Canon Bringing CMOS Sensors to the P&S Market!

[GTaudiophile]

Canon to build $451 mln factory for key camera part

TOKYO (Reuters) - Canon Inc. (7751.T: Quote, Profile, Research) will invest about 55 billion yen ($451 million) to build a new factory in Japan to double its production capacity of image sensors used in digital cameras.

A spokesman for the world's largest digital camera maker said it broke ground in May on a new building on an existing site in Kanagawa Prefecture near Tokyo and expected it to start operations in July 2008.

The factory will make complementary metal oxide semiconductors (CMOS), a component used in digital cameras and video cameras to convert light into an electric signal.

The new plant will have roughly the same annual production capacity as another factory in Kanagawa that can churn out 3 million CMOS chips a year, the spokesman said.

The CMOS chips will be used in both single lens reflex (SLR) models as well as in some compact models. Canon's compact cameras have to date used a different type of image sensor called a charge-coupled device (CCD).

Canon has procured CCDs from other suppliers such as Sony Corp. (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research), but it has been developing CMOS sensors for compact models as part of its strategy of bringing key component production in-house to lower costs.

Canon is aiming to produce 24 million digital cameras this year, including 3 million SLRs, which are high-end models that use interchangeable lenses.


This should mean better high ISO / low-light performance for entry-level digicams.

 

[ElFenix]

lets hope the develop a photographer's compact camera instead of more 'lets complicate it to make it simple' fashion accessory crap. sigma is managing to do it (with that simple lens design i hope they are trying to figure out how to use the foveon sensor better). though if any of the traditional companies will be doing it i'd put my money on olympus (4/3 sensor could result in a smaller body and lower costs for 4/3 sensors for oly). apparently nikon might be (considering that their compacts are all junk that isn't surprising)

 

[zig3695]

GREAT news! canon's digital cameras are tops, i dont buy anything else. looks like canon is planning on dominating the market... fine by me.

 

[SonicIce]

Is there any differance between modern CCD and CMOS these days?

 

[Deadtrees]

That's one of the most interesting news I've ever heard in recent years.

As Phil of DPreview said "This could be very significant news, if accurate we could see slightly larger CMOS sensors in compact cameras delivering better quality than todays CCD sensors. I also wouldn't be surprised (or concerned) to see a slight step back in megapixels if it delivered better noise performance and dynamic range," I hope Canon starts making, at least, high-end compact cameras using bigger sensor than nowadays dot sized sensors, not to mention I'm sick of seeing these megapixel madness while the sensor is way too tiny to handle that.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: SonicIce
Is there any difference between modern CCD and CMOS these days?

No. And historically, CCD has delivered superior image quality. The advantages, if any would not be the result of the CMOS sensor in and of itself, but rather would be due to:

- Physically larger sensors
- Lower MP counts
- The fact that these are next generation sensors and have the advantage of being newer technology

Honestly, there's no real difference in performance between CCD and CMOS. Canon's move to put CMOS sensors in their P&S cameras is more from a marketing perspective than anything else. Uninformed people believe (erroneously) that CMOS must be better technology. The simple reality is that Canon's DSLR's perform as well as they do not because of any inherent advantage in the CMOS chip technology, but rather because of Canon's superior image processing software.

ZV

 

[GTaudiophile]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: SonicIce
Is there any difference between modern CCD and CMOS these days?

No. And historically, CCD has delivered superior image quality. The advantages, if any would not be the result of the CMOS sensor in and of itself, but rather would be due to:

- Physically larger sensors
- Lower MP counts
- The fact that these are next generation sensors and have the advantage of being newer technology

Honestly, there's no real difference in performance between CCD and CMOS. Canon's move to put CMOS sensors in their P&S cameras is more from a marketing perspective than anything else. Uninformed people believe (erroneously) that CMOS must be better technology. The simple reality is that Canon's DSLR's perform as well as they do not because of any inherent advantage in the CMOS chip technology, but rather because of Canon's superior image processing software.

ZV

I'm sorry, but I still believe Canon's CMOS sensors to have a low-light/high ISO advantage.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: GTaudiophile

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: SonicIce
Is there any difference between modern CCD and CMOS these days?

No. And historically, CCD has delivered superior image quality. The advantages, if any would not be the result of the CMOS sensor in and of itself, but rather would be due to:

- Physically larger sensors
- Lower MP counts
- The fact that these are next generation sensors and have the advantage of being newer technology

Honestly, there's no real difference in performance between CCD and CMOS. Canon's move to put CMOS sensors in their P&S cameras is more from a marketing perspective than anything else. Uninformed people believe (erroneously) that CMOS must be better technology. The simple reality is that Canon's DSLR's perform as well as they do not because of any inherent advantage in the CMOS chip technology, but rather because of Canon's superior image processing software.

ZV

I'm sorry, but I still believe Canon's CMOS sensors to have a low-light/high ISO advantage.

You're welcome to believe that, but I cannot agree that the current advantage Canon has is anything other than software.

ZV

 

[randomlinh]

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0...sonycmosinvestment.asp

looks like canon was actually playing catchup to sony...

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

This is a good read:

http://www.nikondigital.org/ar...llframe_whitepaper.pdf

Check out Pg. 13 on CCD vs CMOS

 

[Deadtrees]

Originally posted by: GTaudiophile

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: SonicIce
Is there any difference between modern CCD and CMOS these days?

No. And historically, CCD has delivered superior image quality. The advantages, if any would not be the result of the CMOS sensor in and of itself, but rather would be due to:

- Physically larger sensors
- Lower MP counts
- The fact that these are next generation sensors and have the advantage of being newer technology

Honestly, there's no real difference in performance between CCD and CMOS. Canon's move to put CMOS sensors in their P&S cameras is more from a marketing perspective than anything else. Uninformed people believe (erroneously) that CMOS must be better technology. The simple reality is that Canon's DSLR's perform as well as they do not because of any inherent advantage in the CMOS chip technology, but rather because of Canon's superior image processing software.

ZV

I'm sorry, but I still believe Canon's CMOS sensors to have a low-light/high ISO advantage.

When Canon planned making CMOS, experts in that area thought Canon's smoking crack as CMOS technology wasn't stablized and that CMOS does generate far more noise.
It was clever of Canon to come up with some kind of on-chip noise reduction solution along with other solutions, thus Canon's CMOS, in fact, generates less noise than CCD.
I forgot most of details about CCD vs. CMOS issue. What I remember is that 1. CMOS requires less electricy to operate, 2. has wider data stream and such (Parallel data transfer) 3. cheaper/easier to manufacture
4. blooming/smearing effects doesn't exist at all 5. can implement One-chip solution whereas CCD needs extra PCB board to generate the data(ADC, DSP, Clock Generator.) 6. can avoid many of Kodak's patents (A huge deal itself. #1 reason why Canon decided to pioneer CMOS technology.) 7. Far easier and cheaper to produce Full size 35mm format sensors.

Anyway, the most important thing is that Canon is even trying to leave Sony behind by making this move while Sony is still having hard time dealing with Kodak over patents issues. At least, what's for sure is that Canon will no longer have to worry about facing situations that Olympus faced in their prime time (Sony's controlling distribution of CCDs to Olympus resulted Olympus's growth/market dominance to cripple.), not to mention Sony and especially Kodak will suffer quite a lot as #1 sales leader is departing from their pockets.

 

[Deadtrees]

Originally posted by: randomlinh
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0...sonycmosinvestment.asp

looks like canon was actually playing catchup to sony...

No, it's the other way around. Sony is really going into the field of CMOS where Canon landed their feet years before.

 

[randomlinh]

Originally posted by: Deadtrees

Originally posted by: randomlinh
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0...sonycmosinvestment.asp

looks like canon was actually playing catchup to sony...

No, it's the other way around. Sony is really going into the field of CMOS where Canon landed their feet years before.

well, I meant in terms of recent announcements. Sony announcing a HUGE push into CMOS? Is Canon going to sit back and start buying CMOS sensors from sony when they are the ones pushing it in their SLR's? Not to say it was a direct reaction.