Image Sensors is one of the most important component in today's digital camera either it be a point-&-shoot and a professional dSLR type.

As of this writing. An image sensor is typically a charge-coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) active-pixel sensor.

May be in the future, there would be something much better than what we have today.   Perhaps a real High Resolution, High Speed digital camera which are stabilized, with anti-blur, with extreme low light features type of a camera, with 20x or 40x zooming capability that would be no larger than the palm of your hand.

Both types of sensor accomplish the same task of capturing light and converting it into electrical signals.

Neither technology has a clear advantage in image quality. CMOS can potentially be implemented with fewer components, use less power and/or provide faster readout than CCD.

CCD is a more mature technology and is in most respects the equal of CMOS as well.

There are many factors to consider when evaluating an Image Sensor, which includes its dynamic range, its signal-to-noise ratio, its low-light sensitivity and more.

The Larger the image sensor is, the better image quality you get.    Images will have less noise and will obtain greater dynamic range than smaller sensors.

Because of their larger sensors, DSLRs can generally take high-quality pictures at ISO 1600, 3200, or even higher speeds, while compact cameras tend to produce grainy images even at ISO 400.

This problem is exacerbated by pixel count; doubling the number of pixels on the sensor means that each pixel is half the size, and hence noisier.

High Lights	CCD	CMOS
Signal out of pixel	Electron packet	Voltage
Signal out of chip	Voltage (analog)	Bits (digital)
Signal out of camera	Bits (digital)	Bits (digital)
Fill factor	High	Moderate
Amplifier mismatch	N/A	Moderate
System Noise	Low	Moderate
System Complexity	High	Low
Sensor Complexity	Low	High
Camera components	Sensor + multiple support chips + lens	Sensor + lens possible, but additional support chips common
Relative R&D cost	Lower	Higher
Relative system cost	Depends on Application	Depends on Application
Responsivity	Moderate	Slightly better
Dynamic Range	High	Moderate
Uniformity	High	Low to Moderate
Uniform Shuttering	Fast, common	Poor
Uniformity	High	Low to Moderate
Speed	Moderate to High	Higher
Windowing	Limited	Extensive
Anti-blooming	High to none	High
Biasing and Clocking	Multiple, higher voltage	Single, low-voltage

• both CCD and CMOS has strong and weak points, image quality can still be achieve by compensated skill, lighting, experience, right angle, understanding of what can and can not be achieve on a given circumstance, alternatives available and perhaps some other factors as well