The Pixel 8 series may include a brand new camera sensor
So, what’s going on? Well, a well-known developer and tipster, Kuba Wojciechowski, found something interesting. He found references to 2023 Pixels getting staggered HDR support. He found this in the Google Camera Go app. The thing is, the ISOCELL GN1 camera sensor, which is used in the Pixel 6, 6 Pro, 7, and 7 Pro, does not support staggered HDR support. The ISOCELL GN2, on the other hand, does. So, is it possible we’ll get a new camera sensor in the Pixels next year? Well, if the staggered HDR tech is coming, then yeah, it’s quite possible. Many of you are probably wondering what exactly is staggered HDR. That is Samsung’s more modern take on HDR photography, basically. At the moment, Google is using HDR+ with bracketing. It started using that with the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G. It takes five short exposures captured before the shutter button is pressed, and a long exposure when the shutter button is pressed.
Staggered HDR is more advanced than regular HDR and HDR+
Staggered HDR tech, on the other hand, captures three separate exposures (short, medium, and long) in quick succession. Then, it merges those to create a final photo product.
Back when the ISOCELL GN2 launched, Samsung said that staggered HDR tech offers richer detail and more vibrant colors than the ISOCELL GN1’s HDR mode. Staggered HDR is also faster than regular HDR, and we all know how important that is when it comes to photography. Google’s algorithms play a huge role in everything, though, as does the company’s processor. So, Google would have to adapt its new phones quite a bit, to take full advantage of the new chip and staggered HDR. It will be interesting to see if Google will ditch ISOCELL GN1 after two years, or will it keep going, as it did with the IMX363, which it started using with the Pixel 2, and it’s still used, but not in the company’s flagship phones.
