Google will now give full-sized image back-ups when uploaded (up to 5GB are yours for free), while any Android Jelly Bean users will be able to share their photospheres directly from the phone app.
Colour is added by using three separate arrays, each fitted with a filter for one of the primaries red, green and blue that, in combination, produce a full-colour image.
With the extremely high pixel count of the full-frame image sensor, even zoomed and cropped images maintain generous amounts of fine detail when blown up for large print sizes.