The sad truth about today’s consumers is that most people think more megapixels translates to better photos. I can tell you right now that the 5 megapixel shooter on the back of my old iPhone 4 gave me better photos than the 8 megapixel camera on my Galaxy Note II. Why am I bothering to mention this? Because according to the Korean publication ET News, Samsung will stick a 16 megapixel camera in 25% of the smartphones they plan on selling in 2014.
Samsung will sell a combined 100 million units of its Galaxy S and Note series this year. About one third of all smartphones it sells.
— Horace Dediu (@asymco) November 6, 2013
Now to put this 25% figure into some context, Horace Dediu, a well respected analyst that tracks the mobile industry, Samsung’s Galaxy S and Galaxy Note portfolio, combined, made up roughly a third of the company’s smartphone sales this year. In other words, it’s safe to assume that both the Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy Note 4 will have a 16 megapixel sensor, and Samsung thinks both of those devices will make up a fairly big chunk of their 2014 sales.
How good will the 16 megapixel camera be in the next Galaxys? No one really knows. I’m positive that the S5 will be torn apart and put through rigorous tests when it starts shipping. People will compare it to the iPhone 5s, people will compare it to the Lumia 1020, people will compare it to a DSLR. That’s just how the internet works.
The cool thing in 2014 will be optical image stabilization. Don’t have that and your phone will probably be seen as inferior. Even LG has a phone out with OIS, so now it’s time for Samsung to play catch up.