It's not going to happen just because of how physics of light works. Larger sensor = more room needed between the sensor and the lens = thick smartphone = fail.
Low-end compact cameras - maybe. They're dying anyway. But smartphone quality will always be incomparable with APS-C or FF sensors, small sensor means less information and no computation can restore information that's just not there.
The last sunset landscape has awful technical quality even at the given small size, but if it's really a Samsung from 2012, it's fine. But at the same time it's not an threat-to-Canon illustration either. The first one with the flames looks nice, but the flames are blown out, it would look much nicer had there been more DR in the sensor.
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I think MANY people can live with the minimum 12 mm thick body of a smartphone that has a 2/3rd inch sensor!
The "lens barrel" can extend outwards using a peizo-electric motor drive AND Sony could put in an EXTRA-BIG battery(s) to help with multi-day use. I know MANY in the commercial side of of things who wanted something like the Red Hydrogen smartphone BUT MUCH BEEFIER in the imaging department! AND they are WILLING to pay the $1100 US to $1400 US to make it happen with a 2/3rds inch sensor!
For an APS-C sensor, it will need to be 22mm or thicker or have a very complex multi-ring extending lens-barrel motor drive. With aspherical micro-lenses, the normal 45 mm focal plane of an APS-C sensor can be brought down to AROUND 22mm. When you buy a rugged phone such as the Sonim or Conquest and others, they are at least 22mm or even thicker! That's not too bad for the pros or higher-end consumers who need a backup to their MILC!
And since Sony INVENTED HyperHAD (1987) with the microlenses put overtop of individual sensor photosites, they can EASILY using very high refractive index glass (or even ultra-refractive acrylic!) to make the lens focal plane even shallower!
I actually don't mind larger phones since I've had large rugged phones that are BIG for quite some time, so I'm used to their size! I think MANY others would also be open to a BIG smartphone if the screen resolution, image sensor and battery life were WORLD CLASS !!!
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P.S. the last sunset photo was from a Samsung Omnia-series which was a 2012 era Blackberry-like keypad phone with a 3.15 megapixel camera but for some reason the original is only at 1600 by 1200 pixels. That was done to save space since FEW people had the high rez monitors for displaying 3.15 megapixel photos.
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Now in terms of dynamic range, there are only TWO possible fixes! Either use MUCH LARGER photosites or change the chemistry of the light-sensitive dopants used within the CMOS substrate. Right now, a typical 2/3rds inch sensor is ABOUT 8.8 mm by 6.6 mm so that means an 8192 by 6144 pixel resolution (50.3 megapixel) sensor of that size would have a photosite size of around 0.97 Microns which HAS been done on other sensors from Sony. The dynamic range would be on par with a Canon Powershot camera which isn't that bad!
If Sony wanted to REALLY SPEND THE MONEY and use High Sensitivity Dielectric Films in the photosites THEN they could EASILY MATCH or exceed Canon 1DxMk2 camera in terms of actual sensitivity and MATCH or exceed Nikon's lowest noise cameras (which I personally think is the D850 rather than the D5!), using only a 2/3rds inch sensor.
See paper:
(PDF) High Sensitivity of Dielectric films Structure for Advanced CMOS Image Sensor Technology
PDF | The optical effects of dielectric film properties and thickness are investigated for 0.18um enhanced CMOS image sensor. The spectral response... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate
www.researchgate.net
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Based upon my usual rumour mill sources, I now KNOW that large sensor smartphones ARE COMING and that a 2/3rds inch sensor in a THICK ruggedized smartphone body with a BIG BATTERY is what's coming out first! And THAT manufacturer IS SONY !!!!!!!!!! And it will be an 8192 by 6144 pixel (50.3 megapixels) Bayer-format CMOS sensor! Estimated price will be between $1200 US to as much as $1500 US !!!
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