Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra May Get Custom 200-Megapixel Sensor, Sunny Optical Joins Supply Chain: Reports

Samsung Galaxy S23 series has been in rumours for quite some weeks now. The lineup is expected to include three models — Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23+ and Galaxy S23 Ultra. The development of the new series has not been confirmed by Samsung yet, but ahead of it, the camera details of the Galaxy S23 Ultra have leaked online. The rumoured flagship smartphone is said to carry a quad rear camera unit led by a 200-megapixel Samsung ISOCELL sensor. The main rear camera sensor could have a pixel size of 0.6-micron pixels and an f/1.7 aperture. Samsung has reportedly expanded the supply chain for Galaxy S23 Ultra, and Sunny Optical could be providing 12-megapixel and 10-megapixel sensors for the upcoming flagship.

In the last two years, Samsung has unveiled a 200-megapixel ISOCELL HP1 sensor and a 200-megapixel ISOCELL HP3 sensor based on pixel-binning technology to deliver a maximum image resolution of 200 megapixels. The ISOCELL HP1 has a pixel size of 0.64-micron pixels, while the ISOCELL HP3 has a smaller pixel size of 0.56-micron pixels. As per a report by Phonearena, Samsung will pack a custom 200-megapixel ISOCELL sensor on the upcoming Galaxy S23 Ultra that would sit between these two sensors, with a pixel size of 0.64-micron pixels, 1/1.3 sensor size, and f/1.7 aperture. It is said to have a pixel-binned resolution of 50-megapixel as well.

As per the report, the 50-megapixel pixel-binned mode of the sensor would return 1.12-micron pixels. In low-light conditions, the resolution could be lowered to 12.5-megapixel, but with a pixel size of 2.4-micron pixels and Samsung's image processing technologies, it could offer a unique night shooting mode. The default 50-megapixel mode could allow users to record 8K video in full size.

The upcoming Galaxy S23 Ultra is said to come equipped with four cameras at the rear with a similar camera configuration as this year's Galaxy S22 Ultra. Apart from the 200-megapixel primary sensor, there could be a 12-megapixel ultra-wide shooter, a 10-megapixel telephoto shooter with 10x optical zoom support, and a 10-megapixel telephoto shooter with 3x optical zoom. The Galaxy S23 Ultra also reportedly come with a new 12-megapixel selfie sensor.

As reported by The Elec (Korean), Samsung will have new camera suppliers for the folded zoom optics 10-megapixel sensor. Sunny Optical has reportedly joined Samsung's supply chain to provide the 12-megapixel ultra-wide and 10-megapixel folded zoom (10x) shooters for the upcoming Galaxy S23 Ultra.