Sony has just announced the Lytia 720, a new 50MP sensor for phones, reusing many technologies from the two high-end models Lytia 901 and Lytia 910. This is the sensor that replaces the Lytia 700 in Sony's product line, with the same size as Type 1/1.56 but clearly improves dynamic contrast range and low-light shooting capabilities. Sony said the Lytia 720 will begin mass production deliveries early next month.

The main point of the Lytia 720 is HF-HDR (Hybrid Frame-HDR) technology, similar to the Lytia 901 and 910. The method is to combine dark and medium light data from DCG-HDR (Dual Conversion Gain) with a short exposure frame to preserve details in very bright areas. Sony announced a dynamic range of 100 dB, equivalent to about 16.6 stops. The new noise reduction circuit also reduces random noise when shooting in dark scenes by about 50% compared to Lytia 700.

Regarding video, the sensor records 4K60 HDR, and 4K120 when DCG-HDR is turned off. Taking 50MP photos with full-pixel focus reaches a maximum of 50 frames per second, at 12.5MP it goes up to 90 frames per second, or 30 frames per second if DCG-HDR is enabled.

Resolution | Lytia 720: 50MP | Lytia 910: 50MP | Lytia 901: 200MP

Size | Lytia 720: Type 1/1.56 | Lytia 910: Type 1/1.28 | Lytia 901: Type 1/1.12

HDR technology | Lytia 720: HF-HDR | Lytia 910: HF-HDR, LOFIC | Lytia 901: HF-HDR

Dynamic range | Lytia 720: 100 dB (about 16.6 stops)

Videos | Lytia 720: 4K60 HDR, 4K120

With Type 1/1.56 size, Lytia 720 will likely be the main camera on mid-range Android phones, or telephoto camera on flagship devices. According to PetaPixel, this is also the main camera sensor size of the iPhone 18 Pro, although Apple did not announce details.

Source: PetaPixel