Samsung Galaxy S11 Series Might Have Dedicated Camera For Night Photography

Samsung is working on improving its offerings for low-light photography, according to a new patent.

Samsung's recent flagships have a low-light photography feature called “Bright Night” mode. This feature allows users of the latest Galaxy S and Note models to capture great photos in dimly-lit settings. While excellent, Bright Night is but a software-based camera enhancement feature.

Now, the Korean tech giant is moving beyond creating camera-enhancing software to working on hardware specifically designed to capture photos at night. According to a trademark filing published by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), Samsung is working on a “Bright Night Sensor” that will be used in a variety of devices.

The trademark filing, first spotted by Dutch-speaking site Let's Go Digital, describes the Bright Night Sensor as “Image sensors for video cameras; [an] Image sensor for photographic devices; Camera image sensors for smartphones; Camera image sensors for tablet computers; Light sensors for smartphone cameras; Light sensors for tablet computer cameras.”

That said, the new camera sensor can be expected to appear in a host of future Samsung devices not limited to smartphones. It can also be expected to debut on the upcoming Galaxy S11 Plus, which is rumored to feature a five-camera setup at the back.

The best camera phone yet

If the trademarked sensor does come with the rumored Galaxy S11 Plus, it appears that Samsung will have the best camera setup in a smartphone yet. The upcoming device is expected to feature the 108MP ISOCELL camera that Samsung developed and first launched on Xiaomi's Mi Note 10. This sensor is the biggest smartphone camera to date, and will allow the device to capture great detail.

GSM Arena added that the Galaxy S11 Plus might feature a periscope module with 5x optical zoom. This camera will allow users to take highly-detailed shots even from afar. The Galaxy S11 series smartphones are also said to feature laser autofocus, and will be able to record videos in 8K.

That said, Samsung hasn't officially announced anything yet, which means it's best to take the rumors and trademark filing easily. Stay tuned for more updates as they come.