Best Camera Phones 2021-2022 | Our top smartphone picks

• Read more: Best Camera Phones 2021-2022 Top Picks List.

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Top Best Camera Phones 2021-2022

As we enter a new fresh 2022 year, the consumers discover more advanced phone camera technologies composed of advanced hardware and software, with a few dominant key players that already implement high-level optics in their phones. Advanced features such as zoom x 50 functionality and high-level photography in low light conditions will become more common features we will most likely see in smartphones.

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Tips for buying a Budget Camera Smartphone

Tip No. 1: Mega Pixels aren’t Everything

It’s true the more megapixels in the camera the higher the resolution of the images it will produce. But, The software is the main “sauce” that you must also consider when choosing a smartphone with a high-quality camera.

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Tip No. 2: Aperture

The aperture is a hole or aperture through which light moves. Unlike traditional cameras, the vast majority of smartphone cameras have a fixed aperture. Each f-number is a fraction that tells you how big the diameter of the aperture is at any given f-stop. The aperture may be the last thing on your mind when considering what to look for in a good smartphone camera, but it plays an important part, especially in low-light conditions. The focal ratio is computed by deviating the focal distance of the lens from the diameter of the aperture.

Focal ratio= focal length of the lens / diameter of the aperture (F=f/D).

Remember!

Lower apertures allow more light to pass through the lens and yield a shallow depth of field.

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Samsung S21 Ultra Series

• Announcement date: January 14, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $600

Samsung’s next new series coming in 2021 will be equipped with a 108 MP sensor megapixel in the Ultra model. Samsung is expected to invest heavily in the camera optics department in the coming years if they want to compete successfully with more cost-effective. Samsung 108 megapixel primary camera is expected to be better than the 108 MP Samsung ISOCELL HMX sensor found in Xiaomi’s Mi Note 10 and Mi MIX Alpha handsets.

At the forefront of technology, especially in the phone market. It offers the best that Samsung has to offer in every aspect – from a screen to a photo array – and the company marks it as a phone intended for content creators, and probably mainly for still and video photographers. 

The differences between the two are revealed when we look at the fact that the new model comes with a lighter screen that can reach up to 1500 nits, compared to 1400 nits in the previous model.

In addition, the screen protector is the Gorilla Glass 7 ( Victus model ), which offers twice the scratch resistance compared to the Gorilla Glass 6, while both use screens at a refresh rate of 120 Hz, but only the latest model will support high refresh rate at a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 pixels (WQHD).

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Galaxy S20 Ultra Series

• Announcement date: February 11,2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $900 USD

The Galaxy S20 Ultra features an impressive 6.9-inch screen, with a Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel, WQHD + resolution, and a layout of 3200 by 1440 pixels. In contrast, the Galaxy S21 Ultra includes access to a slightly smaller 6.8-inch screen, with a Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel, WQHD + resolution, and the same layout of 3200 by 1440 pixels.

The handsets are also expected to have three telephoto lenses — one 3x and one 10x, Deep Fusion-like technology, and camera features such as Single Take Photo, Director’s View, Night Hyperlapse, Vertical Panoramas, an impressive 4K video recording, and other features.

In addition, all new models are expected to come with 5G connectivity as well as Wi-Fi 6 support, powered with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 875 SoC/ Exynos 2100 SoC running under Android 10-based One UI 2.0 custom skin to take care of the software side of things.

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Huawei Mate 40 Pro

• Announcement date: October 22, 2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $1,190 USD

Huawei Mate 40 Pro is the rolls Royce of flagship Android smartphones, strongly devoted to imaging, able to satisfy even the most demanding user. Surprisingly, the display touchscreen of 6.7 inches that Huawei puts this at the top of the category with a high resolution of 2772×1344 pixels. In terms of functionality, this Huawei Mate 40 Pro really does not lack anything. Starting with the 5G module that allows excellent data transfer and internet browsing, passing through Wi-Fi connectivity and GPS.

Huawei Mate 40 Pro

This Huawei Mate 40 Pro is a product with few competitors for what concerns multimedia thanks to the 50 megapixels camera which allows the Huawei Mate 40 Pro to take high-quality photos with an amazing resolution of 8060×6200 pixels and to record videos in 4K at a resolution of 3840×2160 pixels.

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Xperia 1 II

• Announcement date: February 24, 2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $1200 USD

Inherits the characteristics of the previous generation Xperia 1 this year, and is also equipped with a top-of-the-line 4K HDR 21:9 screen, with the calibration level from Bravia TV and the screen color calibration technology of CineAlta, while retaining the original three Lens design, this time depth-of-field detection lens was added, and the new camera interface Photo Pro developed by the Sony Alpha team.

Xperia 1 II has the largest number of lenses in the current Xperia series of mobile phones. The main lens has a 3+1 camera number. The three lenses with different viewing angles are all designed with 12 million pixels, and there is an extra set of iToF depth of field. Detecting the lens, and retaining the RGB-IR detection function, the camera’s detection speed when shooting is faster than the previous generation Xperia.

On the top of the back camera of the Xperia 1 ii is a 12MP ultra-wide-angle camera with f/2.2 aperture and phase detection autofocus. It is equivalent to a 16mm lens, which can capture a 124-degree field of view, and the lens barrel distortion is very small.

Next is a 12MP telephoto camera with optical image stabilization and f/2.4 aperture. This is a curveball: Sony has inserted a 3D time-of-flight sensor between its cameras. It can help you focus but only has a 15-foot range. 12MP widescreen camera. In addition to having an aperture of f/1.7, the sensor itself is physically larger than most sensors, and even without a dedicated night mode, the performance under low illumination is surprising.

The app allows you to shoot 10-bit color video at a frame rate of up to 120fps at 2K, or 4K at a higher standard of 60fps.

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Oppo Find X2 Pro

• Announcement date: March 06, 2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $827 USD

In terms of configuration, the Find X2 Pro is a real beast consistent with several other styles. The handset screen comes from Samsung’s 6.7-inch hyperboloid AMOLED, which supports QHD+ resolution and a 120Hz high refresh rate.

On the performance part. The Snapdragon 865 chip, the 12+256 GB storage combination, Fortunately, Find X2 Pro supports 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 flash charging, and it only takes 40 minutes to charge a 4260 mAh battery from 0-100%.

The camera part is that Find X2 Pro is another core selling point. The 48-megapixel main camera comes from Sony’s customized IMX689 sensor, with a 48-megapixel IMX586 ultra-wide-angle lens and a 13-megapixel periscope telephoto lens supporting 60x digital zoom.

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Google Pixel 5

• Announcement date: September 30, 2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $699 USD

Launched on 30th September 2020. The phone comes with a 6.20-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 1080×2340 pixels with an aspect ratio of 19.5:9. Google Pixel 4a 5G is powered by a 1.8GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G processor. It comes with 8GB of RAM / 128GB Flash configuration and a respectful Li-Po 4080 mAh non-removable battery, that also supports 18W fast charging.

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Xiaomi Mi Note 10

• Announcement date: September 30, 2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $800 USD

Combining Samsung technology with Corephotonics advanced algorithms Xiaomi’s new Mi Note 10 smartphone has it all, surpassing the Huawei P30 Pro series with the World’s First 108 MP Camera with a five-module (Penta) camera array. The camera is capable of zooming into an object with a zoom factor of up to x50.

Camera Specifications:

• 108MP primary camera: 1/1.33 inch super sensor, 7P lens, ƒ/1.69, 4-axis OIS
• 12MP portrait camera: 2x optical zoom, 1.4μm, ƒ/2.0, Dual pixel autofocus
• 5MP telephoto camera: 10x hybrid zoom, 50x digital zoom, ƒ/2.0, OIS.
  20MP ultra wide-angle camera: FOV 117°, ƒ/2.2.
• 2MP macro camera: 1.5cm super macro, 2-10cm AF macro shot, macro zoom shooting.
• Dual flashes, Dual soft lights.
• 32MP selfie camera: 1.6 μm, 4-in-1 super-pixel, f/2.0 aperture

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OPPO Find X3 Pro

• Announcement date: March 11, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera Editors’ choice – Starting at $1,177.77 USD

The upcoming OPPO Find X3 Pro is expected to have an above-average camera array with a Sony unannounced 50 MP IMX766 image sensor paired with a wide-angle lens and a 13 MP telephoto camera for 2X optical zoom much like the regular Find X2. The new IMX766 sensor will probably use Sony’s 2×2 OnChip Lens Solution, enabling All Pixel Omni Directional PDAF for faster and more accurate autofocus in low-lighting conditions.

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Xiaomi Mi 11 Series

• Announcement date: December 28 , 2020
• Category: Best phone camera Editors’ choice – Starting at $800 USD

Announce the launch of the Xiaomi Mi 11 series on December 28; one day earlier than the prediction of electronic spies. It is expected that we will see several flagships: Xiaomi Mi 11 and Mi 11 Pro. There are also some predictions about the possible debut of Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro +, which should be doubted.

According to rumors, both smartphones will receive OLED panels with a refresh rate of 120 Hz, Snapdragon 888 SoC, 8 GB RAM, 128 GB storage, and 55W fast charging. The basic version of the series will receive a 4780mAh battery, and the larger version will use a 4970mAh battery. The Xiaomi Mi 11 main camera will provide three lenses 108 MP + 13 MP + 5 MP, while the Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro will have a more interesting set of sensors: 50 MP + 48 MP + 20 MP + 12 MP.

According to the leaked specification sheet, the display size of the Mi 11 is larger than 6 inches. Unfortunately, the Mi 11 comes with an X, which prevents us from knowing the actual size. Nevertheless, the phone will still have a 1440p resolution. The display is AMOLED type, and the refresh rate is 120Hz. In addition, both sides of the display have obvious curves, and the selfie camera is equipped with a perforation in the upper left corner.

Hardware

Undoubtedly the center of the topic. Xiaomi Mi 11 is the world’s first Qualcomm Snapdragon 888. The more advanced 5nm process technology and new chip architecture bring a performance level far beyond the previous Xiaomi flagship.

At the CPU level, Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 uses a 1+3+4 cluster core combination and a Kryo 680 super core that is deeply customized based on the Cortex-X1 core. Therefore, this chip is also the first to officially adopt this core. Chip, clocked at 2.84GHz, 3 large Kryo cores customized based on Cortex-A78, clocked at 2.42GHz, and 4 small Kryo 680 cores customized based on Cortex- A55.

From an architectural perspective, Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 uses the same 1+3+4 cluster as Snapdragon 865, and even the same main frequency is 2.84GHz.

Sound System

In addition to the impressive front and back look of the phone, Xiaomi also left a small speaker microphone hole in the middle frame. Next to the speaker on the top of the phone, the Mi 11 is printed with the English logo by Harman Kardon. Yes, this phone is powered by Harman Kardon, so the actual sound performance in the Mi 11 is expected to be very impressive, especially when listening to it for the first time, the bass, mid-to-treble performance is clear, with stereo dual speakers. In addition, the bottom and top of the mobile phone are cut flat, which effectively reduces the pressure on the fingers, facilitates the user’s grip, and improves the general feeling.

Cameras

On the back of the Xiaomi Mi 11 is a triangular photo array consisting of the main camera with 7 lenses, based on a 108-megapixel sensor, with a focal length of 26 mm, an aperture key off / 1.85, and pixels measuring 1.6 micrometers, Combined with 4 pixels overlapping to 1. In addition, the main camera also supports phase detection for fast autofocus (PDAF) and optical image stabilization (OIS).

Another camera in the main array uses a 13-megapixel sensor to take 123-degree wide-angle images through 5 lenses, with a focal length of 15 mm and an f / 2.4 aperture key, as well as a macro camera with a 5-megapixel sensor, a focal length of 50mm, f / 2.4 aperture key and autofocus. On the video side, there is the support of up to 8K film resolution.

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OnePlus 9 Pro

• Announcement date: Mar 30, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $800 USD

The OnePlus 9 Pro uses Samsung’s latest E4 AMOLED screen with a 6.7-inch QHD+ resolution. Thanks to the latest luminescent materials, the display can reach a peak brightness of 1400 nits while supporting native With 10bit color depth and HDR10+ certification, it once again got the A+ evaluation of DisplayMate.

In fact, last year’s OnePlus 8 Pro screen has become perfect, leading the way to support QHD+ resolution and 120Hz refresh rate at the same time. When it comes to OnePlus 9 Pro, the high refresh rate has improved the smoothness of interaction without repeating it. On the contrary, some further upgrade experiences are more worthy of attention.

For example, with the addition of LTPO, the responsive refresh frequency range of the OnePlus 9 Pro is expanded to 1Hz-120Hz seamlessly and continuously. The phone will automatically select the most suitable refresh rate, according to the content on the current screen. Moments, short videos, and when you stop to look at other people’s microblogs and beautiful photos in Moments, the screen has a low power consumption of 1Hz, and when it doesn’t stop sliding, it has a 120Hz visual effect without smear.

In short, in the process of using the OnePlus 9 Pro, the use of LTPO, for me, is to turn on QHD+ without any burden, and I don’t have to worry about 120Hz putting too much pressure on battery life, so concentrate on enjoying this good screen.

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 iPhone 13 Pro Max

• Announcement date: September 24, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $1,099 USD

The larger iPhone 13 is also the best camera that you can purchase. Apple has done everything with the iPhone 13 Pro Max hardware, increasing the sensor size for major and ultra-wide cameras and adding autofocus to it. That ultrawide can act as a macro camera, photographing subjects up to 2 cm away. The OIS sensor shift introduced last year on the iPhone 12 Pro Max comes back this year and the telephoto lens got a boost at 3x.

Apple also improved its computational photography, especially when it comes to low-light. Another new product this year is Photographic Styles – real-time filters – and Cinematic mode. This latter is a video portrait on steroids, dynamically touting switching homes to create a truly professional video experience.

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Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

• Announcement date: January 29, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $1,199 USD

While the camera of the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra didn’t quite fulfill its promise, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra does a lot. Basically, everything is super great in the S21 Ultra, the camera is premium top-end, with a 108MP f/1.8 main snapper, a 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide one equipped with two telephoto cameras. These are both 10MP, but one has an f/2.4 aperture and allows for 3x optical zoom, while the other has an f/4.9 aperture and allows for a massive 10x optical zoom.

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Google Pixel 6 Pro

• Announcement date: October 19, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $899 USD

Google usually provides excellent photography experiences on its phones, and the Google Pixel 6 Pro is no exception. In fact, its hardware and software have both seen huge upgrades from the Pixel 5. The phone comes with a 50MP f/1.9 main sensor with 1.2µm pixels, capable of taking excellent photos, with good detail, and vivid colors that were true to life.

Next to it, you have a 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera with a 114-degree field of view, and a 48MP f/3.5 telephoto snapper that offers 4x optical zoom, both of which perform very respectable as well as the best rivals.

There are also some software advantages that you won’t see on rival handsets, such as a Magic Eraser that can remove unwanted aspects from photos, Motion mode for long exposure shots, and Real Tone, which more accurately captures the skin tones of people of color. Overall, this translates into a very impressive configuration.

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vivo iQOO Z3

• Announcement date: June 8, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $261 USD

The new smartphone from the Chinese brand iQOO iQOO Z3 has a triple camera setup (64 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP) which works well in daylight.  Featuring a 16MP front camera equipped with an LED flash. The smartphone has a 6.58 inches (16.71 cm) display, 401 PPI, IPS LCD, and 120 Hz refresh rate. It has a battery step-up of 4400 mAh. Comes with flash charging and has USB Type-C Port. iQOO Z3 performance is powered by Octa-core (2.8 GHz, Single Core + 2.4 GHz, Single-core + 1.8 GHz, Hexa Core), Snapdragon 768G, and 6 GB RAM.

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Realme XT

Announcement date: June 8, 2021
Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $261 USD

This phone primary camera array features 64 + 8 + 2 + 2 MP Quad. It also comes with LED flash and has a 16 MP front camera. The phone has a 6.4 inches (16.26 cm) display, 403 PPI, and Super AMOLED. Its battery supports 4000 mAh, VOOC charging 3.0, and has a USB Type-C port. The performance is powered by Octa-core (2.3 GHz, Dual Core + 1.7 GHz, Hexa Core), Snapdragon 712, and 4 GB RAM.

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OPPO F19s

• Announcement date: September 27, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $240 USD

This phone comes with primary triple cameras (48MP + 2MP + 2MP), LED flash, and a 16MP front camera. The display is 6.43 inches (16.33 cm), 409 PPI, AMOLED, with a 60 Hz refresh rate. The battery supports, 5000 mAh, flash charging, and has a USB Type-C port. Its performance is powered by Octa-core (2 GHz, Quad Core + 1.8 GHz, Quad-core), Snapdragon 662, and 6 GB RAM.

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OPPO A74 5G

• Announcement date: April 13, 2021
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $248 USD

The OPPO A74 5G comes with a 48 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP triple primary cameras setup, LED flash, and 8 MP front camera. The display is 6.5 inches (16.51 cm), 405 PPI, IPS LCD, with a 90 Hz refresh rate. The battery supports 5000 mAh, has fast charging, and is of USB Type-C port. Performance is powered by Octa-core (2 GHz, Dual Core + 1.8 GHz, Hexa Core), Snapdragon 480, and 6 GB RAM.

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Vivo V20

• Announcement date: December 24, 2020
• Category: Best phone camera – Starting at $360 USD

It comes with three primary cameras (64MP + 8MP + 2MP), dual-color LED flash, and a 44 MP front camera. The display has 6.44 inches (16.36 cm),, 409 PPI, AMOLED, and 60 Hz refresh rate. The battery supports 4000 mAh and flash charging. Performance is powered by Octa-core (2.3 GHz, Dual Core + 1.8 GHz, Hexa Core), Snapdragon 720G, and 8 GB RAM.

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