Sony’s DRAM-enhanced smartphone image sensor was announced on February 7, 2017—not as a new 2026 product. Its three-layer design placed high-speed DRAM alongside the sensor’s pixel and circuit layers, letting image data be buffered for faster readout. Sony said the approach enabled up to 1,000-fps Full HD capture and reduced a specific rolling-shutter distortion. Those are notable engineering claims, but they do not by themselves establish that the sensor transformed smartphone photography overall.
What Sony announced in 2017
Sony Corporation and Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation announced a three-layer stacked CMOS image sensor with DRAM for smartphones on February 7, 2017. The design added a memory layer to the then-conventional two-layer stacked arrangement: a back-illuminated pixel layer and a circuit layer. Sony said the sensor’s development results were presented at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) in San Francisco that month. Sony’s 2017 announcement is the primary source for the architecture and performance figures.
The sensor was specified at 21.2 effective megapixels, with a Type 1/2.3 image size and 1.22 μm unit cells. Sony identified the IMX318, a smartphone sensor with the same pixel count, as its comparison product. The published performance comparisons were Sony’s own announcement-era comparisons, not independent benchmark results.
What the DRAM layer does
A sensor reads pixel signals and sends image data onward for processing. In Sony’s design, the added DRAM acts as a fast buffer for that data before it is sent to an external image signal processor. The practical aim is to move a large volume of image information out of the sensor quickly, supporting both faster still-image readout and high-frame-rate video.
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Faster line-by-line readout can also reduce the time gap between capturing the top and bottom of a moving subject. That matters because CMOS sensors commonly read image lines sequentially: if the subject or camera moves during the readout, different parts of the frame represent slightly different moments. Sony called the resulting artifact “image distortion (focal plane distortion) specific to CMOS imaging sensors where pixel signals are read one line at a time.” The release said the new design minimizes this distortion; it did not say that all motion distortion disappears.
Sony’s reported speed figures
| Capability | Sony’s 2017 claim | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Still-image readout | 19.3 megapixels in 1/120 second | Sony described this as approximately four times faster than its comparison products. |
| Video capture | Up to 1,000 frames per second at Full HD (1920 × 1080) | Sony described this as approximately eight times faster than its comparison products. |
| DRAM capacity | 1 gigabit | Memory integrated as the sensor’s added buffer layer. |
All figures and comparison multiples in the table are claims published by Sony in 2017; the cited announcement does not provide an independent test of them. The 1,000-fps mode is a high-speed capture capability, not a statement that ordinary phone video is recorded at that rate.
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Was it a game changer?
“Game changer” is a judgment, not a result established by the specifications alone. The announcement documents a significant engineering approach: adding DRAM directly to a stacked sensor to accelerate readout and enable very high-frame-rate capture. Faster readout addresses a real sensor limitation and can reduce rolling or focal-plane distortion in the circumstances Sony described.
But the available evidence does not establish how widely the sensor was adopted, quantify its impact on the smartphone market, or show that phones using it produced better photographs overall than competing devices. Image quality also depends on the complete camera implementation, including optics, image processing, software, and supported modes. Sony’s technical claims are useful evidence of capability, not a controlled comparison of consumer results.
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Which phones used the sensor?
A secondary reference associates the IMX400 with the Sony Xperia XZs and Xperia XZ Premium. Sony’s 2017 technical release does not name either phone, so that handset connection should be treated as a secondary-source identification rather than a claim made in the announcement. The Xperia XZ Premium reference is not evidence that the 2017 sensor remains a current phone feature or purchase recommendation.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How it differs from later Sony sensor designs
Sony’s later mobile imaging announcements describe distinct technologies, not continuations of the 2017 DRAM design in the same sensor. The Xperia 1 V, announced in 2023, uses an Exmor T for mobile sensor that Sony describes as a two-layer Transistor Pixel stacked CMOS design. Sony’s Xperia 1 V announcement identifies that architecture; it does not identify it as the 2017 three-layer DRAM sensor.
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In June 2026, Sony Semiconductor Solutions announced LYTIA 610 with a different RB2×2 OCL pixel structure. Sony said it offers more than 20% improvement in spatial resolution versus its conventional product with the same pixel size, LYTIA 601, and enables 4K 120-fps recording. Those claims apply to LYTIA 610 and Sony’s stated comparison—not to the 2017 DRAM-enhanced sensor. Sony’s LYTIA 610 announcement says its improved readout speed enables “4K 120 fps video recording for the first time on Sony’s 1/2-type sensor.”
Sony’s mobile image sensor lineup provides current manufacturer product information, but it is not an independent comparison of photographs. The later product descriptions show why sensor names and architectures should not be conflated: three-layer DRAM, two-layer Transistor Pixel, and RB2×2 OCL refer to different designs.
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When comparing sensors or camera phones, check the architecture and the exact readout or recording mode, then look at the pixel count and optical format. For performance claims, identify the comparison baseline, the test conditions, and whether the number comes from a manufacturer announcement or an independent evaluation. A sensor specification by itself cannot establish a ranking of finished phone cameras; that requires evidence about the actual handset, its camera hardware and software, and the modes available in its market.
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