We Tested Dozens of Phones and These Have the Best Cameras

Yahoo

2 days ago

Nearly all phones $500 or more can take a decent photo, but for consistently great images, even in low-light, you need a smartphone with the best camera. For example, the Galaxy S25 Ultra ,the Pixel 9 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro all have amazing cameras with features that even professional photographers can appreciate. This list of best camera phones only has phones that we tested and that you can buy in 2025. Tariffs and a general uncertainty around the economy have caused people to consider upgrading their phone. Apple, Google and Samsung haven't raised the prices on their current phones.
It's important to keep in mind that there isn't a best camera phone for everyone. Even among CNET's phone reviewers, there isn't a "perfect" phone that suits all our needs. We look at how these cameras perform in real-life situations: How they balance exposures, how they handle colors and how easy they are to use. Read our guide to help find the best phone camera for your needs.
We thoroughly tested and compared dozens of phones and found that one with more lenses or megapixels isn't necessarily any better at taking great shots. Top phones, like the iPhone 16 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro" target="_blank, tend to have a variety of lenses, including an ultrawide and a telephoto with 5x optical zoom, and use larger image sensors and camera features for AI-powered computational photography. Then there's the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra's camera, which has 3x and 5x optical zoom lenses and can take some of the best zoom photos that you can possibly get from a phone.
The $999 iPhone 16 Pro and $1,199 iPhone 16 Pro Max have the same trio of lenses: wide, ultrawide and 5x telephoto. The new 48-megapixel ultrawide camera is a big step up from previous iPhone models. It not only takes outstanding photos but doubles as a high-res macro lens to get the perfect focus on your food snaps. Both phones also support 4K 120fps slow-motion video that looks outstanding. A new Camera Control button doubles as a shortcut key to open the camera but also as a shutter button. It can also be used as a zoom rocker or to swipe through Apple's revamped Photographic Styles -- letting you preview each one in the viewfinder before you take a single pic. Both phones pack advanced features such as ProRaw images, ProRes video capture and recording in Log color space, which makes them powerful tools for professional filmmakers.
Is the iPhone 16 Pro leaps and bounds ahead of what Google and Samsung are doing? No. In terms of consistency, reliability and approachability, the iPhone 16 Pro is our pick for people who want a top-notch camera system that's easy to use.
In January 2025, we added the Samsung Galaxy S25, S25 Plus and S25 Ultra to our list. The new phones replace last year's Galaxy S24 series and come with new processors and cameras–all at the same price.
Consider last year's models: Apple no longer sells the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but you can still find it at third party retailers and often for hundreds less than the iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Protect your new phone with a case: Make your phone and its camera's last longer with a case.
Don't overlook affordable phones: The $499 Pixel 8A and $599 iPhone 15 can do almost everything that a new premium phone can do for a fraction of the price. Save some money and still take great snaps.
Wait for sales: Many of the best phone camera systems are found on more expensive models. Look for sales and discounts around major holidays, especially Amazon's Prime Day and Cyber Monday.
Check if you're already invested: Have you already bought a lot of iPhone camera accessories like a case or tripod? Stick with an iPhone if you still want access to them. Make sure your new iPhone will still work with your setup.
We test every phone in real-world scenarios, focusing on its features, design, performance, cameras, battery life and overall value. We document our findings in an initial review that is periodically updated when there are new software updates, or to compare it against new phones from competitors such as Apple, Samsung, Google and OnePlus.
Photography is a major focus for most phones these days, so we take pictures and videos of various subjects in a variety of settings and lighting scenarios. We try out any new camera modes, such as ProRes Log video that debuted with the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, or the Magic Editor photo tool that launched with the Google Pixel 8 series.
Battery testing is conducted in a variety of ways. We assess how long a phone lasts during a typical day of use and note how it performs during more focused sessions of video calls, media streaming and gaming. We also conduct a video playback test, as a simple, replicable measure of pure battery life, which isn't always included in the initial review but sometimes added later in an update.
We use benchmarking apps to measure each phone's performance, alongside our own anecdotal experiences using the phone for our review. Most notable are how the graphics and animations look. Are they smooth? Or do they lag or stutter? We also look at how quickly the phone switches between horizontal and vertical orientations, and how fast the camera app opens and is ready to take a photo.
We perform processor-heavy tasks like editing photos, exporting videos and playing games. We evaluate whether a newer version of a particular phone includes enough features to make it worth upgrading from older models.
Read more: How We Test Phones
The $1,400 Sony Xperia 1 V retains all the best features of previous Xperia 1 phones, like a 4K high refresh rate display, expandable storage, cutting-edge cameras with eye-tracking autofocus, a 5,000-mAh battery, a dedicated hardware shutter button and a headphone jack, all wrapped in Sony's lovely, mundane utilitarian design. The phone brims with numerous quality-of-life improvements for its target audience of creative types like photographers, filmmakers, musicians and gamers who want nuanced control over the content they make. Its $1,400 price tag keeps this phone squarely aimed beyond most consumers.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Apple iPhone 16 Pro and Google Pixel 9 Pro all have dedicated night modes that take multiple images and combine them in a single photo that's brighter and has less image noise. All three are good, and it's nearly impossible to say one is better than another.
Samsung Galaxy phones and Apple iPhones have some of the best cameras found on any phone. Either smartphone is a capable photographic tool, but neither is such a clear leader that it's worth moving from Android to iOS or vice versa. If you want the biggest telephoto zoom camera found on a phone, grab a Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra. If you want an excellent all-around shooter that produces natural-looking images and videos, along with pro features like ProRes and Log video capture, get an iPhone 16 Pro or 16 Pro Max.
The biggest difference between a dedicated camera and a phone camera is the size. A dedicated camera has a larger sensor and bigger lenses that take in more light. The results are photos that have more detail, a wider dynamic range and more versatility in medium and low light. A phone camera is tiny. The sensor is smaller than a fingernail and the lens is about the size of a single Lego brick. To overcome the limitations of a small sensor and lens, a phone uses computational photography (AI and machine learning) to combine parts of multiple images into a single photo that's brighter and has more detail than a phone camera alone.
Samsung teased the Galaxy S25 Edge at its January Galaxy Unpacked event. Not much is known about the phone aside from it being slimmer than the regular Galaxy S25. Here's everything you need to know about the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge. There's also buzz for the next iPhone, likely called the iPhone 17 -- from a slimmer version of the upcoming device to a new screen with a higher refresh rate on baseline models. We've rounded up rumors, leaks and analysis on the iPhone 17 Air (one of several nicknames for Apple's next iPhone). Read CNET's iPhone 17 rumor roundup for more info.