A smartphone with the best camera. Smartphones with good cameras. The best inexpensive smartphones in the Nexus line from LG

The only explanation more banal than this axiom is “the iPhone, it turns out, does not have a slot for a memory card.” But newbies continue to make mistakes when they fall for the number of megapixels in the camera, which means they have to repeat themselves.

Imagine a window - an ordinary window in a residential building or apartment. The number of megapixels is, roughly speaking, the number of glasses inside the window frame. If we continue to draw parallels with smartphones, in ancient times window glasses were the same size and were considered a scarce commodity. Therefore, when the so-called “Tolyan” said that he had 5 glasses (megapixels) in his window unit, everyone understood that Anatoly was a serious and wealthy person. And the characteristics of the window were also immediately clear - a good view to the outside of the house, a large glazing area.

A few years later, windows (megapixels) were no longer in short supply, so their number just needed to be increased to the required level, and that was it. Just adjust it to the area (a window for ventilation and a loggia, for the sake of strength, require a different number of windows) so that the camera produces a slightly denser picture than 4K monitors and TVs produce. And finally deal with other characteristics - for example, combat clouding of glass and image distortion. Teach cameras to focus correctly and paint available megapixels efficiently, if you want specifics.

On the right there are more “megapixels”, but they do not provide anything other than “obstacles” with the same “sensor” area

But people are already accustomed to measuring the quality of cameras in megapixels, and sellers happily indulged this. Therefore, the circus with a huge amount of glass (megapixels) in the same frame dimensions (camera matrix dimensions) continued. As a result, today the pixels in smartphone cameras, although they are not “packed” with the density of a mosquito net, the “deglazing” has become too dense, and over 15 megapixels in smartphones almost always spoil rather than improve photographs. This has never happened before, and again it turned out that it is not size that is important, but skill.

At the same time, the “evil”, as you understand, is not the megapixels themselves - if tons of megapixels were spread out on a fairly large camera, they would benefit the smartphone. When a camera is able to unleash the potential of all megapixels on board, and not “smear” them in large quantities when shooting, the photo can be enlarged, cropped, and it will remain of high quality. That is, no one will understand that this is just a fragment of a larger picture. But now such miracles are found only in “correct” SLR and mirrorless cameras, in which the matrix alone (a microcircuit with photo sensors, onto which the image flies through the “glasses” of the camera) is much larger than the assembled smartphone camera.

“Evil” is the tradition of putting a clip of megapixels into tiny cell phone cameras. This tradition brought nothing but a blurry picture and an excess of digital noise (“peas” in the frame).

Sony piled on 23 megapixels where competitors put 12-15 megapixels, and paid for it with a decrease in picture clarity. (photo - manilashaker.com)

For reference: in the best camera phones of 2017, the main rear cameras (not to be confused with the b/w additional ones) all operate with a “pathetic” 12-13 megapixels. In photo resolution it is approximately 4032x3024 pixels - enough for a Full HD (1920x1080) monitor, and for a 4K (3840x2160) monitor too, albeit back to back. Roughly speaking, if a smartphone camera has more than 10 megapixels, their number is no longer important. Other things are important.

How to determine that a camera is of high quality before looking at photos and videos from it

Aperture - how wide the smartphone “opened its eyes”

The squirrel eats nuts, deputies eat people’s money, and cameras eat light. The more light, the higher the quality of the photo and the more details. But you can’t get enough sunny weather and studio-style bright lighting for any occasion. Therefore, for good photos indoors or outdoors in cloudy weather/at night, cameras are designed in such a way that they produce a lot of light even in unfavorable conditions.

The easiest way to get more light to reach the camera sensor is to make the hole in the lens larger. The indicator of how wide the “eyes” of the camera are open is called aperture, aperture, or aperture ratio - these are the same parameter. And the words are different so that reviewers in articles can show off incomprehensible terms for as long as possible. Because, if you don’t show off, the aperture can simply be called, excuse me, a “hole,” as is customary among photographers.

The aperture is indicated by a fraction with an f, a slash and a number (or with a capital F and no fraction: for example, F2.2). Why

So it’s a long story, but that’s not the point, as Rotaru sings. The point is this: the smaller the number after the letter F and the slash, the better the camera in the smartphone. For example, f/2.2 in smartphones is good, but f/1.9 is better! The wider the aperture, the more light enters the matrix and the better the smartphone “sees” (takes better photos and videos) at night. The bonus of a wide aperture comes with beautiful background blur when you photograph flowers up close, even if your smartphone does not have a dual camera.

Melania Trump explains what different apertures look like in smartphone cameras

Before buying a smartphone, don’t be lazy to check how “sighty” its rear camera is. If you have your eye on the Samsung Galaxy J3 2017, search for “Galaxy J3 2017 aperture”, “Galaxy J3 2017 aperture” or “Galaxy J3 2017 aperture” to find out the exact number. If the smartphone you have your eye on doesn’t know anything about the aperture, there are two options:

• The camera is so bad that the manufacturer decided to remain silent about its characteristics. Marketers engage in approximately the same rudeness when, in response to “what processor is in the smartphone?” they answer “quad-core” and do their best to avoid disclosing the specific model.
• The smartphone has just gone on sale and no specifications other than those in the advertising announcement have been released yet. Wait a couple of weeks - usually during this time the details will be released.

What should be the aperture in the camera of a new smartphone?

In 2017-2018 Even a budget model should have at least an f/2.2 rear camera. If the number in the denominator of this fraction is larger, get ready for the camera to see the picture as if through darkened glasses. And in the evening and at night she will be “low-blind” and will be able to see almost nothing even at a distance of several meters from the smartphone. And don’t rely on brightness adjustments - in a smartphone with f/2.4 or f/2.6, an evening photograph with a programmatically “tightened” exposure will turn out to be a “rough mess,” while a camera with f/2.2 or f/2.0 will take a higher-quality photo without tricks.

The wider the aperture, the higher the quality of shooting on a smartphone camera

The coolest smartphones today have cameras with an aperture of f/1.8, f/1.7 or even f/1.6. The aperture itself does not guarantee the maximum quality of images (the quality of the sensor and the “glass” has not been canceled) - this, to quote photographers, is just a “hole” through which the camera looks at the world. But all other things being equal, it is better to choose smartphones in which the camera does not “squint”, but receives an image with “eyes” wide open.

Matrix (sensor) diagonal: the larger the better

The matrix in a smartphone is not the matrix where people with complex muzzles in black cloaks dodge bullets. In mobile phones, this word means a photocell... in other words, a plate on which a picture flies through the “glasses” of the optics. In old cameras, the picture flew to the film and was saved there, and the matrix instead accumulates information about the photograph and sends it to the smartphone processor. The processor forms all this into the final photo and stores the files in internal memory or on microSD.

There is only one thing you need to know about the matrix - it should be as large as possible. If the optics is a water hose, and the diaphragm is the neck of a container, then the matrix is ​​the same reservoir for water, of which there is never enough.

The dimensions of the matrix are usually measured in inhuman, from the bell tower of ordinary buyers, Vidicon inches. One such inch is equal to 17 mm, but cameras in smartphones have not yet grown to such dimensions, so the diagonal of the matrix is ​​denoted by a fraction, as is the case with the aperture. The smaller the second digit in the fraction (divisor), the larger the matrix -> the cooler the camera.

Is it clear that nothing is clear? Then just remember these numbers:

A budget smartphone will take good photographs if its matrix size is at least 1/3" and the camera resolution is no higher than 12 megapixels. More megapixels means lower quality in practice. And if there are less than ten megapixels, the photo will be visible on good large monitors and TVs look loose, simply because they have fewer dots than the height and width of your monitor screen.

In mid-class smartphones, a good matrix size is 1/2.9” or 1/2.8”. If you find a larger one (1/2.6” or 1/2.5”, for example), consider yourself very lucky. In flagship smartphones, a good tone is a matrix measuring at least 1/2.8”, and better – 1/2.5”.

Smartphones with large sensors take better pictures than models with small photocells

Can it get any cooler? It happens - look at 1/2.3” in Sony Xperia XZ Premium and XZ1. Why then don’t these smartphones set records for photo quality? Because the camera’s “automation” constantly makes mistakes with the selection of settings for shooting, and the camera’s reserve of “clarity and vigilance” is spoiled by the number of megapixels - in these models they piled up 19 instead of the standard 12-13 megapixels for new flagships, and the fly in the ointment crossed out the advantages of the huge matrix.

Are there smartphones in nature with a good camera and less harsh characteristics? Yes - look at the Apple iPhone 7 with its 1/3" at 12 megapixels. On the Honor 8, which has 1/2.9" with the same number of megapixels. Magic? No - just good optics and perfectly “polished” automation, which takes into account the potential of the camera as well as tailored trousers take into account the amount of cellulite on the thighs.

But there is a problem - manufacturers almost never indicate the size of the sensor in the specifications, because these are not megapixels, and you can embarrass yourself if the sensor is cheap. And in reviews or descriptions of smartphones in online stores, such camera characteristics are even less common. Even if you choose a smartphone with an adequate number of megapixels and a promising aperture value, there is a chance you will never know the size of the rear photosensor. In this case, pay attention to the latest characteristic of smartphone cameras, which directly affects the quality.

Better few large pixels than many small ones

Imagine a sandwich with red caviar, or take a look at it if you don’t remember what such delicacies look like. Just as the eggs in a sandwich are distributed over a piece of loaf, the area of ​​the camera sensor (camera matrix) in a smartphone is occupied by light-sensitive elements - pixels. There are, to put it mildly, not a dozen, or even a dozen, of these pixels in smartphones. One megapixel is 1 million pixels; typical smartphone cameras from 2015-2017 have 12-20 megapixels.

As we have already figured out, containing an excessive number of “blanks” on a smartphone’s matrix is ​​detrimental to photographs. The efficiency of such pandemonium is similar to that of specialized teams of people replacing a light bulb. Therefore, it is better to observe a smaller number of smart pixels in a camera than a larger number of stupid ones. The larger each of the pixels in the camera, the less “dirty” the photos are, and the less “jumpy” the video recording becomes.

Large pixels in the camera (photo below) make evening and night shots better quality

The ideal smartphone camera consists of a large “foundation” (matrix/sensor) with large pixels on it. But no one is going to make smartphones thicker or dedicate half of the body at the back for the camera. Therefore, the “development” will be such that the camera does not stick out from the body and does not take up much space, the megapixels are large, even if there are only 12-13 of them, and the matrix is ​​as large as possible to accommodate them all.

The size of a pixel in a camera is measured in micrometers and is designated as µm in Russian or µm in Latin. Before you buy a smartphone, make sure that the pixels in it are large enough - this is an indirect sign that the camera takes good pictures. You type into the search, for example, “Xiaomi Mi 5S µm” or “Xiaomi Mi 5S µm” - and you are happy with the camera characteristics of the smartphone that you have noticed. Or you get upset - it depends on the numbers you see as a result.

How big should a pixel be in a good camera phone?

In recent times, it has become especially famous for its pixel sizes... Google Pixel is a smartphone that was released in 2016 and “showed Kuzkin’s mother” to competitors due to the combination of a huge (1/2.3”) matrix and very large pixels of the order of 1.55 microns. With this set, he almost always produced detailed photographs even in cloudy weather or at night.

Why don’t manufacturers “cut” the megapixels in the camera to a minimum and place a minimum of pixels on the matrix? Such an experiment has already happened - HTC in the flagship One M8 (2014) made the pixels so huge that the rear camera could fit... four of them on a 1/3” matrix! Thus, One M8 received pixels measuring as much as 2 microns! As a result, the smartphone “torn” almost all competitors in terms of the quality of images in the dark. Yes, and photographs in a resolution of 2688x1520 pixels were enough for Full HD monitors of that time. But the HTC camera did not become an all-round champion, because the Taiwanese were let down by HTC’s color accuracy and “stupid” shooting algorithms that did not know how to “correctly prepare” the settings for a sensor with unusual potential.

Today, all manufacturers have gone crazy with the race for the largest pixels, so:

• In good budget camera phones, the pixel size should be 1.22 microns or more
• In flagships, pixels ranging in size from 1.25 microns to 1.4 or 1.5 microns are considered good form. More is better.

There are few smartphones with a good camera and relatively small pixels, but they exist in nature. This, of course, is the Apple iPhone 7 with its 1.22 microns and OnePlus 5 with 1.12 microns - they “come out” due to very high-quality sensors, very good optics and “smart” automation.

Without these components, small pixels ruin the photo quality in flagship smartphones. For example, in the LG G6, the algorithms create obscenities when shooting at night, and the sensor, although ennobled with good “glasses,” is cheap in itself. IN

As a result, 1.12 microns always spoil night shots, except when you enter into battle with “manual mode” instead of stupid automation and correct its flaws yourself. The same picture prevails when shooting on a Sony Xperia XZ Premium or XZ1. And in the masterpiece, “on paper”, the Xiaomi Mi 5S camera is hampered from competing with the flagships of the iPhone and Samsung by the lack of optical stabilization and the same “crooked hands” of the algorithm developers, which is why the smartphone copes well with shooting only during the day, but not at night very impressive.

To make it clear how much to weigh in grams, take a look at the characteristics of the cameras in some of the best camera phones of our time.

Smartphone	Number of megapixels of the “main” rear camera	Matrix diagonal	Pixel size
Google Pixel 2 XL	12.2 MP	1/2.6"	1.4 µm
Sony Xperia XZ Premium	19 MP	1/2.3"	1.22 µm
OnePlus 5	16 MP	1/2.8"	1.12 µm
Apple iPhone 7	12 MP	1/3"	1.22 µm
Samsung Galaxy S8	12 MP	1/2.5"	1.4 µm
LG G6	13 MP	1/3"	1.12 µm
Samsung Galaxy Note 8	12 MP	1/2.55"	1.4 µm
Huawei P10 Lite/Honor 8 Lite	12 MP	1/2.8"	1.25 µm
Apple iPhone SE	12 MP	1/3"	1.22 µm
Xiaomi Mi 5S	12 MP	1/2.3"	1.55 µm
Honor 8	12 MP	1/2.9"	1.25 µm
Apple iPhone 6	8 MP	1/3"	1.5 µm
Huawei nova	12 MP	1/2.9"	1.25 µm

What type of autofocus is best?

Autofocus is when a mobile phone “focuses” on its own while taking photos and videos. It is needed so as not to change the settings “for every sneeze”, like a gunner in a tank.

In old smartphones and modern Chinese "state-priced" phones, manufacturers use contrast autofocus. This is the most primitive method of focusing, which focuses on how light or dark it is “straight ahead” in front of the camera, like a half-blind person. That’s why cheap smartphones need about a couple of seconds to focus, during which it’s easy to “miss” a moving object, or stop wanting to shoot what you were going to do because “the train has left.”

Phase autofocus “catches light” across the entire area of ​​the camera sensor, calculates at what angle the rays enter the camera and draws conclusions about what is “in front of the smartphone’s nose” or a little further away. Due to its “intelligence” and calculations, it works very quickly during the day and does not annoy you at all. Common in all modern smartphones, except very budget ones. The only drawback is working at night, when the light enters into the narrow hole of the mobile phone’s aperture in such small portions that the smartphone “breaks the roof” and it constantly fidgets with focusing due to a sudden change in information.

Laser autofocus is the most chic! Laser rangefinders have always been used to “throw” a beam over a long distance and calculate the distance to an object. LG in the G3 smartphone (2014) taught this “scanning” to help the camera quickly focus.

Laser autofocus is amazingly fast even in indoor or dim environments

Take a look at your wristwatch... but what am I talking about... okay, turn on the stopwatch on your smartphone and appreciate how quickly one second passes. Now mentally divide it by 3.5 - in 0.276 seconds, the smartphone receives information about the distance to the subject and reports this to the camera. Moreover, it does not lose speed either in the dark or in bad weather. If you plan to shoot photos and videos up close or at a short distance in low light, a smartphone with laser autofocus will be a big help.

But keep in mind that cell phones are not Star Wars weapons, so the range of the laser in the camera barely jumps a couple of meters. Everything that is further away is viewed by the mobile phone using the same phase autofocus. In other words, to photograph objects from afar, it is not necessary to look for a smartphone with “laser guidance” in the camera - you will not get much use from such a function in general shots of photos and videos.

Optical stabilization. Why is it needed and how does it work

Have you ever driven a car with leaf spring suspension? On army UAZs, for example, or ambulances with the same design? In addition to the fact that in such cars you can “beat off the butt,” they shake incredibly - the suspension is as rigid as possible so as not to fall apart on the roads, and therefore it tells passengers everything that it thinks about the road surface, frankly and not “spring” (because that there is nothing to spring with).

Now you know how a smartphone camera without optical stabilization feels when you try to take a photo.

The problem with shooting with a smartphone is this:

• The camera needs a lot of light to take good photos. Not direct rays of the sun into the “face”, but diffuse, ubiquitous light around.
• The longer the camera “examines” the image during the photo, the more light it captures = the higher the quality of the picture.
• At the time of shooting and these camera “peeps”, the smartphone must be motionless so that the picture does not get “smeared”. If it moves even a fraction of a millimeter, the frame will be ruined.

And human hands are shaking. This is clearly noticeable if you lift with outstretched arms and try to hold a barbell, and less noticeable when you hold a cell phone in front of you to take a photo or video. The difference is that the barbell can “float” in your hands within wide limits - as long as you don’t touch it against a wall, a neighbor, or drop it on your feet. And the smartphone needs to have time to “grab” the light for the photo to come out successful, and to do this before it deviates a fraction of a millimeter in your hands.

Therefore, the algorithms try to please the camera and not put increased demands on your hands. That is, they tell the camera, for example, “so, 1/250th of a second you can shoot, this is enough for the photo to be more or less successful, and taking a shot before the camera moves to the side is also enough.” This thing is called endurance.

How optical stabilization works

What does optostab have to do with it? So, after all, it is that “depreciation” with which the camera does not shake like the body of army trucks, but “floats” within small boundaries. In the case of smartphones, it does not float in water, but is held by magnets and “fidgets” at a short distance from them.

That is, if the smartphone moves a little or trembles during shooting, the camera will shake much less. With such insurance, a smartphone will be able to:

• Increase the shutter speed (the guaranteed time “to see the picture before the photo is ready”) for the camera. The camera receives more light, sees more image details = the quality of the photo during the day is even higher.
• Take clear photos on the move. Not during an off-road sprint, but while walking or from the window of a shaking bus, for example.
• Compensate for shaking in video recordings. Even if you stomp your feet very sharply or sway slightly under the weight of the bag in your second hand, this will not be as noticeable in the video as in smartphones without an optical stabilizer.

Therefore, optostab (OIS, as it is called in English) is an extremely useful thing in a smartphone camera. It’s also possible without it, but it’s sad - the camera must be of high quality “with a margin”, and the automation will have to shorten (worse) the shutter speed, because there is no insurance against shaking in a smartphone. When shooting video, you have to “move” the image on the fly so that the shaking is not visible. This is akin to how in old movies they simulated the speed of a moving car when it was actually standing still. The only difference is that in films these scenes were filmed in one take, and smartphones have to calculate the shaking and deal with it on the fly.

There are vanishingly few smartphones with a good camera, which without stabilization takes pictures no worse than competitors with stabilization - these are, for example, Apple iPhone 6s, the first generation of Google Pixel, OnePlus 5, Xiaomi Mi 5s and, with some stretch, Honor 8/ Honor 9.

What not to pay attention to

• Flash. Useful only when shooting in pitch darkness, when you need to take a photo at any cost. As a result, you see the pale faces of people in the frame (all of them, because the flash is low-power), eyes squinted from the bright light, or a very strange color of buildings/trees - photographs with a smartphone flash definitely do not carry any artistic value. As a flashlight, the LED near the camera is much more useful.
• Number of lenses in the camera. “Before, when I had 5 Mbps internet, I wrote an essay in a day, but now, when I have 100 Mbps, I write it in 4 seconds.” No, guys, it doesn't work like that. It doesn’t matter how many lenses there are in a smartphone, it doesn’t matter who released them (Carl Zeiss, judging by the quality of the new Nokia cameras, too). Lenses are either high quality or not, and this can only be verified with real photographs.

The quality of the “glass” (lenses) affects the quality of the camera. But the quantity is not

• Shooting in RAW. If you don’t know what RAW is, I’ll explain:

JPEG is the standard format in which smartphones record photos; it is a “ready-to-use” photo. Like the Olivier salad on a holiday table, you can take it apart “into its components” in order to transform it into another salad, but it won’t turn out to be of very high quality.

RAW is a hefty file on a flash drive, in which, in its pure form, in separate “lines”, all the brightness, clarity and color options for a photograph are sewn in. That is, the photo will not be “covered with small dots” (digital noise) if you decide to make it not as dark as it turned out to be in JPEG, but a little brighter, as if you had set the brightness correctly at the time of shooting.

In short, RAW allows you to “Photoshop” a frame much more conveniently than JPEG. But the catch is that flagship smartphones almost always select the settings correctly, so, apart from the smartphone’s RAW memory being polluted with “heavy” photos, there will be little benefit from “Photoshopped” files. And in cheap smartphones, the camera quality is so poor that you will see poor quality in JPEG, and equally poor quality in RAW. Don't bother.

• Camera sensor name. They were once super important because they were a “quality seal” for a camera. The size of the matrix, the number of megapixels and pixel size, and minor “family characteristics” of shooting algorithms depend on the model of the camera sensor (module).

Of the “big three” manufacturers of camera modules for smartphones, the highest quality modules are produced by Sony (we do not take into account individual examples, we are talking about the average temperature in a hospital), followed by Samsung (Samsung sensors in Samsung Galaxy smartphones are even better than the coolest Sony sensors, but the Koreans are selling something absurd “on the side,” and finally, the list is completed by OmniVision, which produces “consumer goods, but tolerable.” Intolerant consumer goods are produced by all other basement Chinese companies, the name of which even the manufacturers themselves are ashamed to mention in the characteristics of smartphones.

8 - execution option. Do you know how this happens in cars? The minimum configuration is with “cloth” on the seats and a “wooden” interior, the maximum is with artificial suede seats and a leather dashboard. For buyers, the difference in this figure means little.

Why, after all this, should you not pay attention to the sensor model? Because with them the situation is the same as with megapixels - Chinese “alternatively gifted” manufacturers are actively purchasing expensive Sony sensors, trumpeting at every corner “our smartphone has a super-high-quality camera!”... and the camera is disgusting.

Because the “glass” (lenses) in such mobile phones is of appalling quality and transmits light a little better than a plastic soda bottle. Because of these same bastard “glasses,” the camera aperture is far from ideal (f/2.2 or even higher), and no one is tuning the sensor so that the camera selects the colors correctly, works well with the processor, and doesn’t spoil the pictures. Here is a clear example that the sensor model has little effect:

As you can see, smartphones with the same camera sensor can shoot completely differently. So don't think that the cheap Moto G5 Plus with IMX362 module will shoot as well as the HTC U11 with its amazingly cool camera.

Even more annoying is the “noodle on the ears” that Xiaomi puts on the ears of buyers when it says that “the camera in Mi Max 2 is very similar to the camera in the flagship Mi 6 - they have the same IMX386 sensors! They are the same, but the smartphones shoot very differently, the aperture (and therefore the ability to shoot in low light) is different, and the Mi Max 2 cannot compete with the flagship Mi6.

1. The additional camera “helps” take photos at night with the main one and can take black and white photos. The most famous smartphones with such camera implementations are Huawei P9, Honor 8, Honor 9, Huawei P10.
2. The secondary camera allows you to “shove in the impossible,” that is, it takes pictures with an almost panoramic viewing angle. The only proponent of this type of camera was and remains LG - starting with the LG G5, continuing with the V20, G6, X Cam and now the V30.
3. Two cameras are needed for optical zoom (zooming in without losing quality). Most often, this effect is achieved by simultaneous operation of two cameras at once (Apple iPhone 7 Plus, Samsung Galaxy Note 8), although there are models that, when zoomed in, simply switch to a separate “long-range” camera - ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom, for example.

How to choose a high-quality selfie camera in a smartphone?

Best of all - based on examples of real photographs. Moreover, both during the day and at night. During the day, almost all selfie cameras take good photos, but only high-quality front-facing cameras are capable of shooting something legible in the dark.

It is not necessary to study the vocabulary of photographers and go deeper into what this or that characteristic is responsible for - you can simply memorize the numbers “this much is good, but if the number is higher, it is bad” and choose a smartphone much faster. For an explanation of terms, welcome to the beginning of the article, and here we will try to derive the formula for a high-quality camera in smartphones.

Megapixels	No less than 10, no more than 15. Optimal - 12-13 MP
Diaphragm(aka aperture, aperture)	for budget smartphones- f/2.2 or f/2.0 for flagships: minimum f/2.0 (with rare exceptions - f/2.2) optimal - f/1.9, f/1.8 ideal - f/1.7, f/1.6
Pixel size (µm, µm)	the higher the number, the better for budget smartphones- 1.2 microns and above for flagships: minimum - 1.22 microns (with rare exceptions - 1.1 microns) optimal - 1.4 microns ideal - 1.5 microns and above
Sensor (matrix) size	the smaller the number in the fraction divisor, the better for budget smartphones - 1/3” for flagships: minimum - 1/3” optimal - 1/2.8” ideal - 1/2.5”, 1/2.3”
Autofocus	contrast - so-so phase - good phase and laser - excellent
Optical stabilization	very useful for shooting on the go and night photography
Dual camera	one good camera is better than two bad ones, two average quality cameras are better than one average one (brilliant wording!)
Sensor (module) manufacturer	not specified = most likely there is some junk inside OmniVision - so-so Samsung in non-Samsung smartphones - ok Samsung in Samsung smartphones - excellent Sony - good or excellent (depending on the integrity of the manufacturer)
Sensor model	a cool module does not guarantee high quality shooting, but in the case of Sony, pay attention to sensors IMX250 and higher, or IMX362 and higher

I don't want to understand the characteristics! Which smartphone to buy with good cameras?

Manufacturers produce countless smartphones, but among them there are very few models that can take good photographs and shoot videos.

Once upon a time, ambitious smartphone makers said they would soon drive compact cameras out of the market. This happened before our eyes. Today everyone knows that the camera even in an inexpensive smartphone takes pictures no worse than a point-and-shoot camera. The next stage is catch up with DSLR quality. While this does not sound entirely realistic, new smartphones prove that this goal will also be achieved sooner or later. There are a lot of decent models on the market that allow you to create very, very high quality photos. We analyzed the existing offer and selected smartphones with the best camera of 2018 for our readers. Looking ahead, we note that all these camera phones they are very, very expensive, but the cameras in them are truly luxurious.

When it comes to evaluating a camera, the question involuntarily arises: how can you understand that it is cool in one smartphone, and worse in another? First of all, you need to look at the technical specifications:

• number of megapixels. Forget about the “more is better” rule. This has not been the case for a long time, but for some reason marketers and sellers continue to mislead users. When it comes to a tiny (compared to a DSLR) camera in a smartphone, a large number of megapixels can even cause harm. 12-13 megapixels is enough to create wonderful pictures. It’s good that many companies realized this and focused their attention on improving other parameters;
• diaphragm. To take a good photo, the camera needs light. It hits the matrix and forms an image. Light passes through the aperture, and the wider the aperture blades are open, the greater the chance of getting a clear, beautiful photo, even in conditions that are far from ideal. In the specifications, the aperture is designated as f/2.0 or F2.0. The lower the number, the better. For example, a camera with f/2.2 and f/1.9 will shoot equally well during the day, but in the evening with a module with f/1.9 the pictures will be better. Today, the standard even for inexpensive smartphones is f/2.0, and they put it in flagships modules forf/1.8 and evenf/1.6. By the way, a wide aperture, even in the absence of a second module, will allow you to create macro photographs with a bokeh effect;
  
• matrix diagonal. The bigger it is, the better. That's all the average user needs to know. There is no need to go into details. The diagonal of the matrix is ​​indicated by a fractional number, and the smaller the number under the fraction, the better. For example, a 1/3” camera is normal for the budget class, 1/2.9” and 1/2.8” are for the mid-range, and 1/2.5” are for flagships, but there are often exceptions. Recently, manufacturers prefer not to indicate this characteristic at all;
• pixel size. A lot of stupid pixels may not improve the quality of the photo, but, on the contrary, cause blurriness and noise. Therefore it’s better to have fewer larger pixels on the matrix than many small ones. Manufacturers usually indicate the pixel size. For budget and mid-range smartphones this figure should be 1.22 microns or more, in flagships - at least 1.25 microns, and better - 1.4 and even 1.5 microns;
• autofocus type. Autofocus can be contrast (the most primitive, used in very cheap smartphones), phase(works quickly during the day, problems are possible at night) and laser. The latter is the most modern and accurate, always works quickly;
  
• optical stabilization– the key to high-quality photographs of dynamic scenes. This feature is invaluable when shooting video and will be useful to all those whose hands often tremble;
• number of lenses. Many people believe that the more there are, the better. No. It is better when the lenses are of high quality, but this can only be judged by test images;
• camera sensor manufacturer. Modules from Sony, as well as from Samsung(the company makes better sensors for itself than those it sells externally). Slightly worse, but acceptable, sensors are removed from OmniVision. The most popular are Sony sensors, which in the camera characteristics are marked as IMX and a three-digit number, for example, IMX The first digit indicates the generation, the second indicates the class of the photosensor (the larger the better), the third indicates the version;
  
• additional main camera performed in several versions. Option #1 is a black and white sensor, which captures light better and allows you to take better photos in low light conditions. Option #2 – a camera with a wide viewing angle to squeeze as much of the landscape into the frame as possible. Option No. 3 – the second camera is used for zooming.

It also happens that a camera with seemingly ideal parameters takes, to put it mildly, not very good pictures. This means that the manufacturer did not pay enough attention automation, optics and software algorithms. It is advisable to personally evaluate examples of photos in different shooting conditions before purchasing. It often happens that with a fairly mediocre set of characteristics, a smartphone takes excellent pictures - this means that the developer was not too lazy to finish the software shell. But when a manufacturer takes a good sensor, but kills it with lenses or software problems, it’s very disappointing.

We move from theory to practice. We found the best camera phones, selected the best among them and prepared a rating for you. The analysis used sample images, as well as the opinion of an authoritative resourceDxOMark, which tests cameras using its own algorithm and gives them scores. Let's go!

Smartphones with the best camera 2018

Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus

Just a few weeks ago, the new flagship from Samsung was presented atM.W.C. 2018. The model received a very cool camera and has already been called a smartphone with the best camera in the world. Both the Galaxy S9 Plus and the slightly more compact Galaxy S9 received main module with variable aperture. No one had done this before. Yes, they tried, but Samsung was the first to bring the idea to life. What does it give us? aperture with variable value fromf/2.4 to a/1.5? This feature brings the smartphone camera closer to the DSLR and allows it to adapt to any shooting conditions. When it’s light, the aperture blades close to keep the frame clear and to convey depth, which is especially important when shooting landscapes. When it is dark, the petals open as much as possible to let in light. Tests show that The device takes pictures at night, indeed, much better than all other smartphones, even better than its main competitor, the iPhone X. The matrix resolution is 12 megapixels, there is optical stabilization and phase detection autofocus.

Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus, unlike the Galaxy S9, received additional main camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels and f/2.4 aperture. The second module is required for 2-card optical zoom. The pixel size of the main camera is 1.4 microns, in the additional one – 1 microns. The smartphone can shoot video in slow motion, has a portrait mode and copes superbly with all shooting scenarios. The 8 MP front camera can also blur the background and takes excellent pictures (f/1.7 aperture, 80-degree viewing angle).

We can talk about the Galaxy S9+ for a long time, because it one of the most advanced smartphones today. It received an 8-core Exynos 9810 processor with a frequency of 2.7 GHz: very powerful, but such resource-intensive applications where this “stone” would show itself 100% have not yet been invented. The screen has a diagonal of 6.2 inches, made using Super AMOLED technology, resolution 2960 * 1440. There is 6 GB of RAM, the main one is 64/128/256 GB, there is a slot for memory cards up to 400 GB. The model received IP68 protection from moisture and dust, is equipped with a face and retinal scanner, and can make AR Emoji - an analogue of Animoji in the iPhone. Add here stereo speakers, fast charging (battery capacity 3500 mAh) and a chic appearance, and we get, perhaps, the best smartphone today. The 6/64 version costs about $1200.

Apple iPhone X

Apple smartphones always have good cameras. The anniversary and revolutionary iPhone X model only confirmed this rule. Before the release of the Galaxy S9+ (and even after it), the camera in the iPhone X will serve as an example for comparison. Apple traditionally pays attention to software optimization, but everything is fine with the hardware. Rear camera – dual, both modules received 12 megapixels. One of them is a wide-angle lens with f/1.8 aperture, the second is a telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture. Both modules have optical stabilization. There is a portrait mode and 2x optical zoom. The camera performs well in all shooting scenarios, but is inferior to the Galaxy S9+ at night. The front module has a resolution of 7 megapixels, an f/2.2 aperture, and can use the screen backlight as a flash.

The main feature of the new iPhone is the “bangs” on top. The attitude towards it is ambiguous, so we will not comment on this feature. Let us only note that, following Apple, many Chinese companies have churned out clones of the iPhone X at very different prices. The AMOLED screen has a diagonal of 5.8 inches and a resolution of 2436 * 1125, the highest contrast and brightness. A fast processor, IP67 water and dust protection, face recognition technology and other more or less useful features make the gadget dream smartphone. The dream (64 GB version) costs about $1350.

Google Pixel 2

The flagship from Google is distinguished not only by its compact size, but also by its conservatism, and this is not a minus at all. The company did not use fashion trends such as a dual camera and an elongated screen. However, the smartphone takes excellent photos, and many experts are confident that this is the best camera phone at the moment. The main module has a resolution of 12.3 megapixels (f/1.8 aperture, pixel size 1.4 microns, matrix diagonal 1/2.6”), phase and laser autofocus, optical and electronic stabilization. Everything is perfect on paper, and in reality it’s no worse. The camera can handle any scene, the pictures turn out really gorgeous - amateur photographers should appreciate it.

The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels, an aperture of f/ 2.4, a pixel size of 1.4 microns and a matrix diagonal of 1/3.2”. The characteristics, frankly, are not so hot, but the front camera takes pictures very well. In addition, background blur is also implemented here. In general, the pictures come out great in any conditions. Video can be shot in 4K at 30fps, FullHD at up to 120fps, and HD at 240fps.

As for the main parameters, the smartphone received a 5-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1920*1080, protective glass Corning Gorilla Glass 5, fast Snapdragon 835 processor with a frequency of up to 2.45 GHz, IP67 water and dust protection. The battery capacity is small (obviously for the sake of compactness) - 2700 mAh, but the fast charging function should save it. The smartphone is equipped with 4 GB of RAM, main memory – 64 or 128 GB. The pluses also include the presence of stereo speakers, an active noise reduction system and a bunch of chips from the manufacturer. There is no 3.5mm jack. The device costs about $800: a lot, but better than its competitors.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro

Another confident contender for the title of smartphone with the best camera. The device has a glass body, a giant screen, a fast processor, enviable battery life and a dual camera, which becomes the object of our interest. The Leica main camera duo is positioned vertically. The color module has a resolution of 12 megapixels, the additional monochrome module has a resolution of 20 megapixels. Aperture for both camerasf/1,6 , contrast, phase and laser autofocus, optical stabilization, there is a 2x hybrid zoom. The smartphone is excellent at taking photos in low light conditions, not to mention simpler shooting scenarios such as landscapes, portraits and macro. The background is blurred perfectly, the pictures are clear and the colors are reproduced correctly. The front module has an 8 megapixel sensor with f/2.0 aperture and fixed focus. He copes with his tasks at a high level.

Huawei installed in its flagship an 8-core HiSilicon Kirin 970 processor with a frequency of up to 2.36 GHz and neural computing module. Thanks to this solution, the smartphone will cope much more quickly and efficiently with applications that use artificial intelligence technology. OLED screen with a diagonal of 6 inches and a resolution of 2160*1080, protective glass, 4000 mAh battery with fast charging function, IP67 waterproof – here everything is so perfect it's boring. The only downsides are the easily soiled body (glass, after all) and the price. There are versions with 4 and 6 GB RAM, main memory can be 64/128/256. The “simplest” phone with 4/64 GB costs $630, which compares favorably with its more expensive fellow camera phones.

HTC U11 and HTC U11 Plus

HTC U11 was released in the summer of 2017 and captivated fans of mobile photography with its excellent photography in the dark and excellent detail when photographing complex objects such as threads and hair. There were only questions about the design, so in the fall the company released the HTC U11 Plus. The camera module remains the same, but they worked on the appearance: whether it has become better is a big question, everything is subjective.

The main camera in both models received a resolution of 12 megapixels and aperturef/1.7 , pixel size – 1.4 microns, there is optical image stabilization. All this means that both day and night you will be able to get photos of excellent quality, with a spectacularly blurred background. Post-processing enthusiasts will love the fact that smartphone can shoot inRAW. Naturally, there is a manual mode - the user can configure all shooting parameters himself. The 16 megapixel front module with f/2.0 aperture and without autofocus allows you to create very decent selfies. In general, the device deserves to be included in the ranking of smartphones with the best camera.

HTC U11 received a body made of glass and metal, a 5.5-inch screen with a resolution of 2560*1440, protective glass Corning Gorilla Glass 5 and a 3000 mAh battery. The 8-core Snapdragon 835 with a frequency of up to 2.45 GHz is responsible for performance; there are versions with 4 and 6 GB of RAM, and 64/128 GB of main memory. An under-screen fingerprint scanner, features include a body compression sensor and a physical activity tracking sensor. The price for the 4/64 version is about $660.

HTC U11 Plus received, as is now commonly called, a full-screen 6-inch display with an aspect ratio of 18:9. The changes also affected the battery: in the new version its capacity is 3930 mAh. The 4/64 version costs $790.

Apple iPhone 8 and Apple iPhone 8 Plus

Yes, the eighth iPhones are criticized for their outdated design, but they still buy them, because in terms of technical characteristics they are almost ideal. The new iPhones differ from the iPhone 7s by having a glass body, a faster processor, and an increased amount of memory. The rest has not changed, but the cameras began to shoot even better. In the Plus version, the main camera is dual, in the younger version it remains single.

iPhone 8 Plus received two main camera modules 12 MP each. One of them is wide-angle with f/1.8 aperture, the second is a telephoto lens with f/2.8 aperture. Eat dual optical zoom, portrait mode, stage lighting mode, and the wide-angle lens received optical stabilization. iPhone 8 equipped with only one 12 MP f/1.8 lens, there is no optical zoom. The cameras work quickly, produce images of decent quality, and they are not afraid of the dark. The 7 MP f/2.2 front camera produces decent results.

The eighth iPhones look solid. The younger version received a 4.7-inch screen (resolution 1334*750), the older version – 5.5 inches (1920*1080). Both versions are powered by a 6-core A11 Bionic processor, equipped with 3 GB of RAM, the main one can be 64 or 256 GB. Powerful and beautiful apples are traditionally not cheap - fashion gadgets, after all. iPhone 8 – from $790, iPhone 8 Plus – from $1060.

We also note that the year before last iPhone 7 andiPhone 7 Plus also filmed at the level, namely, the iPhone 7 Plus set the trend for dual main cameras.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

Last year, the company’s line of phablets was replenished with the Galaxy Note 8 model. This year, obviously, an updated version will be released, but for now, the “eight” can confidently fight for the title of the best camera phone. However, the camera is not the only advantage of the gadget, but it is very, very significant. Both main cameras received 12 megapixel resolution and optical stabilization. This was the first smartphone in which both main modules are equipped with optical stabilization. One of the cameras is wide-angle with an f/1.7 aperture, the second is a tele-camera with an f/2.4 aperture. Their joint work allows you to create excellent photographs in any conditions and effectively blur the background. Thanks to the function dynamic focus You can change the subject of focus after shooting. The photos turn out spectacular. The good news is that video in 4K resolution turns out to be of really high quality. The front camera, with its 8 megapixels and f/1.7, performs quite well.

The giant 6.3-inch display amazes with high-quality images. The device comes to our market with a Samsung Exynos 8895 processor: in AnTuTu tests, the device scores more than 170 thousand points. This is power! RAM of 6 GB and built-in 64/128/256 GB is enough for the eyes. Separately worth noting sound quality and a multi-functional unsinkable stylus. By the way, the smartphone itself received protection from moisture and dust according to the IP68 standard. The battery capacity, however, is only 3300 mAh. Some may not like the dirty glass case, as well as the price, but it’s time to get used to the fact that flagships cost about a thousand “green” and are a fashion item. This model, for example, is perfect for business people who need to work a lot with documents and spreadsheets. For the 64 GB version they are now asking from $900 to $1050.

ASUS Zenfone 5Z and ASUS Zenfone 5

The recent MWC exhibition, held in Barcelona, ​​introduced us to a lot of interesting new products. ASUS has introduced a whole series of new smartphones. If Zenfone 5 Lite just received an elongated screen, then 5 and 5Z are very strongly reminiscentiPhone Xwith his bangs, but they are much cheaper. Zenfone 5Z and Zenfone 5 are slightly different in terms of hardware, but they have the same cameras. Rear module – double. The main camera has a Sony IMX363 sensor, 12 megapixel resolution, f/1.8 aperture, optical stabilization and phase detection autofocus. The 8-megapixel auxiliary module has a viewing angle of 120 degrees. In theory, the camera should cope well with different scenes and produce effective blur. The front module is more modest: 8 megapixels and the same viewing angle of 120 degrees.

Zenfone 5 received a 6.2-inch diagonal screen with an aspect ratio of 19:9 and a resolution of 2264 * 1080. On board is a fast Snapdragon 636 processor and 4 or 6 GB of RAM, 64 GB of main memory, it can be expanded. The developers say that the smartphone uses software with the makings of artificial intelligence, and its forces will be used to more economically consume energy and improve the quality of shooting.

Zenfone 5 Z Exactly the same in appearance, but inside it hides a slightly more powerful Snapdragon 845. There are 4, or 6, or even 8 GB of RAM!! The latest version is absolutely impressive. Main memory capacity – 64/128/256 GB. The price will start at $590 (Zenfone 5 will obviously be cheaper), sales will begin in June.

LG V30+

More recently everyone praised the cameraLG V30 . We don’t argue that it’s really cool, but the new product, which was released just recently, promises even better shooting quality. As befits a flagship, it uses dual main camera. One of them has a resolution of 16 megapixels, aperturef/1.6 , the second is 13 megapixels, f/1.9 and a viewing angle of 120 degrees. As a result, excellent photo quality in any shooting conditions, the ability to create photos with maximum scene capture, and the presence of optical stabilization will allow you to achieve excellent results even when shooting in difficult conditions. Cameras received glass lenses CrystalClear, which minimize light scattering when transmitting it to the matrix. The front camera with its 5 MP and f/2.2 takes acceptable pictures.

The smartphone has top-end hardware. This is a powerful modern 8-core Snapdragon 835 processor, 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal memory (expandable up to 2 TB). The screen is made using OLED FullVision technology, has a diagonal of 6 inches and a resolution of 2880*1440 pixels. There is protection against water and dust IP 68 and a fast charging function, the battery capacity is minimally sufficient - 3300 mAh. The device looks futuristic and costs about $900.

Xiaomi Mi Note 3

The new flagship from the famous Chinese company received the same pair of cameras as in the more expensive Xiaomi Mi 6. Both main cameras have a resolution of 12 megapixels, one of them has an f/1.8 aperture, and the second one has an f/2.6 aperture. the first is wide-angle, the second camera has a telephoto lens, so you can zoom in on the image without losing quality and create bokeh. In most shooting scenarios, the camera performs excellently, almost on par with its more expensive counterparts. The front module with a resolution of 16 megapixels will delight those who like to take selfies.

The beautiful glass case houses the fast Snapdragon 660 processor. The manufacturer decided to save money on the screen. Well, how to save money. Not to say that the display is bad, but these days they are also installed in devices of the lower price segment. The screen is made using IPS technology, has a diagonal of 5.5 inches and a resolution of 1920*1080. The fingerprint scanner is conveniently located under the display. The 3500 mAh battery can charge quickly and provides acceptable battery life. The smartphone is sold in 6/64 and 6/128 GB versions. If you need a smartphone with a good camera under 20,000 rubles ($350), then take a closer look at version 6/64. A device with twice as much memory will cost 1.5 times more.

Vivo X20 Plus

The flagship from Vivo completes our top camera phones. Now everyone is actively discussing that the company's updated smartphone Vivo X20 Plus UD will be the first in the world in which The fingerprint scanner will be built into the screen and will be located at the bottom of the display. While everyone is just waiting for the new product to go on sale, it is known that the cameras in the new smartphone will be the same as those in the Vivo X20 Plus.

The model is equipped dual main camera: the first module has a resolution of 12 megapixels and an f/1.8 aperture, the second has a modest resolution of 5 megapixels. An additional module is needed to blur the background. The front module also has a resolution of 12 megapixels and f/2.0. The authoritative resource DxOMark rated the device’s camera at 90 points out of 100, which is a good result.

The device received a Super AMOLED display with a diagonal of 6.43 inches and a resolution of 2160 * 1080, an 8-core Snapdragon 660 processor, a fairly capacious 3905 mAh battery and an acceptable memory reserve of 4/64 GB. The device costs about $540. There are also cheaper alternative – Vivo X20. This smartphone is equipped with the same cameras, but has a slightly smaller screen (6.01 inches, the same resolution) and a less capacious battery (3245 mAh), but the processor is the same, and the price is about $460.

It should be noted that Sony is a blunder in optimizing smartphones for MediaTek chipsets, so the Xperia M5 has been annoying customers with various “glitches” for a long time; by today’s standards, the Helio X10 processor is slow, and it does not work at its maximum capabilities in the M5. The case heats up with or without reason, autonomy leaves much to be desired. But the proprietary shell is comfortable, the cameras are high-quality, the display is bright and clear, and the prestige of such a smartphone in “glamorous” circles is much higher than that of any Huawei or Xiaomi. Official distributors have gone crazy and are asking a completely ridiculous 25 thousand rubles for the old Sony, but “gray” sellers estimate the Xperia M5 Dual at 15-16 thousand - a completely fair price for such a model.

ZTE Nubia Z11 mini S

ZTE has a luxury division, Nubia, and it, in turn, has the flagship Z11 series, which has a simplified version of the Z11 mini, which recently underwent an update in the house that Jack built. We should pay tribute to the Chinese - the Z11 mini S differs from the Z11 mini radically and only for the better.

A very agile smartphone with a brutal body and red accents. You can’t really find fault with the characteristics: fast Snapdragon 625, 4 GB of RAM, 64 or 128 GB of internal storage. It’s also nice that ZTE (whose “hands are sharpened” more to adjust the audio path than camera algorithms) made a broad gesture and equipped the Z11 mini S with a 22-megapixel rear camera based on the Sony IMX318 sensor. The much more expensive ASUS ZenFone 3 Deluxe and Xiaomi Mi Note 2 are equipped with the same sensor, if you are not aware.

Reading time: 13 minutes

Modern users are actively “hunting” for smartphones with good cameras in order to get high-quality photos and videos. At the same time, manufacturers are competing with each other to see who can build more cameras into current gadgets and provide better image clarity. There are many similar phones on sale, but the real leaders are included in our TOP

Rating of the best camera phones of 2019

The smartphone is equipped with three cameras that take stunning pictures even in low light.

In addition, when recording video, the sound is not distorted, which also pleasantly surprises buyers. The total resolution of all three rear cameras is 68 megapixels. At the same time, the front camera reaches 24 megapixels.

The model is considered an ideal option for creating selfie.

This is explained by the presence of a front camera with a resolution of 7 megapixels, its f/2.2 aperture, as well as an infrared camera. Additionally, the manufacturer has provided a portrait shooting mode here.

As for the rear camera, what users are most pleased with is the flash, which changes the color of artificial light based on the working conditions.

The device is sold for 46 thousand rubles and belongs to the flagship category. There is a dual main camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels and 16 megapixels.

It can take great photos and record really high-quality videos.

This model is especially good for nature photography.

An excellent smartphone for an adequate price of 45 thousand rubles has many advantages, especially in terms of the camera.

Here, users are pleased with both the rear camera and the front one. They both work great in low light and allow the owner to record gorgeous slow motion and super slow motion videos.

One of the mid-price smartphones costs customers an average of 18 thousand rubles.

It is intended for creating color and black and white photos.

Users are especially pleased with the binning technology.

The only drawback of the model is its body - the owners consider it slippery and easily soiled.

Follower of the previous model. It is equipped with a gorgeous screen and cameras on the front and back, the quality of which is quite consistent with the cost of the device.

The main camera receives the most positive feedback, since it is dual and has a resolution 16 MP and 24 MP.

The option for 30 thousand rubles acts as one of the best camera phones in the middle price segment.

It has two rear cameras of 16 MP and 20 MP, as well as a front camera with a resolution of 16 MP.

Although users confirm that the capabilities of the device correspond to its price, there is still a drawback - problems with the operation of the zoom.

The phone is famous not only for its dual main camera, but also for its wide-angle shooting function.

Here, for real photographers, there are several shooting modes, thanks to which you can take excellent photos of nature, food, people, animals, etc.

The camera performs especially well at night, as the manufacturer has provided a function that makes the photo several times brighter.

The unique device has a dual camera (12 MP and 12 MP), as well as an automatic focusing function. There is also a front camera here and it takes equally high-quality photos, because its resolution reaches 8 megapixels.

A chic smartphone cannot but delight buyers. It is equipped with one 12 MP rear camera and an 8 MP front camera.

Despite the low resolution, pictures from both cameras come out great.

The only thing that does not suit users is the not entirely clear sound when recording video.

The device for 30 thousand rubles is famous for its excellent dual camera on the back, the resolution of which reaches 12 megapixels and 8 megapixels. Owners are also pleased with the autofocus, which works instantly.

Using such a phone is quite convenient, since the camera itself is located in the upper corner and you can take pictures with one hand without fear of dropping the device.

The popular device has two rear lenses of 12 megapixels each. Thanks to optical stabilization, this device takes good photographs even at night.

The front camera is also quite good - it has a resolution of 7 megapixels, an infrared emitter and a camera.

The model pleasantly surprises buyers with a dual rear camera of 12 MP and 12 MP, as well as a front camera of 5 MP.

The smartphone is ideal for both selfies and regular photos.

In addition, the camera automatically improves the appearance of a person’s face, slightly removing facial wrinkles and other minor defects.

The only downside users point out is the heavy weight of the design itself, which makes holding the phone in your hand for a long time not so easy.

The smartphone has an incredible rear camera - dual 20 MP and 16 MP.

With its help, anyone without photography skills can photograph moving objects and make them clear.

And the front camera with a resolution of 25 megapixels takes beautiful selfies.

The device is from a well-known brand. Most users like it for its dual camera located at the back. It has a resolution of 12 megapixels and 12 megapixels, as well as autofocus.

The owners claim that this camera produces excellent photos with rich colors, as they are reproduced accurately.

Not too big in size, but very functional smartphone. The device has a dual rear camera (19 MP + 12 MP), as well as a front camera (13 MP).

Most often in the comments, owners enthusiastically mention the macro mode.

The option differs from its competitors in one, but truly high-quality, rear camera. Its resolution reaches 13 megapixels.

Pictures taken with its help always turn out bright and clear, and this is especially true when shooting moving objects.

The smartphone is equipped with a dual camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels and 20 megapixels. This model also has autofocus, which always works instantly.

But at the same time, the phone has one drawback - the rear camera protrudes greatly, which is why it often gets scratched.

The model has virtually no negative aspects.

People like it for its dual rear camera of 20 MP and 2 MP, which can take great photos and videos. The LED flash is also nice. But the fact that it is only on the rear camera is considered a slight minus.

The phone is also famous for its dual camera of 12 MP and 5 MP, as well as LED flash, autofocus and macro photography.

Users are also surprised by the unexpected resolution of the front camera – 20 megapixels.

21. HTC 10 32 Gb

Main: 12 MP, BSI

Front: 5 MP (1.34 µm)

Smartphone HTC 10 considered the best budget Chinese smartphone with the best camera in 2016 - which has a good camera compared to many modern smartphones. HTC was the first in the world to introduce an optical stabilization system. The device also has a BSI sensor and UltraPixel 2 technology. The size of one dot in the lens = 1.56 microns, which makes pictures clearer.

If pictures are taken at night, the lens captures more light than conventional cameras. Thanks to this, the photos are brighter and you can see the smallest details of the photo..

The front camera of the HTC 10 is no worse than the main one; like the main one, does it have an optical stabilization system? The size where the sensitive elements are located is increased, the display is used as a flash. Thanks to this, your memories will be impressive. The front camera of the device will allow you to perfectly and clearly capture the company of your friends and you in a selfie. You will get perfect selfies!

HTC 10 takes photos instantly - in just 0.6 seconds. And the laser focus function works even faster.

Video recording occurs in 4K format. The sound is recorded in Hi-Res format, and a more subtle sound sphere and frequency range is heard.

22.Huawei P9

Main: two 12 MP modules, f/2.2, – 1.25 µmI

Front: 8 MP

Huawei P9 - an inexpensive smartphone with a good camera in 2016, the Chinese placed two main cameras in it, thanks to which the photographs turn out to be more detailed, the function of focusing after shooting and imitation of a wide aperture appeared.

The main camera has two modules, on which 2 Sony IMX286 sensors are installed. The size is 1.25 microns, the maximum aperture is f/2.2. The new Kirin 955 is equipped with a processor that, using special ImageSmart 5.0 technology, reduces the level of noise and is responsible for light transmission. There is a laser rangefinder and LED flash. Autofocus works quickly and accurately. No errors.

The control menu has a lot of additional modes, including special ones, like the night light photo mode. The smartphone has a separate black and white camera. The menu is simple.

The mobile phone shoots video at max. resolution up to 1920×1080. True, there is no 4K shooting mode here.

In a word, the phone takes good pictures. Both during the day and in the dark. Especially when turned on in black and white mode.

23. LG G5

Main: 16 MP

Front: 8 MP

The LG G5 smartphone has two main cameras, each of which is equipped with its own sensor and lens. The cameras are equipped with laser autofocus, a color spectrum sensor, and a single flash (LED). The cameras also have an optical stabilization system.

In good lighting, both the main and secondary cameras perform at their best. In such conditions, excellent photographs are obtained. The main camera lens, due to its high aperture, produces photographs with a shallow depth of field, which makes them spectacular.

The LG G5 has a single flash and a color spectrum sensor. Together they give high-quality images when you need to illuminate an object.

In the dark, the quality of shooting is lost.

When shooting video, it is possible to record in HD, Full HD and 4K extensions. The video quality is quite high.

Pros of the phone: accurate autofocus, two photo video cameras and excellent stabilization;

24. Xiaomi Mi 5

Main: 16 MP

Front: 4 MP

Xiaomi Mi5 houses a main 16-megapixel camera (with Sony IMX298 sensor) with an optical image stabilization system and basic autofocus. The front one has 4 megapixels. Autofocus is very fast and makes no mistakes. Double flash brighter than normal level.

The video camera can shoot in resolutions up to 3840×2160 (4K), Video is inferior to LG and Samsung phones. The sound on the video is of average quality.

The photographs come out wonderful, if not excellent. Good attention to detail is immediately noticeable. Sharping is almost invisible.

25. Samsung Galaxy S7

Main – 12 megapixels, f/1.7 aperture

Front - 5 megapixel with f/1.7 aperture

The main camera of the smartphone has an optical image stabilization system. The phone has a Dual Pixel autofocus system.

The functionality of the smartphone is excellent. There is continuous shooting, HDR, panorama, focus selection mode and other convenient functions. It is possible, using applications, to create panoramas of areas.

There is a function for shooting in RAW format.

The front camera has a number of effects aimed at improving the photo taken during a selfie, namely whitening the complexion, removing skin blemishes, and changing the figure. The front camera does not have a flash.

The South Korean flagship also has a voice control function.

The video camera can record in resolutions up to 3840×2160 (4K). Slow motion has a fairly advanced mode.

An animated photo will capture the three seconds before you press the shutter.

The advantages also include the manual shooting mode and increased lens aperture.

26. iPhone 7 Plus

Main: 12Mpc

Frontal: 7 Mpc

The iPhone 7 Plus has optical image stabilizers, f/1.8 aperture, a new sensor, 6 lenses and a cool image processing chip that makes them wider and brighter. There is also a flash with four LEDs.

iPhone 7 Plus has a dual camera: 12+12 megapixels (wide-angle and telephoto). This made it possible to use 2x optical zoom with improved quality. Thanks to the Sneak Peak function, the smartphone's photo and video camera is good at analyzing surrounding objects and can add background blur to them. The flagship mobile phone has a machine learning system, which will save you from the headache of adjusting auto focus yourself.

The 7 MP front camera has improved colors and better digital stabilization.

The True Tone Quad-LED flash adjusts to ambient temperature for clearer, brighter images.

On iPhone you can save 4K video, shoot slow-motion and time-lapse HD video.

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• Smartphones with a powerful battery and a good camera 2019. TOP 15 Inexpensive smartphone with a good camera and battery up to 5,000 rubles. TOP 12. 2018/2019

LG has long been one of the largest developers of various equipment. LG smartphones differ from others in their high quality and reliability. Greatly designed gadgets are productive and functional. The company easily competes with other manufacturers in the mobile phone market because they are popular and many people trust this company. Let's look at the ranking of the best LG smartphones for 2017 - 2018, according to experts.

LG K5 X220DS

Erase all boundaries and get something unusual. Get creative and share your emotions with the inexpensive but good LG K5 X220DS smartphone. Selfies will become even more interesting, but in order to take a photo, you must raise your hand and make a fist. The K5 recognizes gestures and starts an automatic timer to give you time to pose with the camera. Virtual flash for selfies will make night photos bright and contrasting. No touch is needed and your photo is already taken. A processor with a clock frequency of 1.3 GHz will allow the smartphone to interact with a variety of tasks. The LG K5 X220DS has a removable battery with a capacity of 1900 mAh, which will allow you not to charge it until the evening without denying yourself the pleasure of listening to music.

Key Features:

• Android 5.1;
• Screen: 5 inches;
• Chipset: MediaTek MT6582;
• Video chip: Mali-400 MP2;
• Main and front camera: 5 and 2 MP;
• Internal storage capacity: 8 GB;
• RAM: 1 GB;
• Battery: 1900 mAh;

Pros:

1. Remarkable camera quality;
2. Removable battery;

Cons:

1. The iron is not the best;
2. No 4G support;

LG K7 X210DS

In all respects, the LG K7 X210DS is a good smartphone that scores goals and in almost all aspects, given the affordable price, you can buy it in the range of 7,000 rubles. Although, a slow processor can create some problems when running heavy applications. Has support for 2 SIM cards. The display is also a disappointment for those looking for a vibrant display. The smartphone comes with a small 5-inch screen with a pixel density of 196ppi. The cell phone runs on a 1.1 GHz quad-core processor and also has 1.5 GB of RAM. The smartphone runs on the Android operating system version 5.1 and is available only in a black body with a thickness of 8.9 mm.

Key Features:

• Android 5.1;
• Screen: 5 inches;
• GPU: Mali-400MP2;
• Processor: MediaTek MT6580M;
• ROM: 8 GB;
• Main and front camera: 8 and 5 MP;
• RAM: 1.5 GB;
• Support for two SIM cards;
• Battery: 2125 mAh;

Pros:

1. Inexpensive smartphone;
2. Excellent picture quality;
3. Dual SIM;

Cons:

1. Average pixel density on display;

LG K8 K350E

The LG K8 K350E smartphone comes with a decent configuration that is good enough for multitasking. Its main attraction is the various gestures for capturing selfies. The smartphone has its own style, but considering the price, it is weak in terms of RAM and internal memory, as there are other mobile phones that give a much powerful configuration for this price. This is a great smartphone for selfie lovers. The LG K8 is backed by a 2,125mAh Li-ion battery that keeps the device running for long hours. The device comes with a built-in memory of 16 GB, which can be further expanded up to 32 GB using a MicroSD card.

Key Features:

• Android 6.0;
• Processor: MediaTek MT6735;
• Screen: 5 inches;
• RAM capacity: 1 GB;
• Video accelerator: Mali-T720 MP2;
• Cameras: 8 and 5 MP;
• Built-in memory: 16 GB;
• Battery: 2125 mAh;

Pros:

1. Nice smartphone design;
2. Impressive gestures for the front camera;
3. Excellent battery;

Cons:

1. Average parameters;
2. Small amount of internal memory;

LG X View K500DS

The LG X View K500DS smartphone is among the newly X-themed cell phones launched by LG. This new product remains true to its name. The device boasts a good quality small screen. The smartphone comes with Android 6.0 OS which has impressed many users. Other main configurations of the gadget are 4G support, excellent camera quality and decent performance parameters. LG X View flaunts a 5-inch large HD IPS screen. The smartphone has large viewing angles where the image is not distorted. In terms of performance, the device comes with a quad-core Cortex A53 processor. It relies on 2 GB of RAM, which allows some tasks to run in the background simultaneously. The smartphone also has an Adreno 306 GPU that handles gaming and other graphics-intensive operations.

Key Features:

• Android 6.0;
• Screen: 5 inches;
• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 410;
• Video chip: Adreno 306;
• Main and front camera: 13 and 8 MP;
• ROM: 16 GB;
• RAM: 2 GB;
• 4G support;
• With two SIM cards;
• Battery: 2300 mAh;

Pros:

1. Latest OS version;
2. Good smartphone performance;

Cons:

1. There are problems with the SIM card slot;

LG Xcam K580DS

LG X cam K580DS is aimed at consumers who today love camera quality and powerful configuration. He occupies the fourth step of the top. The main selling point of this smartphone lies in its dual cameras on the back that allow users to capture their best moments. Large storage capacity for user files is another bonus. The LG X cam K580DS smartphone is presented with an IPS LCD 5.2-inch Full HD screen (1080 x 1920 pixels). Under the hood, there is an octa-core processor that sits on a MediaTek MT6753 chipset with 2GB of RAM that powers the system. The device can be purchased in white, gold, silver and pink. The device produces good sound, as the reviews say.

Key Features:

• Android 6.0;
• Screen: 5.2 inches;
• Permanent memory: 16 GB;
• Operating: 2 GB;
• Processor: MediaTek MT6753;
• Graphics accelerator: Mali-T720;
• Cameras: 13 and 8 MP;
• Three-camera smartphone;
• Battery: 2520 mAh;

Pros:

1. Wonderful hardware;
2. Large internal memory;
3. Nice design;

Cons:

1. Medium battery;

LG G5 H860N

The top three in the ranking of the best LG smartphones for 2017-2018 includes the G5 H860N model. The Cell is the world's first modular smartphone, which gives it an edge over other high-end flagships. It comes with a powerful configuration and a metal body. The smartphone can be used as a camera or wireless audio. All these qualities make this device special and priceless. The LG G5 has a 5.3-inch IPS LCD display with Full HD (1440 x 2560) and 554ppi pixel density. The screen is protected by Corning Gorilla glass, which protects the glass from scratches. The gadget is available in silver, titanium and gold colors. The smartphone is backed by a powerful 2,800mAh Li-Po battery that offers hours of talk time and supports fast charging.

Key Features:

• Android 6.0;
• Screen: 5.3 inches;
• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 MSM8996;
• Video chip: Adreno 530;
• Internal storage capacity: 32 GB;
• RAM capacity: 4 GB;
• Main and front camera: 16 and 8 MP;
• Battery capacity: 2800 mAh;

Pros:

1. Reliable configuration;
2. Plenty of storage space for files;

Cons:

1. Expensive;

LG G5 SE H845

In second place of the top is the LG G5 SE H845. It is one of the most premium flagship Android phones of 2018. The smartphone offers a stunning QHD display, a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 MSM8976 processor, impressive internal memory, and the latest Android software features. However, since this is a flagship offering, the price lies on the premium side. The performance of the smartphone is further enhanced by 3 GB of RAM and the Adreno 510 video accelerator. A 2800 mAh battery will allow you to operate the device for a long time and supports wireless and fast charging.

Key Features:

• Android 6.0;
• Screen: 5.3 inches;
• Cameras: 16 and 8 MP;
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 MSM8976;
• Video chip: Adreno 510;
• Internal storage capacity: 32 GB;
• RAM: 3 GB;
• Battery capacity: 2800 mAh;

Pros:

1. Clear user interface;
2. Impressive camera features;

Cons:

1. Not suitable for owners of small hands;

LG V20