s unique “RGBW Coding” function, which facilitates low noise, high quality image capture even in low light condition, and the proprietary “HDR (High Dynamic Range) Movie” function, which achieves brilliant color even when taking pictures against bright light.

About stacked CMOS image sensors
Conventional CMOS image sensors mount the pixel section and analog logic circuit on top of the same chip, which require numerous constraints when wishing to mount the large-scale circuits such as measures to counter the circuit scale and chip size, measures to suppress noise caused by the layout of the pixel and circuit sections, and optimizing the characteristics of pixels and circuit transistors.

Sony has succeeded in establishing a structure that layers the pixel section containing formations of back-illuminated structure pixels over the chip affixed with mounted circuits for signal processing, which is in place of supporting substrates used for conventional back-illuminated CMOS image sensors. By this stacked structure, large-scale circuits can now be mounted keeping small chip size. Furthermore, as the pixel section and circuit section are formed as independent chips, a manufacturing process can be adopted, enabling the pixel section to be specialized for higher image quality while the circuit section can be specialized for higher functionality, thus simultaneously achieving higher image quality, superior functionality and a more compact size. In addition, faster signal processing and lower power consumption can also be achieved through the use of leading process for the chip containing the circuits.

An image of HTC’s upcoming smartphone code-named “Ville” has leaked online, revealing a sleek design to match the phone’s remarkably thin frame. Earlier this month, BGR exclusively reported preliminary details on the HTC Ville, which is expected to be unveiled at Mobile World Congress in February ahead of an April launch. Now, Pocketnow.com has published the first image of the smartphone, which appears to resemble a thinner HTC Sensation. The HTC Ville is expected to feature an 8-millimeter thick case containing a 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED display, a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, an 8-megapixel camera, HSPA+, a 1,650 mAh battery and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with the HTC Sense 4.0 UI.

Read

Just a few days ago, reports began to surface that HTC was working on building a new tablet powered by NVIDIA’s brand new quad-core Tegra 3 processor. It’s no surprise — a number of tablet makers use NVIDIA’s dual-core Tegra 2 chip and it’s only natural for those companies to progress to the newer, faster chip. Now, specs and an image of a purported HTC tablet code-named “Quattro” have been published by Pocketnow. The device is said to pack a 10.1-inch display with a 1280 x 768-pixel resolution, 1GB of RAM, Bluetooth 4.0 and 16GB of storage. Like a number of HTC’s most recent high-end smartphones, the Quattro could sport Beats Audio support, too. Other features include a 2-megapixel rear-facing camera (a suspiciously low resolution) that is capable of recording 720p HD video and a 1.3-forward facing video camera for video chats. Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi/3G models of the tablet will reportedly ship next year.

Read

Nokia may be poised to unveil at least two new Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) devices during its Nokia World conference next week. Pocketnow spilled an image of the Nokia “Sabre” on Thursday, which reportedly packs a 1.4GHz processor, a 3.5-inch WVGA display, a 5-megapixel camera and 1GB of storage. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said we can expect to see “a bunch” of Windows Phone handsets from Nokia during Nokia World, which kicks off on October 26th. We have already published plenty of purported details on the Nokia 800, also known as the Sea Ray, but perhaps Nokia still has a few surprises up its sleeve. The good news is we have just under a week until Nokia makes it all official. 

Read

The first purported image of the upcoming Nexus Prime smartphone has been published by GSMArena.com, possibly giving the world its first glimpse at Google’s next flagship Android handset. The image doesn’t reveal much, though it does show a sleek contour and it seemingly reaffirms the presence of a 720p Super AMOLED HD display. BGR reported exclusive preliminary details on the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich-powered Prime back in June, and we followed up with additional details later that month. In late August, we reported that Verizon Wireless would launch the phone this month as the DROID Prime, helping to explain why the carrier passed on Samsung’s wildly popular Galaxy S II smartphone. Samsung and Google are expected to unveil the device at a press conference next week, where BGR will be reporting live.

Read

BGR exclusively reported in March that Research In Motion was working to bring its popular BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) platform to Android smartphones and the iPhone. Now, images that purportedly show a beta version of the chat application running on an Android device have been leaked by TechRadar. Reportedly, the app is set to launch on Android before next year and RIM is already in the final stages of testing the solution. The leak lines up with BGR’s original report that RIM would develop an Android client before an iOS version. In addition, BGR reported that RIM will likely limit the features of BBM on iOS and Android in an effort to woo users who want a more robust BBM experience back to a BlackBerry. RIM has plenty of stiff competition in the chat space, however. Applications such as Kik, Skype-owned GroupMe, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger all offer similar features and are available across multiple mobile platforms, and Apple’s iMessage service will launch this month with iOS 5. Hit the jump for a second image that provides a better look at the UI.

UPDATE: As pointed out by a tweet from Chris Parsons, it appears as though the image used in the screenshot below was pieced together from a marketing shot posted by RIM in August.

Read

Samsung announced is Exynos 4212 processor on Thursday, a new dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 chip. Samsung said the 4212 offers a 25% increase in processing power, 50% higher 3D performance and “double the logic density and a 30% lower power-level over the previous process generation” chip, which currently powers most of its Galaxy S II smartphones. The Eynos 4212 will be used in both tablets and smartphones; currently, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Galaxy Tab 8.9 run dual-core Tegra 2 chips from NVIDIA. The Exynos 4212 processor also supports 1080p HD video recording and playback. Samsung expects to begin sampling the Exynos 4212 during the fourth quarter of this year. The company also announced a new 16-megapixel CMOS image sensor for tablets and smartphones, as well as a 1.2-megapixel HD video module that will be included in future device for video chat. Read on for the full Exynos press release from Samsung.

Samsung Unveils its Next High-Performance Application Processor for Smartphone and Tablet Devices

Samsung Mobile Solutions Forum 2011

TAIPEI, Taiwan–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor solutions, today introduced the latest addition to its Exynos product family – the Exynos 4212 – a dual core ARM Cortex™-A9 application processor, designed on Samsung’s advanced 32nm High-K Metal Gate (HKMG) low-power process. With best-in-class performance, the dual-core Exynos 4212 offers mobile device systems architects a new solution designed to support a high-quality user-experience and energy-efficient requirements of smartphones and tablet devices. Samsung’s new Exynos application processor is displayed at the eighth annual Samsung Mobile Solutions Forum held at the Westin Taipei.

“As innovative technologies appear on the mobile landscape, the market continues to embrace further developments and performance acceleration in mobile computing”

“As innovative technologies appear on the mobile landscape, the market continues to embrace further developments and performance acceleration in mobile computing,” said Seh-Woong Jeong, executive vice president of System LSI sales & marketing, Device Solutions, Samsung Electronics. “Samsung is addressing this trend with its powerful low-power Exynos family of processors based on its proven design technology and cutting-edge process technology for performance and power improvements at the system level.”

Leveraging its deep sub-micron expertise in high-performance/low-power technology, Samsung designed the Exynos 4212 on its 32nm low-power HKMG logic process technology with dual Cortex-A9 cores. Samsung’s 32nm HKMG process node is specifically tuned to offer a competitive, cutting-edge platform with double the logic density and a 30 percent lower power-level over the previous process generation.

In addition to the 25 percent increase in processing power, the new processor features an enhanced graphics processing unit (GPU) that is capable of delivering 50 percent higher 3D graphics performance over the previous processor generation from Samsung.

The Exynos 4212 incorporates a rich portfolio of advanced codec accelerators that support digital still images, video recording and play-back at 1080p full-HD resolution, an image signal processor and an on-chip HDMI 1.4 interface.

Samsung’s new Exynos 4212 application processor will be sampling to select customers in Q4 2011.

Samsung also launched a new website dedicated to its Exynos family of application processors. Designed to facilitate easy communication with industry partners and end users, the new micro site offers detailed product and event information as well as user experiences. More information can be found at www.samsung.com/exynos.

Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha has noted his company’s intentions to launch a 7-inch tablet a number of times, and images of the device may have just broken cover. This is my next leaked a photo of a white tablet on Monday that, if compared to the size of the unknown phone in the background, appears to sport a 7-inch form factor. A Motorola Mobility logo is slightly visible on the top-left of the tablet and there are two I/O ports on the bottom, presumably microUSB and HDMI-out. It is possible this is an Android Honeycomb tablet, although that is still unconfirmed. It is also still unclear when the tablet will be announced, if ever, or what kind of hardware it packs under the hood.

Read

The image above, which shows a plate of sushi accompanied by a rather bland looking avocado roll, is reportedly the first publicly-posted image captured by the upcoming iPhone 5′s new 8-megapixel camera. Pocketnow claims to have found the image hosted somewhere on the web, though it neglects to specify its source. Previous images in the blog’s “test photo” series, of which this post is a part, typically source images from Flickr or Picasa. In this case, the image’s EXIF data indicates that it was captured by an iPhone 4 but the rest of the data suggests that a different device was used. “Although the image has been cropped to 2235×2291 (5.12 megapixels), the original picture was a much larger 3264×2448 — or just shy of eight megapixels,” the blog says. “What’s more, the lens was recorded as a 4.3mm f/2.4, which is closer to that of a point-and-shoot than the iPhone 4′s actual 3.85mm f/2.8.” Apple’s iPhone 5 is expected to launch next month alongside an updated iPhone 4.

Read

A purported marketing image of an upcoming Nokia Windows Phone has been published by WMPoweruser, and it could confirm several specs surrounding one of Nokia’s first Windows Phone devices. Dubbed the Nokia 703, the specs provided on the image above, if accurate, suggest that we’re looking at a mid-range handset. Some speculate that the device may be Nokia’s “Sea Ray,” though it was believed that the Sea Ray would share the same 3.9-inch AMOLED display as the Nokia N9. Nokia 703 spec highlights apparently include a 3.7-inch 480 x 800-pixel LCD display, a 5-megapixel camera with support for 720p HD video capture, 8GB of storage, 512MB of RAM and dimensions coming in at 112 x 60.8 x 12.3-millimeters. Though the text on the sheet is extremely blurry, it also looks like Nokia intends to launch the device on November 27th, but we’ll likely learn more at Nokia World in October.

Read

Earlier reports of a redesigned iPhone 5 with a larger display and an elongated home button gained momentum on Wednesday when a new iPhone icon was discovered by 9to5 Mac. The icon was found within official Apple software — the latest Photo Stream beta for developers — and it clearly shows a phone that deviates sharply from the current iPhone 4. The display appears to encompass more of the phones face and the home button is most certainly not round, as it has been on each of the previous four iPhone models. This is just an icon we’re looking at, of course, but it could be a safe bet that Apple’s forthcoming fifth-generation iPhone will resemble the design seen above. A closeup of the iPhone 5 icon follows below.

Read

A newly leaked marketing render of HTC’s upcoming Omega Windows Phone shows off one of the popular vendor’s first Mango-powered smartphones. BGR exclusively reported on Monday that HTC will be announcing multiple Windows Phones at a special event on September 1st. One will be the HTC Eternity, headed to AT&T in the near future, and another will be the T-Mobile-bound HTC Omega, pictured above for the first time. Pocketnow.com published the image on Thursday, and claimed that the phone could launch with the name “HTC Radar.” Omega, of course, is likely to remain a codename. Earlier rumors suggested that the Omega will pack a 1.5GHz processor, 512MB of RAM and an 8-megapixel camera. Rumor also suggests the device will include a 3.8-inch display, though our report indicated a 4.5-inch display size. Judging from the image above, 3.8 inches seems entirely more likely, which could mean that AT&T’s Eternity will sport the monster 4.5-inch screen we’ve been hearing about. We’ll all know for certain when HTC unveils both phones next Thursday.

Read

Chinese blog 911Sniper has uncovered evidence of a new, HTC tablet with a 10-inch form factor. Being called the HTC Puccini, the Android 3.0.1 slate boasts a 1.5GHz Qualcomm MSM8660 processor, 1280 x 800 pixel WXGA resolution, HTC’s Sense experience, and an AT&T compatible LTE radio. The Puccini, should it come to market, would be a larger version of the company’s Flyer offering — complete with Scribe pen support. HTCSniper has a good track record when it comes to unearthing HTC hardware through ROM leaks, so we wouldn’t be too surprised to see this one get official in the near future. 

[Via Engadget]

Read

RIM is currently prepping two new non-touchscreen additions to its Curve line this year, codenamed the Apollo (GSM) and Sedona (CDMA). On top of that, the company is said to be working on a full touchscreen Curve, appropriately dubbed the Curve Touch. Now, to confuse matters even further, BlackBerry enthusiast blog N4BB reveals an image of what it purports to be the BlackBerry Orlando — which is apparently just like the Apollo and Sedona, but with the addition of a touchscreen. No further details are available, which makes an unveiling of the Orlando in Orlando next month unlikely. Don’t fret though, BlackBerry fans, as we’re sure RIM will have a few other smartphones to show off at BlackBerry World.

Read

Blog PocketNow has acquired an image of what is presumed to be AT&T’s variant of the LG Optimus One. The popular, mid-level device — which sports a 3.2-inch touchscreen display, 800MHz processor, and largely unmolested version of Android 2.2. — is available on a half-dozen regional and national U.S. carriers. We would expect the device to be released under the moniker Optimus A — as is customary: Optimus + first letter of carrier name — but with AT&T, you never really know. If you read our report from earlier this morning, you’ll know that Android handsets costing under $150 are projected to be big business in 2011.

Read