One brand has a golden opportunity to make the best camera phone of 2025
Table of Contents
Table of Contents Samsung has dropped the ball What about Google, Xiaomi, and OnePlus? It's Sony's chance We may never find out
There's a new Sony Xperia flagship smartphone coming on May 13. It's probably going to be called the Xperia 1 VII and Sony's name is synonymous with great cameras, top optics, and high-level computational photography expertise. Plus, the teaser video tells us the new Xperia's camera will contain expertise taken from its Alpha series cameras.
Few other phone brands have such rich photographic heritage, and most resort to bringing in a camera maker to try and get the same kudos. I think the Xperia 1 VII is potentially Sony's time to shine, and if it's as good as we hope, to take firm control as maker of the best phone camera of the year. Here's why.
Samsung has dropped the ball
Brand recognition is very important, and it's one of the top reasons a lot of people buy a Samsung smartphone. The ones who want a Samsung phone with a brilliant camera usually select the Ultra model, with the Galaxy S25 Ultra being the latest. The trouble is, while the Galaxy S25 Ultra's camera is decent, it's not spectacular.
I've recently returned from a long weekend away with the Galaxy S25 Ultra as my main camera, and I spent a lot of time editing the photos I took to get them looking the way I wanted. I never mind editing photos, but I don't think it should be a necessity, yet I believe it is with the Galaxy S25 Ultra. A little tweak to get your preferred look is one thing, but it's quite another to feel you must edit photos just to reach an acceptable baseline. Colors, contrast, and exposure never quite look right straight off the camera.
It's a serious issue because the main camera is affected, which also suffers from poor stabilization resulting in a lack of sharpness. The Galaxy S25 Ultra beat the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max in our camera test, but in the process lost out in the main camera category. Can a camera really be called 'the best' in a test where the camera we will all use the most fails to win? The Galaxy S25 Ultra's camera is, as a whole, very good. However, I don't consider it the photography fan's choice, and it leaves the door open for a challenger.
What about Google, Xiaomi, and OnePlus?
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra was my favorite camera phone of 2024, and while the Xiaomi 15 Ultra's camera is very, very good, it's not quite as good as the Xiaomi 14 Ultra. Unlike Samsung, Xiaomi doesn't do everything itself, and it works with experts Leica to improve and optimize the camera and software. It gives Xiaomi the prestige it needs to become a big player in the smartphone camera world.
Xiaomi also takes smartphone photography very seriously. It produces an accessory that looks like a camera-shaped case for the phone, complete with a built-in battery, physical camera controls, and the chance to attach filters too. However, flashy accessories don't really matter if the camera's software hasn't quite caught up with the latest hardware changes, which is the case with the Xiaomi 15 Ultra.
OnePlus also works with a camera brand, Hasselblad, and the OnePlus 13 takes great photos. But is it stellar? No, but that's not really what it sets out to be. The OnePlus 13 is really the best all-round Android phone available at the moment, and most people will be very happy with the camera, just as they will be with the rest of the phone. But I don't think photo enthusiasts will flock to it, and they're right not to. Hasselblad's name may be on the back, but it's much more of a branding exercise than it is about making the most of the camera hardware.
Then there's the Google Pixel 9 range. The Pixel's camera is very good indeed, almost regardless of which model you buy, but I can't honestly say it's the very best you can get anymore. Google has spent the last few years messing around with AI-powered features like Add Me, and I don't feel it has pushed as hard to make its camera take better photos. It has given brands like Xiaomi the opportunity to be the camera go-to.
It's Sony's chance
All this means there's a chance for another smartphone maker to swoop in and claim the crown emblazoned with the words 'best camera phone 2025.' To do so it needs brand recognition, preferably built-in without the need to bring on a partner. It needs extensive experience making cameras and lenses. It needs to understand how to tune the software behind the camera, and it needs to understand what photographers want.
Sony ticks these boxes. In 2019 I visited Sony's headquarters in Tokyo, I saw first-hand how it was leveraging its massive experience to reinvigorate its smartphones. The team explained why nailing eye-tracking tech was important, how its display experts were called in to approve the screen, and those responsible for the Alpha cameras worked on optimizing the camera's software. Sony was in the process of turning its smartphone division around, and compete with Samsung, Apple, and Huawei at the time.
a real chance to sew up the title of best camera phone of 2025
Most phone fans will know Sony's strategy has chopped and changed a lot since then, and its smartphones are a rarity alongside the big names today. Don't forget though, Sony's camera components are found in many top smartphones already. It knows what it's doing, and if the forthcoming Xperia 1 VII has a camera on the back which effectively leverages all Sony's talent and expertise, it has a real chance to sew up the title of best camera phone of 2025 before we're halfway through the year.
We may never find out
Unfortunately, while I'm confident Sony could do it, I'm also realistic. The fact is it hasn't been able to put all the above together to make a truly outstanding camera yet, despite years of trying. Beyond this it makes buying its phones quite difficult, it doesn't always sell them globally, it is terrible at promoting them, and it has a reputation for being, well, a bit dull. Samsung's Galaxy AI may not be the selling point the company thinks it is, but there's no question it really knows how to convince us it is. Even if the Sony Xperia 1 VII's camera is fantastic, there's a very real chance we'll never actually know, and it's a real shame for us, along with bad news for a phone maker many people may have forgotten even makes phones at all.
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