OPPO reveals new-gen RGBW sensor, 85-200mm Continuous Optical Zoom, Five-axis OIS technology, and next-generation under-screen camera!

At the 2021 OPPO Future Imaging Technology Launch Event, Chinese tech giant OPPO revealed an array of image technologies for future smartphones. It includes new sensors, modules, and algorithms.

OPPO Imaging Director Simon Liu

New OPPO mobile camera technologies!

In particular, OPPO released an RGBW sensor, the 85-200mm Continuous Optical Zoom, Five-axis OIS technology, next-generation under-screen camera with a series of proprietary AI algorithms.

According to OPPO "these new technologies have achieved a great leap in smartphone imaging technologies" such as light sensitivity, zoom capability, stabilization, future product form factor pre-research, and more.

To recap, OPPO is the first to unveil the under-screen camera technology back in 2019 at the MWC event in Shanghai. The company is also instrumental in popularizing other camera innovation technologies such as a "periscope module" for super zooming and more.

OPPO said that the new RGBW sensor is made using advanced manufacturing and processing technology, increasing the level of computing power needed to execute complex algorithms and maximizing the amount of data extracted via the sensor’s white pixels.

It uses a proprietary 4-in-1 pixel algorithm to help boost the sensor's color performance to prevent issues such as color inaccuracy and moiré patterns. The sensor even has an "industry-leading" DTI pixel isolation technology which prevents sub-pixel crosstalk and improves image quality.

The company claimed that the new sensor allows 60 percent more light to be captured with 35 percent noise reduction to deliver clearer and brighter images in low light. It also makes "portraits more expressive" in both photo and video with enhancements to skin, texture, and contrast.

OPPO 85-200mm Continuous Optical Zoom

Meanwhile, the OPPO 85-200mm Continuous Optical Zoom supports super smooth zoom uses G+P (glass + plastic) lens technology for the first time. It has two ultra-thin, high-precision aspheric glass lenses to significantly boost optical effects like minimizing stray light.

There is also an innovative application of a tunnel magnetoresistance sensor (TMR sensor) that allows the lenses within the camera module to move with more stability and precision.

To support Continuous Optical Zoom at higher magnifications, it now has an upgraded guiding shaft motor that increases the dynamic tilt at which the lens system can be moved.

OPPO notes that these innovations are designed to support Continuous Optical Zoom at equivalent focal lengths between 85mm and 200mm. This could capture up-close portraits to far-away landscapes without cropping.

Using this tech, OPPO promises that users can enjoy a smooth transition throughout the zoom range with image quality comparable to that of a professional camera. It is also designed to avoid common conventional multi-camera zoom systems problems like jumping, white balance inaccuracy, or color bias.

Five-axis OIS

Next, the Five-axis OIS is said to allow the system processor to receive movement data from the gyroscope, analyze it and break it down into its respective components through algorithms.

Then, the data will be passed into two moveable objects: the lens and the image sensor, which are driven by ball-bearing motors and shape memory alloys, respectively.

OPPO notes that for relatively small movements, images are stabilized mainly through lens-shift OIS–covering horizontal (X) and vertical (Y) shifting. For large movements, the sensor-shift OIS will be utilized. This includes horizontal shifting (x), vertical shifting (y), and rolling – together with algorithm compensation, to achieve stabilization in the five-axis of space.

According to the company, the tech allows a maximum stabilization angle of ±3°, three times more than traditional OIS technology on mobile devices. The sensor can also shift with a precision of 2μm. For night-time or motion shots, OPPO's proprietary algorithm technology can help significantly improve stability, clarity, and color performance; increasing the vibration compensation performance by up to 65 percent.

Last is the next-generation under-screen camera solution for future smartphones. The company said that this new tech ensures a 400 ppi high-quality display.

This uses transparent wiring and a new design resulting in a finer display quality with a smoother visual experience. OPPO notes that each pixel drives only 1 pixel (1-to-1) in the screen OPPO's precise algorithmic compensation technology, the chromaticity and brightness of the entire screen are more precisely controlled, with a deviation of only about 2 percent and an improved screen lifespan of up to 50 percent.

OPPO's US Research Institute has also developed a new series of AI algorithms–including diffraction reduction, anti-condensation, HDR, and AWB–to better optimize the imaging quality of the under-screen camera. Then, the company's AI diffraction reduction model has been trained to control problems caused by diffraction at the light source for clearer, more natural-looking images.

To further strengthen its global R&D capacities to meet the ever-changing imaging demands of users worldwide, OPPO has Imaging Lab in Yokohama, Japan, which is responsible for creating a number of OPPO's self-developed imaging technologies found in the Reno series which has recently launched in the country. OPPO also promised to continue to focus on the implementation of self-developed imaging technologies and further strengthen its cooperation with industry partners to provide users with an even better imaging experience.

The new RGBW sensor will be available in OPPO products from Q4 2021. The OPPO Five-axis OIS will be released in Q1 2022.