So you are stating unequivocally that the sensor/imaging system in the N900 is incapable of producing greater than 8 bits per channel of precision?

I'm not being argumentative -- I understand what a RAW file is. I simply don't know anything about the absolute capabilities of the N900's camera hardware, and what the FCam developers have chosen to focus on..

These are DNGs we're dealing with, so I'm wondering if they might be linear DNGs - ie: partially processed - rather than pure RAW data encapsulated in the DNG wrapper. Linear DNG might explain why they're only 8 bits per channel. It would also make a certain amount of sense from a usability standpoint as Nokia hasn't released an N900 RAW profile that I'm aware of.

So... 'yes' errrrr 'no': Are you 100% certain that 8 bits per channel is the absolute limit of what the hardware is capable of?