Unlike most other smartphone brands, which are moving towards a 1-inch camera sensor while keeping the 50MP resolution in flagship devices, Samsung is moving in the other direction. It is using a 200MP camera sensor which is much smaller than the 1-inch sensor used in competing smartphones. And it looks like it will stick to 200MP sensors for the next few years.
It was already reported that the Galaxy S24 Ultra would continue to use a 200MP camera sensor. Now, a new rumor claims that even the Galaxy S25 Ultra and the Galaxy S26 Ultra will use a 200MP camera sensor. These two smartphones will reportedly feature a slightly improved 200MP ISOCELL HP2 sensor with improvements in light capture and a 17nm fabrication. The Galaxy S27 Ultra, on the other hand, could use a bigger, 1/1.12-inch ISOCELL camera sensor.
Apple may adopt a 1-inch camera sensor earlier than Samsung
While no details have been provided for the Galaxy S27 Ultra's camera sensor, it could be the 1/1.12-inch ISOCELL GN2, which was launched last two years ago and used in the Xiaomi 11 Ultra. Or it could be an improved version of the ISOCELL GN2. However, you should take this information with a pinch of salt, as plans can change for such long-term projects.
If the Galaxy S27 Ultra's camera information is correct, Samsung will take three years to come close to a 1-inch camera sensor size, and it is possible that Apple will move to a 1-inch sensor earlier than Samsung. A 50MP 1-inch sensor offers a great balance of pixel size and resolution, offering enough resolution for images and 8K video recording while still keeping pixels large enough that they can capture a good amount of light even without pixel binning.
