Qualcomm unveils Clear Sight dual-camera system for smartphones

Smartphones with dual cameras are all the rage these days. Some dual-camera systems are designed to let you capture images with more depth. Others also enable a sort of optical zoom feature.

But so far most smartphone makers have had to come up with their own implementation plans for a dual-camera system. Now chip maker Qualcomm has unveiled a system it calls Clear Sight that can be used for any device with a Snapdragon 820 or Snapdragon 821 processor.

Qualcomm’s Clear Sight features two cameras: one with a color image sensor and another with a black and white image sensor.

The black and white sensor is designed to capture three times more more light than you get from the color sensor. But by combining data from both cameras, the final image will allow you to save color photos, even when captured in low-light settings.

Qualcomm says the camera system relies on the Spectra image signal processor in its most powerful Snapdragon chips, which is why you’ll need a Snapdragon 820 or 821 processor to use the new Clear Sight cameras.

There’s no word on when the first phones using the new technology will be available.