Android phones for the perfect shot

Selfie cameras have been receiving a lot of attention these days, with phone makers trying new ways to improve the selfie experience for the young user. While their popularity can’t be denied, for avid camera buffs the primary camera is still the main attraction. Though camera quality in budget smartphones has improved a lot in the last few months, some still have plenty of limitations. However, a lot of the recent mid-range and alternate flagship smartphones look a lot better-placed in this regard.

This F3 Plus is a truly big-screen smartphone with a lot of camera muscle.

Oppo F3 Plus

Price Rs30,990

This F3 Plus is a truly big-screen smartphone with a lot of camera muscle. The 16-megapixel camera with Sony IMX398 sensor on the back is what impressed us the most. It offers cool camera modes and features and has a aperture of f/1.7, which is a rarity even in this segment. This makes it one of the few mid-range phones that doesn’t flinch when it comes to low-light photography. While daylight shots look rich and crisp, low-light shots also didn’t suffer from any of the usual colour distortion or noise that many cameras suffer from. The phone runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 653 octa-core chip with 4GB RAM but runs Android 6.0 (Marshmallow).

OnePlus 3T

Price: Rs29,999 onwards

OnePlus 3T’s 16-megapixel camera uses a Sony IMX298 sensor, has f/2.0 aperture and offers some high-end features such as optical image stabilization and the option to save images in RAW file format. OnePlus has tweaked the image processing algorithm so the colours will look more natural than its predecessor. Low-light shots have a slight warm tint but the level of detailing is impressive. The phone runs on Qualcomm’s high-end Snapdragon 821 quad-core chip with 6GB RAM and comes in 64GB and 128GB storage variants. It runs Android 7.1 (Nougat) with a clutter-free UI and has a premium looking metal exterior.

Micromax’s new Dual 5 is named after the two 13-megapixel primary cameras

Micromax Dual 5

Price: Rs24,999

Micromax’s new Dual 5 is named after the two 13-megapixel primary cameras. Powered by Sony IMX258 sensors and aperture of f/2.0 and dual tone flash, the camera supports phase detection auto focus and can record 4K videos. The camera can reproduce more detail and light in photos by merging the monochrome shots of one camera with the colour shots of the RGB camera. The phone runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 octa-core chip with 4GB RAM. It offers 128GB internal storage and offers hardware-level encryption.

The Asus ZenFone Zoom is big smartphone with a big 5.5-inch display

Asus ZenFone Zoom

Price: Rs24,999

The Asus ZenFone Zoom is big smartphone with a big 5.5-inch display, but what adds to the bulk is the phone’s camera. While it comes with only a 13-megapixel camera with aperture of f/2.7 to f/4.8, it offers some rare and useful features such as 3X optical zoom and optical image stabilisation. Daylight shots, especially landscape shots, look rich and with low-light boost mode, you can get good results. The phone runs on Intel Atom Z3590 quad-core with 4GB RAM and offers 128GB storage. The phone’s leather back finish balances the phone’s hefty build by offering better grip quality.

Another dual camera phone, the Honor 8 uses two 12-megapixel Sony IMX286 camera sensors which work on the same principle as the Dual 5

Honor 8

Price: Rs24,750

Another dual camera phone, the Honor 8 uses two 12-megapixel Sony IMX286 camera sensors which work on the same principle as the Dual 5. The monochrome camera captures more detail and then combines it with colour shots of the other camera to get richer looking photos. It also allows the users to define the level of depth they want in a photo, after a shot is clicked. It has an aperture of f/2.2 and supports laser auto focus. In daylight shots, it can reproduce colours accurately with ample amount of detailing. It runs on Huawei’s Kirin 950 octa-core chip with 4GB RAM and runs Android 6.0 (Marshmallow). It is one of the best looking mid-range smartphones with premium glass finish on the back.