Scalado and OmniVision Improve the User Experience with Camera Phones

Scalado, a developer of image processing solutions and OmniVision Technologies, a supplier of CMOS image sensors, announced a technology collaboration meant to make camera phones more user-friendly. As part of the collaboration, OmniVision added a hardware feature into its new 3.2-megapixel OV3640 CameraChip that allows cameras to take optimal advantage of Scalado's SpeedView technology.

"This collaboration with Scalado is a critical element in our ongoing commitment to bringing a better overall experience to the camera phone user," said James He, Chief Operating Officer at OmniVision. "OmniVision's focus has long been to improve camera performance and user friendliness, both through sensor-level improvements and the addition of new features. The OV3640's dynamic range and image stabilization function allows camera phone users to take better pictures, and adding a faster (MIPI) interface makes sharing images much easier. Now, with the addition of the Scalado technology, we can expand our improvements beyond the sensor alone."

The OV3640 is the first sensor that is completely compatible with Scalado's SpeedView technology. The new technology in the sensor allows users to capture what they actually see on the viewfinder and then to replay the captured image instantly, instead of capturing a photo several frames later. This enhanced functionality is especially useful when capturing spontaneous moments or a quick series of events. In addition, SpeedView enables real-time viewing, zooming and panning of the captured images at a rate of 10-20 images per second in the phone's image gallery, without the need for any additional hardware. Also, by using Scalado's RAJPEG technology, SpeedView reduces memory requirements by a factor of 25x.

"Long capture and shot-to-shot times have been a complaint ever since the megapixel race began," said Sami Niemi, CTO for Scalado. "What-you-see-is-what-you-get capturing makes it possible to really capture the moment, which is the true essence of any camera phone. Plus, by adding instant photo file maneuvering that allows users to find and share pictures quickly and easily, we have addressed another major complaint cited by a majority of camera phone users."