Canon has developed an APS-H camera sensor that fits an astonishing 250 million pixels, setting a world record for the highest number of pixels for a CMOS sensor smaller than 35 mm.

The company says its new sensor is capable of distinguishing the lettering on the side of an airplane flying at a distance of over 11 miles away.

Canon’s new 250-megapixel sensor

It’s also capable of extremely high resolution video: approximately 125 times that of 1080p Full HD (1,920 x 1,080 pixels) video, or roughly 30 times that of 4K (3,840 x 2,160 pixels) video. This isn’t for shooting crazy-sharp footage, but rather to allow cropping and magnifying video images without sacrificing resolution and clarity.

A camera prototype equipped with the

Canon’s new sensor

This isn’t going to replace the sensor in your smartphone anytime soon. Canon says it will likely be used in “specialized surveillance and crime prevention tools, ultra-high-resolution measuring instruments and other industrial equipment, and the field of visual expression.”

➤ Canon develops APS-H-size CMOS sensor with approximately 250 megapixels, the world’s highest pixel count for its size [Canon via The Verge]

Image credit: Ken Wolter / Shutterstock.com

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