I recently got embroiled in a conversation with TechRadar’s Mobile Computing team and others, including tech journalism luminary Lance Ulanoff, about which phone is the best at photography.
Naturally, the iPhone 17 Pro, Google Pixel 10 Pro, and Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra came up in conversation, along with their predecessors, and the ‘color science’ and image processing those brands lean on.
Now, if you want a semblance of cohesion of opinion and testing, do check out our selection of the best camera phones, primarily curated by Senior Editor Phil Berne – just keep in mind that someone's personal preferences in terms of how they like their photos to look can influence their choice of hardware.
I for one prefer my photos to have a punchy contrast between shadows and highlights, something Apple’s phones used to do very well before photos got ‘flatter’ in the previous couple of iPhone generations and then returned to form, according to Phil, with the iPhone 17 lineup. When it comes to accurate colors and capturing the dynamic range of shades in a sunset, though, I’d choose a Pixel phone.
In short, cameras on the flagship phones have generally gotten so good for their sensor size that it’s hard to decide which is objectively best; there will pretty much always be a subjective preference.
On one hand, this is great, as it means you can’t really go wrong by choosing any of our best phones. Equally, it makes things a little bit boring.
No more phoning it in
I’m a tech journalist of the vintage that remembers when each new smartphone generation offered a solid step up in camera quality, initially starting with upping the megapixel count and then moving more into image signal processing and computational photography.
But these days, I’d say if you’ve purchased an iPhone, Galaxy, Pixel, or OnePlus flagship-grade phone in the past few years, you’re not going to be disappointed. And while I’ve not used them in a while, I’ve heard plenty of good things about the cameras on recent Oppo and Xiaomi phones.
So this has got me thinking about – and somewhat pining for – the day when there were big camera upgrades and big differences in the photos those cameras captured; I want to feel more excited about the camera capabilities and features of new phones, rather than see the tiniest difference in sharpness or detail when one really punches into the pixels of a photo.
Staff Writer Jamie Richard’s coverage of the Oppo Find X9’s detachable zoom lens is a rare example of a phone brand really pushing the line for mobile cameras; it’s not exactly practical, but it's different, and could be of genuine utility for some people who aren't yet willing to shell out on one of our picks for the best cameras.
Speaking of Oppo, I remember the microscope lens of the Oppo Find X3, which I really enjoyed using both for creative photos and as a bit of a techie party trick to show off – snapping shots of woven jean fibers and other materials at a microscopic level was genuinely fun.
Sadly, there's not really a push for such wild cameras anymore, with Samsung even dialing back the 10x optical zoom of the secondary telephoto camera on its Galaxy S23 Ultra to 5x with the Galaxy S24 Ultra and the S25 Ultra.
And while the Fusion Camera system of the iPhone 17 Pro Max captures impressive photos, it’s really a clever blend of software and what I’d say is the natural conclusion of finally moving all cameras to 48-megapixel sensors, rather than a exciting demonstration of innovation and creativity.
So I want future phones to go off the beaten path and have some more innovative camera features; how about polarizers to cut out glare from reflective surfaces, a combination of hardware and software that filters out man-made light when shooting the sky at night, or more modular camera systems that actually work.
While there are more software modes for cameras than ever before, I want to see the blend of sensors, lenses, and digital processing to really make phone cameras more interesting and exciting than simply another shot to be fired in the increasingly redundant iPhone versus Android debate.
Fingers crossed for something special with the Samsung Galaxy S26…
What do you reckon? Are phone cameras boring these days? Have your say in the comments below.
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