Panasonic (I know you're reading) why don't you acknowledge TPSCo which I assume makes your sensors?

WilyKit wrote:

Panasonic refuses to say the name of the top secret manufacturer of their m43 cameras' sensors, and everyone is refusing to even utter the name of the most likely company which is TowerJazz Panasonic Semiconductor Co. (TPSCo).

I find this very very strange. If it is TPSCo (which is by far the most likely answer) then what could prevent Panasonic from simply saying it? Because they work with the arms industry or something, and have some weird restriction on uttering their name in other sectors?

The Olympus EM1.1 that was released in September 2013, had a sensor made by Panasonic.

Just 3 months later, in December 2013, Panasonic sold 51% (the majority) of their imaging sensor factory to PowerJazz.

In 2020 Panasonic sold the remaining 49% of that company to Taiwan's Nuvoton.

Since then, Panasonic is completely out of the image sensor manufacturing business. And I would think are now completely free to have their sensors made wherever they get the best service or the best deal from.

They simply do not want you to know. It is not like with cars, where it's easy to find out who makes the engine (or who designed and licensed it to the car maker). Or who makes the gearbox, the transfer case, the fuel injection etc etc. You can't just open the bonnet in a camera, or crawl under it and have a look.

Samsung designs and makes their own sensors

Canon says they make EOS sensors themselves. For the compacts they buy from Sony

Nikon designs some of their own sensors but has them made by Sony

Fujifilm are said to use Sony sensors but modifies them

Does it really matter who makes the sensor? I do not think so.

I think what matters more, is who designs it. If you design, you can design the very latest and best tech. But it is expensive, so you either sell a lot of cameras (like Canon), or very expensive cameras (like Red). If you buy from Sony, I am not sure you get access to the latest and best unless you pay a premium to get access to it whilst it is still developed - or you pay them the full cost to design and make a sensor exclusively and only for you.

Since designing your own sensors is expensive, manufacturers usually take great pride and let their customers know about it. If Panasonic designed their own sensors, I think they would like you to know that, no? But maybe not, we simply don't know. My personal opinion is, that consumer camera makers with a market share under some 5% (like Fuji and Panasonic) are rather unlikely being able to afford designing their own sensors. But are large enough to modify existing designs.

Here you can find links to sensor manufacturers, as well as other info:

http://image-sensors-world.blogspot.com/