Kodak promise better camera phones

These days most of us have a mobile phone, a generous proportion of them being equipped with a camera of some sort. This amalgamation of two common gadgets: the phone and the camera has saved pocket and handbag space for millions of people who want to be able to shoot on the go.

Meanwhile camera enthusiasts have rested easy on the fact that despite the ever-increasing number of mega-pixels these camera phones can churn out that the quality or rather the clarity of the pictures taken on mobile phones were always going to be grainy or noisy compared to their £200 Digital SLR camera. But it’s an old school camera manufacturer that is proposing new technology that will give these bulky cameras a run for their money.

Kodak has developed a new sensor small enough to fit in camera phones that can handle high quality 5MP digital stills and can shoot impressive 720p High Definition video too. Kodak will be leaving the camera market sweating next week at the Mobile World Congress when it unveils its new KAC-05020 sensor.

The camera tech company has implied that current and next generations of Mobile Phones will favour the new 1.4 micron sensor over the traditional 1.75 micron CMOS sensor as it provides clear, noise-free pictures even in low light situations. The sensor will be able to handle most modern features such as red-eye reduction and image stabilising to get the best shots on wobbly nights out.

Kodak’s Director of Marketing said, “For consumers today, high resolution is required but no longer sufficient. Smaller and thinner camera phones, high performance under low light, and superior video performance are the types of features that will enable the next generation of consumer imaging devices.”

The biggest hill to climb is convincing camera makers to use the sensor which may prove difficult especially with the expense a sensor like this will cost. It is expected that companies who are trying to integrate their camera divisions with Mobile Phones such as SonyEricsson and Samsung will welcome this advance as they have product lines targeting the user who wants to have both a digital camera and a mobile phone without having to compromise on quality. It is estimated that Mobile Phones will carry this sensor as early as 2009.