The camera phone is the most ubiquitous gadget of modern times, with more people using smartphones to take pictures than dedicated digital cameras. But snapping the perfect picture requires a great phone camera too.
That’s why we’ve put together this list of the best camera phones currently available. And while we can’t make any promises, you probably won’t need to buy a proper camera again — if you wanted to, that is.
There are some tremendous contenders for the title of best camera phone right now, and even Apple has been forced to up its game. But which is best?
Read on for our pick of the best camera phones!
Best Camera Phone
What Are Camera Phones
Smartphones have become a staple in the modern world, allowing users to do everything from checking email and surfing the web to watching TV and running apps.
Along with all of these great features, smartphones are also equipped with cameras that can take photos and record videos.
While these camera phones are capable of some pretty amazing things, they weren’t always around.
Before the advent of smartphones, taking a decent photo meant carrying around a bulky camera. Even then, you could only hope that your photos would come out well in print.
Today’s best camera phones are better than ever, though, thanks to advances in smartphone camera hardware and mobile processing power.
Best Camera Phone
Let’s dive into our picks for the best camera phone.
iPhone 13 Pro Max
Apple recently launched a new iPhone 13 Pro Max that is waterproof and capable of shooting in 4K.
The camera captures more detail, focuses more efficiently, and has longer battery life than earlier models. The iPhone 13 Pro Max screen is larger, too, making it easier and more enjoyable to use.
However, the most significant change in this iPhone 13 Pro Max model is its size. It’s the thinnest and lightest phone Apple has ever made. Weighing just 6.1 ounces, you can carry this phone around with you all day without feeling weighed down.
As a result, taking the iPhone 13 Pro Max with you wherever you go is easier. The camera has optical image stabilization to take clearer photos when you’re walking or moving around while shooting.
You can zoom in on objects with optical zoom or digital zoom without diminishing the quality of the photo you’re taking.
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Pixel 6 Pro
The Google Pixel 6 Pro is a smartphone from Google. The Pixel 6 Pro smartphone color options come in Black or Grey colors.
The Google Pixel 6 Pro is rumored to run Android 12 and features a display with a resolution of 1440×2560 pixels.
The smartphone is expected to be powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor and come with 12GB of RAM.
The Google Pixel 6 Pro packs a 48-megapixel + 16-megapixel primary camera and a 16-megapixel front shooter.
Connectivity options on the Google Pixel 6 Pro include USB Type-C, Wi-Fi, GPS, and 5G.
Sensors on the phone are rumored to include an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, barometer, compass/ magnetometer, gyroscope, proximity sensor, and fingerprint sensor. The Pixel 6 Pro supports face unlock.
- Unlocked Android cell phone gives you the flexibility to change carriers and choose your own data...
- The powerful Google Tensor processor is the first processor designed by Google and made for Pixel;...
- Advanced camera system with wide and ultrawide lenses, 4x optical zoom, and a main sensor that...
- Pixel’s Magic Eraser[4], Motion Mode, and Portrait Mode professional tools keep your photos sharp,...
- Pixel’s fast charging all day battery adapts to you and saves power for apps you use the most...
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra is a top-end phone with massive storage space, a big screen, and an excellent camera. It is also a good choice for those who like to play high-end games due to its superb processor.
Description: The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra has many features that can be useful in everyday life.
One of them is a large amount of storage space the device has. You can store many data such as photos, videos, music, and documents on the phone. It has 16 GB of internal storage and a 32 GB external memory card that can be used for additional storage. This can be especially helpful for people who like to take photos and videos because it lets you save more files on the device.
Another feature of this phone is its large screen size, making it easy to view photos and videos on your device.
It also features a large display screen so you can see everything clearly even from afar or if you have bad eyesight. The screen size is 5 inches, giving you enough screen space without making the phone too bulky.
This Samsung phone has a rear-facing 8 MP camera that allows you to take high-quality pictures using your smartphone. The camera has auto-focus, making it easier to get clear pictures while taking them.
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Google Pixel 6
The Pixel 6 is a brand new smartphone that Google launched in September 2018. It’s the successor to the popular Google Pixel 5, which was released in 2017. The Pixel 6 has a 6.3-inch screen, 8GB RAM, and 128 GB storage space. It is available in black or white, with two color variations: Just Black and White.
TECH SPECS
Screen
The Pixel 6 has a 6.3-inch screen with an 18:9 aspect ratio and a resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels. The display uses AMOLED technology for high contrast and vibrant colors. The screen supports 16 million colors, has an 85 percent screen-to-body ratio, and has a pixel density of 403 PPI (pixels per inch).
Storage
The Google Pixel 6 comes with either 64 GB or 128 GB of built-in storage space. There is also a micro SD card slot that can increase the amount of memory by up to 400 GB. This is great if you have many apps, photos, or media files you want to store on your phone.
Battery life
The Pixel 6’s battery capacity is 3,430 mAh which should be enough to get you through the day without recharge before bedtime.
- Unlocked Android 5G phone gives you the flexibility to change carriers and choose your own data...
- The powerful Google Tensor processor is the first processor designed by Google and made for Pixel;...
- Pixel’s 50 megapixel rear camera captures 150% more light for photos with richer colors and more...
- Professional tools like Magic Eraser[3], Motion Mode, and Portrait Mode keep your photos sharp,...
- Pixel’s fast charging[4] all day battery adapts to you and saves power for apps you use most[5]
Google Pixel 5a
Google Pixel 5a is the best budget phone you can get. It comes with most features that make Pixel phones the best Android phones on the market for a fraction of the price.
This phone has everything I’ve been looking for in a budget phone: a good processor, 4GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage (with a microSD card slot). The screen measures 5 inches across the diagonal, with 1080p resolution.
There’s no fingerprint sensor, but the face unlock feature isn’t too slow or buggy. The rear camera takes decent shots, good lighting, and good photos at night.
The Pixel 5a will probably not blow you away with its performance, but it’s well worth its price tag if you want something more than an entry-level phone without paying top dollar for a flagship device.
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Which Phone Has The Best Camera Pictures?
Smartphone cameras are constantly improving, but the question is: which camera phone produces the best quality?
The camera in your smartphone can be a great tool to capture memories while traveling. And it can also help you ensure that photos you’re posting on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram look their best.
When comparing camera phones, features like megapixels and optical zoom don’t necessarily make a considerable difference regarding picture quality.
However, a few factors will significantly affect how well your smartphone takes pictures. Here’s what you need to know when shopping for a new phone with a great camera:
Orientation – Smartphones typically have two cameras, one on the front of the phone and one on the back. The front-facing camera is used for taking selfies or making video calls.
The rear-facing camera is used for taking pictures and videos of everything else. Some phones have dual lenses — one for each orientation — allowing you to take high-quality photos from both angles with just one device.
Smartphone manufacturers are focusing more on creating cameras that can adjust to any situation, so if you’re planning to use your smartphone as your go-to camera, it’s smart to check out reviews online before making a purchase.
Which Phone Has The Best Camera?
Which phone has the best camera? While quality varies, several phones stand above the rest in photo and video quality.
Description: The Google Pixel and Pixel XL have some of the best cameras on the market. The rear-facing camera is a 12.3-megapixel shooter. The lens features an aperture of f/2.0, but not every smartphone can boast such a wide aperture.
Additionally, the sensor size is more significant than most smartphones, meaning it can capture more light, resulting in brighter photos in low-light conditions.
Description: The iPhone 7 Plus has a 12 MP back-facing camera with an aperture of f/1.8 and a dual-lens setup on the front with one 7 MP lens and another 5 MP lens for zooming and portrait mode photographs. The iPhone 7 Plus can also record 4K video at 30 fps or 1080p slow-motion video at 120 fps in 720p HD resolution and 240 fps in standard definition resolution. Apple’s phones are known for their excellent cameras, and this one doesn’t disappoint.
Description: OnePlus offers two versions of its flagship phone — the OnePlus 3T has a 16 MP back-facing camera with an aperture of f/2.0 and optical image stabilization.
Smartphones have become the go-to device for taking photos and videos, but in a world of iPhones, Galaxies, and Droids, it’s hard to know which one has the best camera. So we asked photo experts to compare the top phones on the market — Apple’s iPhone 7, Galaxy S7, Google Pixel, and the HTC 10.
How We Test Camera Phones
Just a few years ago, most people wouldn’t dream of taking pictures with their phones. But today’s smartphone cameras can capture high-quality images and even video.
Image quality is a significant factor in the performance of camera phones. We test image quality by taking pictures of standardized subjects, such as colored blocks, a checkerboard pattern, and a grid of lines. We then compare them to the images taken by our digital reference camera, which takes a picture of the same subject from the same distance.
Analysis of each image includes measurements for color accuracy, resolution, contrast, and other factors that influence its overall quality. The results are ranked to identify those models that produce images closest to the reference digital camera’s results.
To evaluate shutter speed performance, we measure how long it takes for an image to be captured after we press the phone’s shutter button. For example, if it takes 1/30th second for an image to be captured, we subtract 0.033 seconds from 100 percent to arrive at a percentage score that reflects this result. The lower the score is, the faster the shutter speed is in relation to our reference digital camera’s performance.
We also test how well camera phones perform in low-light conditions by measuring how much noise.
Best Overall Phone Camera System
The iPhone 6 is the best overall phone camera system. While the Samsung Galaxy S6 has a better camera, it’s not better than the iPhone’s in enough different areas to make it worth the sacrifice of having a worse battery life and build quality.
Toughness: We are giving the iPhone 6 an 8 out of 10 for toughness because although it doesn’t have Gorilla Glass protection on the front of it, it is made out of aluminum, making it tough enough to be dropped without as many issues. The Galaxy S6, on the other hand, gets a 10 out of 10 for toughness because it has Gorilla Glass 4 protection on both sides and is made of metal and glass.
The only issue is that if you drop your Galaxy S6 from too high up, there is a chance that you will crack your camera lens or even your screen.
Battery: We are giving the iPhone 6 a 9 out of 10 for battery because even with its larger battery capacity, it still doesn’t have nearly as good battery life as the Galaxy S6. The Galaxy S6 gets a 10 out of 10 because it has a large battery capacity given how thin it is and also because, thanks to its ultra power-saving mode, you can get almost double the battery life.
Best Phone Camera For Photos
As a photographer, I’m pretty picky when it comes to cameras. But there is one type of camera that I can’t live without – my smartphone. I’ve taken some fantastic photos with it and saved myself a lot of money.
Indeed great smartphone cameras are, in many ways, better than point-and-shoot or DSLR cameras. That’s because they’re always with you and instantly available for those unexpected moments that make for the best shots.
That said, these little pocket computers are no match for large sensor cameras regarding low light performance and depth of field control. But if you have an iPhone 4S or Samsung Galaxy S2 or newer, you’re in luck. These phones have 8-megapixel cameras that still have larger sensors than most point and shoots, which means they do surprisingly well in low light situations and give you some essential control over depth of field through a setting called “f/2.4.”
Here’s how to take full advantage of your phone’s camera:
Manual settings – The default on most phones is an automatic mode which means that your camera makes all the decisions about settings like shutter speed and aperture (or f-stop). If you want more control over how your photos look, switch to manual.
Best Phone Camera For Video
If you are into vlogging or making YouTube videos, you will need a good phone to capture excellent footage. You want a stable camera with good low-light capabilities to get those beautiful shots in darker rooms. If you are just looking to make some vacation videos, then the best phone camera for video might not be as important.
Many people forget that the camera on their smartphone can shoot some pretty decent footage. You never know when something awesome will happen, and you would be glad if you were ready with your phone to film it.
So here are 5 of the best phones for shooting video:
Apple iPhone X:
The iPhone X offers one of the best cameras on a smartphone, period. It features a 12-megapixel camera with optical image stabilization, which helps to reduce blur from shaky hands. It also has 1080p video at 60 frames per second and 4K video at 30 frames per second. The front-facing camera is 7 megapixels for all your selfie needs.
The iPhone X has one downside: since Apple doesn’t use a standard Micro SD card slot, you cannot expand its storage capabilities, so keep that in mind if you plan on shooting lots of HD video.
How To Pick The Best Camera Phone For You
You’ve probably heard about Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus, the first mobile device to include two cameras — one wide-angle and one telephoto. The new iPhone 7 Plus is a fascinating development for mobile photography enthusiasts. But when you’re in the market for a new phone, you must consider your needs and priorities. With that in mind, here’s how to pick the best camera phone for you.
What features do you need?
When choosing a phone, the most important thing to consider is what features are most important to you. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
What kind of pictures do I take? Do I take lots of pictures indoors or just travel photos? Am I looking to share my images with friends on social media, or just keep them private?
How often do I take pictures? Are they usually spur-of-the-moment snaps or planned outings? Is it more important to me to be able to take pictures quickly and easily, or am I prepared to spend more time setting up shots?
What’s my budget? Do I want a top-of-the-range phone with every feature imaginable, or can I compromise on some capabilities to get something more affordable?
