BEST PHONE CAMERA 2016
Jim Martin and Dominik Tomaszewski test out the cameras of the latest flagship phones to find out which performs best
As the old adage goes, the best camera is the one that’s with you. Since most people carry a smartphone with them just about everywhere, it’s no wonder we’re taking more photos on phones than cameras these days. And now that phone cameras can actually take decent photos and videos, we’re using them
to record special events such as weddings and birthdays instead of lugging around a DSLR.
But which smartphone has the best cameras, takes the best photos and is the best for taking videos? What about selfies? We’ve rounded up seven flagship phones in order to put their cameras to the test and answer these questions.
Google Nexus 6P HTC 10 Huawei P9 LG G5 Samsung Galaxy S7 Sony Xperia Z5 Xiaomi Mi 5
What to look for
Looking at specifications and features will tell you only so much, and it’s a bad idea to choose a phone purely on the basis of its cameras’ megapixel ratings. However, features can make a difference. Not all phones can record video at 60 frames per second (fps), for example, and some are limited to 1920x1080 rather than the more detailed 4K (or Ultra HD).
Some phones, such as the Huawei P9, use dual cameras to create clever effects such as shallow depth of field, while others use their dual cameras very differently. The LG G5 has a ‘standard’ camera next to a wide-angle camera, which is great for capturing action, and offers a viewpoint much like a GoPro.
The stock camera app itself varies between phones, but if you don’t like it you can download
another. Changing app can also give you extra features, but it’s unlikely you will find higherresolution or higher frame rates: a phone’s raw performance is often the limiting factor, particularly when it comes to slo-mo video.
The Nexus 6P doesn’t support time-lapse natively, but this is easy to do with a third-party app as it isn’t dependent on performance. However, this same phone can’t shoot 1080p video at 60fps, which will be an issue for some people. If your priority is video, look for good stabilisation as this can make a big difference to the footage. Don’t forget sound, either. You can listen to the quality of the microphones on our website at tinyurl.com/hqkh9eu.