For the first time, Canon has presented its 250MP image sensor inside a prototype camera to the public.
The move comes amid fresh rumors that the long-awaited 100MP Canon "unicorn camera" might finally be coming to market next year, setting new standards for full-frame image sensors.
However, this 250MP LI8020SA sensor – originally announced back in 2015 and quietly brought to market in 2020 – is not full frame, or even APS-C, but adopts the APS-H format. This 29.35 x 18.88mm sensor is larger than APS-C but smaller than full frame, with a 1.3x crop factor. APS-H sized sensors were used by Canon for the EOS-1D series from 2001, up until the Canon EOS-1D Mark IV which launched in 2009.
Canon's prototype 250MP camera was the centerpiece of its booth at this year's China International Public Security Products Expo (CPSE).
"Canon has been committed to developing CMOS image sensor technology to promote the development of new imaging fields," announced the company.
"At this year's CPSE, the focus was on the 250-megapixel high-pixel CMOS image sensor LI8020SA, which can be used for high-precision flat display inspection, industrial inspection and large-scale monitoring."
Designed primarily for industry, the sensor offers 30 times the resolution of 4K. To put that into perspective, you can zoom into an image 125 times and still get FullHD / 1080p resolution!
While Canon clearly designed this sensor for use in sectors such as security, where wide-area pictures can be shot and zoomed-in to retrieve closer detail, its decade-long experience with hyper-resolution sensors is fascinating in context of the consumer market.
After all, the very same year that it announced this 250MP APS-H sensor, Canon also announced a DSLR with a 120MP full frame sensor – so the development of these technologies sure feels intertwined.
Does that mean that the mythic 100MP EOS RS really is on the way? Perhaps. I'm certainly of the belief that people demanding that kind of resolution are in the minority, and will likely be looking more towards medium format cameras to achieve it.
But then, Canon did announce that 120MP DSLR – so clearly it believed that the market was asking for such a product, at least once upon a time. And I'm certainly not going to be mad if it finally gets the green light…
You might be interested in the highest resolution cameras on the market – and in case you didn't know, the Canon EOS R5 can shoot 400MP photos!
