You may have heard of the new terms Nona Binning & Tetra Binning so what actually are those terms.
Before knowing about those let us know about Pixel Binning which is the base for those terms!
Pixel Binning
To understand Pixel Binning we must first know what is a Pixel? A pixel is a short form of picture element. It is an element which capture light. So for cameras or say mobile cameras we have what we call as a Megapixel. So 1 Megapixel is 10^6 Pixels. Each pixel stores visual information about the picture.
So coming to Pixel Binning, it is a technology where clusters of adjacent pixels are clubbed together to form one pixel or called as SuperPixel. The purpose of this technology is low light performance. Light performance depends upon the sensor size. Higher the sensor size, less the noise. If we cram more megapixels into one sensor they would naturally capture less light. So to solve this issue Pixel Binning emerged!!
Nona Binning
In modern Samsung smartphone such as the S22 Ultra. The image sensor groups 9×9 individual pixel into one pixel. So thanks to this Pixel Binning technology the pixel size in S22 Ultra increases from 0.8μm to 2.4μm. So due to this the camera produces a less mega pixel image. (108/9 =12) But at the same time the image is more detailed as compared to traditional 12MP sensor as higher number of pixel capture the same image.
Tetra Binning
In Tetra Binning images are combined in a grid of 2×2. Each pixel size in S22 and S22+ is 1μm but due to pixel Binning the pixel size increases to 2μm. So due to this Pixel Binning the camera produces a less MP but detailed image of 12.5MP (50/4 =12.5)
ADAPTIVE PIXEL
SO 12.5 MP > 12 MP? S22 Ultra vs S22/S22+
So the conclusion is 12.5 images of S22/S22+ Better than 12MP of S22 Ultra. Well technically not!!!
S22 Utra uses an advanced technology know as adaptive pixel! S22 Ultra combines both the images (Captured in Nona Binning and Traditional 108 MP) using advanced AI and Boom!! It transforms the image into a so called super image. Take like an example where you combine 2 pictures from 2 layers on a butterpaper or translucent paper.
Disadvantages of this technology?
So as we discussed the advantages there are a couple of disadvantage too!! The disadvantage is the expense of resolution. The details are low as compared to a full sized 108MP but using advanced AI of Samsung the effects are minimized due to the use of adaptive pixel!!
Pixel binning lacks RAW output. Since RAW output is the encapsulation of the raw sensor data, a pixel-binned version cannot exist. If the JPG algorithms being used by a smartphone are aggressive in favor of reducing file size, the compression would result in even more detail degradation. But you have an option of clicking pics using Pixel Binning or RAW images!!
Hope this information helped you! Suggest me if you want some intresting tech topics like this!
Thank you
#Foxhound
