Understanding Digital Imaging Technology

By Colin Ramsden, December 2005.

According to the high-tech market research firm In-Stat, the later part of 2005 saw more camera's being sold in mobile phones than dedicated single use digital still cameras. The Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor shipments used in phones have now surpassed Charge-Coupled Devices (CCDs) used in digital cameras. 

Quoted in Smarthouse (the online lifestyle + technology magazine—www.smarthouse.com.au) "While CMOS has surpassed CCDs the latter still maintain a substantial market share in many camera applications, including mainstream digital still cameras, security cameras, and camcorders. But the CMOS sensors are beginning to gain a foothold in other camera markets as well, including low-end digital still cameras and Web cameras."

"However, their lower price also spells lower revenues for manufacturers and In-Stat believes CMOS revenues will be less than CCD revenues this year."

Which leads me to question why CCD sensors were chosen for (professional) digital camera manufacture and CMOS sensors were not. And conversely, why CMOS sensors were chosen over CCD sensors for "low end" digital cameras (including phone and Web cameras). Obviously cost is a primary factor for manufacturers, but has low production cost been achieved at the expense of image quality?

My opinion is that digital camera manufacturers likely selected CCD sensors because they provided a superior quality image as would be required by professional photographers using a digital camera (to replace analog—film-based cameras), whereas CMOS sensors likely provide a lesser quality image at a cheaper cost and so were only suitable for "low-end" equipment like still (not video) digital cameras, phone cameras, and Web cameras.

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