Nexus 4 camera has Sony BSI sensor

[Mac58]

Hey I was checking out the verges "review" of the N4 or inside peak at mountain view and I noticed that they said it contained Sonys BSI sensor.. I am not sure but I dont think the current Gen nexus had this and always thought our camera lacked a bit because google could not licencse the technology out from partners. Does this new info mean the camera could be better? Or was the sony BSI sensor always the standard on Nexus devices? Sorry if this is a noob questio but this entire time I had my GNex I thought it had no special imaging sensor and that was why it was not as good as HTC one X or SG3.

BTW this is the video if you guys are interested
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=66-4uMQqerA

Edit: they also said it supports HDR, which was not on my GNex

 

[quamdar]

This is interesting, TBH I know nothing really about BSI. The first time I saw it was on the front page here in the comparison diagram with other phones vs. the Nexus 4 when I noticed it was one of the few without it. Looks like I have some research to do.

 

[TheUI]

I do know that Sony's hardware has done very well for itself on the iPhone in the past, and I am entirely confident that this device will have a much better photography presence than the GNex.

 

[Mac58]

Yes all I know is that the BSI sensors are supposed to help ALOT with photos/videos. I think the comparison chart got it wrong though because Google says it has it. Hopefully this makes for great photos

- - - Updated - - -

I do know that Sony's hardware has done very well for itself on the iPhone in the past, and I am entirely confident that this device will have a much better photography presence than the GNex.

Agreed.

 

[Whyzor]

BSI (Back-Side Illuminated) CMOS sensors place the light gathering part on top of the electronics, to absorb more light & help in low-light situations, it prevents slow shutter speeds that usually result in blurry pictures. It's starting to become the norm in DSLRs and even high-end digital cameras. Another thing important is the lens aperture. The GNex was f2.8, HTC One series & latest Nokia has f2.0, as well as Iphone4/5 with f2.4. The smaller f number, wider opening for the lens, to gather more light, so lower ISO can be used (less noise in picture), and can use faster shutter so less chance of blurry pics.

Too many smartphone reviewers just compare images as a whole, mostly comparing default exposure & saturation settings, which can be easily tweaked. Real camera comparisons should be more like digital camera reviews (dpreview.com for example), looking at 100% image sections for noise under low ISO and high ISO. Also whether the picture is sharp from corner to corner. Also Android lacks long exposure for taking real night-time with tripod shots like the iphone has for a while.

Everything else is software magic/gimicks or can be added as a feature in a camera app.