The Samsung Galaxy S21 lineup is only around six months old, but rumors and leaks surrounding its successors---the Galaxy S22 series---have already started making their way to the internet.
Samsung switched to a 108MP camera sensor for its 'Ultra' flagships over the last couple of years, but it has continued to use a 12MP shooter on the regular and Plus variants of the Galaxy S20 and S21 series. The company could be looking to change this and switch to a 50MP primary shooter for the Galaxy S22 series next year.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Could Finally Get a Camera Upgrade
A new leak suggests that Samsung is planning to use a 50MP primary camera along with a 12MP ultrawide and a 12MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom on its "Rainbow R/G" series of smartphones.
The Galaxy S22 lineup is internally referred to as the "Rainbow," with the regular Galaxy S22 called "red," the Galaxy S22 Plus as "green," and the Galaxy S22 Ultra as "blue."
There's no word on which 50MP sensor Samsung will be using on its 2022 flagship Galaxy S devices. Samsung already has a 1/1.12" 50MP ISOCELL GN2 sensor with a 1.4um pixel size that uses the Tetrapixel technology to combine four pixels into one for an effective pixel size of 2.8um.
It is possible Samsung could use this same 50MP sensor on the non-Ultra Galaxy S22 phones next year. This sensor should allow the regular Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S22 Plus to offer better dynamic range and image quality, especially in low-light scenarios.
For comparison, Samsung uses a 1/1.76" 12MP sensor with 1.8um large pixels for the primary camera on the Galaxy S20 and Galaxy S21 series.
The Telephoto Camera Could Also Get an Upgrade
Apart from the primary camera, Samsung is also looking to upgrade the telephoto camera on the Galaxy S22 series. The company is seemingly planning to use a 12MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom on these devices. Currently, Samsung uses a 64MP sensor on the Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus to offer up to 3x hybrid zoom.
On paper, the switch to a new 12MP telephoto sensor might seem like a downgrade in terms of resolution, but it should still offer better image quality since it would offer a proper optical zoom.
As per the leaker, Samsung will continue to use a 12MP sensor for the ultra-wide camera. However, the company could use a newer or a bigger sensor to offer better image quality and dynamic range.
The Galaxy S22 Series Is Still a Few Months Away from Launch
The Galaxy S22 lineup is still under development, so it's possible that Samsung could change its mind due to engineering or development issues.
Before the Galaxy S22 series lands, though, Samsung will be unveiling its next-gen flagship foldable Galaxy devices for 2021, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Galaxy Z Flip 2. These foldable devices could be launched by Samsung as early as next month.