Japanese chip maker Renesas, which merged with electronics maker NEC in 2010, has announced it will be integrating 16MP cameras in future handsets.
The CE150 image-processing system chip “will make it possible to produce 16MP phone cameras for the first time, up from the maximum 13MP that are currently available,” explains Crunch.
Users will also be able to use the cameras to shoot 1080p Full HD video.
Renesas showed off a phone camera processor capable of such a feat in December 2008.
The company will begin mass-producing in March, with up to 1 million units being produced each month.
Sample units are available to handset makers for $48, now.
Result for: handset makers
Nokia retained the top spot in the global smartphone market, according to iSuppli, even gaining share in the Q2.
Android’s growing popularity was evident by gains seen by a few handset makers, especially HTC and Samsung.
Nokia took the top spot with a 39.7 percent share, showing 11.6 percent growth from the first quarter. RIM, the makers of the BlackBerry line, remained in second at 18.5 percent, seeing a slight decline in share despite shipping more devices.
Apple took a dive while remaining in third place at 13.9 percent. The iPhone maker dropped from 15.7 percent last quarter on slowing shipments.
Seeing massive growth thanks to Android sales, HTC shipments grew 63 percent and market share jumped to 8 percent. Samsung saw 55.6 percent growth in shipments, moving up to 4.5 percent market share.
Motorola continued its climb, moving to 4.5 percent on 12.5 percent growth.
Says Tina Teng, iSuppli’s senior wireless communications analyst: “From the spectacular growth of HTC and Samsung, to the steady advances of Motorola, Android is the secret sauce for smart phone growth for many companies in 2010.”
Result for: handset makers
The global phone maker Samsung is set to introduce its brand new Blue Earth solar-powered mobile phone today at the Mobile World Congress event in Spain.
The phone is made out of recycled water bottles, prominently features a pedometer and includes software that reminds you how “green” the phone is.
The solar panels are on the back on the handset and the front is a full touchscreen interface. There is no word on pricing or availability as of yet, but we will update the article when more details become available.
This is a nice step in the right direction for handset makers.
