Sony IMX989: Smartphone camera sensor in 1-inch format

The manufacturer wants to push smartphone photography further with the Sony IMX989. Photographers know that the sensor size is crucial for the image quality. Therefore, Sony is apparently launching the first 1-inch smartphone sensor before Samsung, which could make its debut in the Xiaomi 12S Ultra.

Sony IMX989 shows up in Xiaomi 12S Ultra

The official unveiling of the Xiaomi 12S series isn’t scheduled for a few days yet, but the manufacturer has already been hammering us with some exciting teasers for days now, which make us want to know more, especially with regard to the camera performance of the systems developed together with Leica.

Accordingly, the new top model, Xiaomi 12S Ultra, will get a brand-new sensor from Sony: The Sony IMX989. The special feature is the sheer size, because it comes in a 1-inch format – a first in the smartphone segment.

Although the Sony Xperia Pro-I already offered a sensor of this size, it was taken from the RX100 compact camera and not specifically designed for smartphones. In addition, the image section was cropped here, which is not supposed to be the case with the IMX989 according to Xiaomi.

The result should be a significantly better image quality and a better shutter speed, as Xiaomi promises. The resolution of the new Sony sensor is said to be 50 megapixels, with individual pixels coming in at a size of 1.5 µm. That’s according to Sammobile.

An important step towards the recent forecast of Shimizu Terushi, CEO of Sony’s semiconductor division. According to Him, smartphones are expected to outperform DSLR cameras as early as 2024.

Xiaomi 12S Ultra with Sony IMX989: First pictures

What we can expect with the samt Sony IMX989 sensor, show the first camera samples that Xiaomi has published on the Chinese short message service Weibo. According to Gizmochina, they are supposed to have been taken directly from the Leica camera of the Xiaomi 12S Ultra and look impressive.

Xiaomi 12S series: presentation on July 04

The new Xiaomi flagship smartphones, namely the Xiaomi 12S Ultra, 12S Pro and 12S are scheduled to be presented to the public on July 04, 2022. The main focus will be on the camera systems that were developed together with Leica.

While the Ultra uses the already mentioned Sony IMX989, the smaller brothers also come with a new sensor. Xiaomi uses Sony’s IMX707 with 1/1.28 inch. It is almost 50% larger than the IMX766 that was used in the Xiami 12 and 12 Pro.

The improved image quality, in addition to the other technical innovations, should also result in a significantly higher price for the 12S series. However, it is still completely unclear whether the three smartphones will also make it to Europe or whether they will only be reserved for the Chinese market.

Sony itself recently launched the Xperia 1 Mark IV flagship smartphone. A special feature is a real telephoto zoom lens with a focal length range of 85-125 mm. However, the main camera uses a 1/1.7-inch Exmor RS sensor.