Oppo's New Ultra Flagship Has Two Periscope Zoom That Work Well

Let's rank all the Android phone camera apps from worst to best

Android Authority

31 minutes ago

Android Authority

Let's rank all the Android phone camera apps from worst to best

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority There's more to a great camera phone than hardware. Sure, camera sensors, focal lengths, and the chipset all have a major role to play. However, a phone's camera app can make or break the experience. So with this in mind, we decided to rank every major Android phone maker's pre-installed camera app from worst to best! We took several factors into account, namely image quality, the quantity and quality of features (not including gallery features), and the camera app's design. I relied on some colleagues to rank the camera apps, but also used my own discretion in a few places. Either way, this is just for fun, but you can give us your own list in the comments! Which smartphone maker has the best camera app? 1 votes Google 0 % HONOR 0 % Motorola 0 % Nothing 0 % OPPO/OnePlus 0 % Samsung 0 % Sony 0 % TECNO 0 % vivo 100 % Xiaomi 0 % 10. TECNO Hadlee Simons / Android Authority We thought TECNO's HiOS was the worst Android skin out of all the major manufacturers, and the camera app isn't much better. The good news is that the app has a solid, if generic, UI. That's where the positives generally end. My time with 2023's Phantom V Flip and Phantom V Fold devices showed that TECNO's camera app didn't threaten rivals for image quality. Daytime snaps are handled well enough, but low-light performance is inconsistent to outright poor. You'd better enable the Super Night mode in these scenarios. The camera app also tends to suffer from poor zoom quality, even when the phone has a telephoto camera. TECNO's camera app doesn't have many standout features, although basic options like an ultra-steady video mode, night mode, and full-resolution capture are available. There are also plenty of beautification features if that's your thing, including a plump butt filter (seriously). Just don't expect features like Samsung's Single Take or Google's Add Me. At least the brand beat Google to the punch by a few years in offering better support for darker skin tones. 9. HONOR Robert Triggs / Android Authority HONOR routinely offers some fantastic camera hardware, as seen on its Magic 7 Pro and foldable phones. However, the company could do a better job with the camera app. For starters, the camera UI isn't bad, but it lags well behind big-name rivals. There's nothing here that truly screams 'HONOR.' The camera app generally delivers solid image quality. Colleague C Scott Brown praised the consistency across all three rear cameras on the Magic V3 foldable, while Rob Triggs praised the HDR performance in our Magic 7 Pro review. However, Rob sharply criticized the phone's AI-assisted zoom, which added obvious AI-generated imagery at 30x or higher, as well as the AI-enhanced portrait mode. Scott also took issue with the oversaturated colors in general. The camera app also has plenty of modes and features. These include three color profiles, LUT support, a variety of filters, a stage mode, a night video mode, and a 'Falcon Capture' option for fast-moving subjects. It clearly keeps up with other brands in this regard but doesn't pull ahead. 8. Motorola Ryan Haines / Android Authority I relied on our US writers to give me their opinions on Motorola's camera app owing to the brand's ready availability there. Meanwhile, my last experience with a Motorola phone was probably 2016's Moto Z Play. Oof. In any event, the camera app UI is a little generic at first glance, but it evokes the Pixel camera app due to that familiar camera mode carousel. At least you can't accuse Motorola of copying the iPhone camera app. Motorola's image quality hasn't historically been great. Our reviewer complaints over the years include over-sharpened and/or over-saturated images during the day and dark, blurry snaps at night. The camera situation has improved in recent times, but good low-light images aren't a guarantee on its budget phones or the Razr series. The Moto camera app doesn't have the most tricks, either. We've got expected features like portrait mode and night mode, as well as cool additions like horizon-locked stabilization and the ever-fun color pop feature. Fortunately, the latest flagships also offer nifty options like Action Shot, Group Shot, and a Signature Style feature that learns your desired image style. Pretty cool. 7. Sony Alex Walker-Todd / Android Authority Sony is arguably the king of camera software for photography enthusiasts. The company has historically offered plenty of pro-level features in its camera app, including eye-tracking autofocus, several video profiles (e.g., S-Cinetone), and a smorgasbord of manual photo/video controls. The Sony app even lets you pair your phone with a Sony Alpha camera — how cool is that? Sony's app doesn't have a lot of traditional smartphone tools, though, but you still have robust livestream support, portrait mode, a variety of color profiles, full-resolution photo capture, and bokeh video. Sony previously had several camera apps on its phones, making for a messy experience. Thankfully, the company has since integrated all these apps into one camera app. The actual UI design isn't anything to write home about, but it's not bad. We also thought that recent Sony flagship phones, like the Xperia 1 VI, took great images that didn't look over-processed. However, colleague Rob Triggs previously opined that the Xperia 1 V wasn't as consistent as rival handsets, and consistency is key for a great camera app. We haven't reviewed a mid-range Xperia phone in a couple of years, but colleague Adam Birney previously described the Xperia 10 IV's cameras as 'below average.' In other words, there's no guarantee that basic image quality holds up across various price points. 6. Nothing C. Scott Brown / Android Authority Nothing's camera app would be ranked lower on the list, but our US reviewers all ranked it in their top five. I can see why, based on the camera app UI, which offers a distinctive design. You really aren't going to mistake this for a Pixel or iPhone. The company is starting from scratch, so it can't lean on legacy features, but there are a few cool capabilities worth knowing. For one, the Nothing Phone 3a series offers custom camera filters that can be shared with other Nothing Phone owners. These phones also offer a decent variety of neat filters, along with Log video support and the ability to upload custom LUTs for images. In fact, colleague Ryan Haines praised the latter feature last month. You also have the expected portrait and night modes, but that's about it. So you'll have to look elsewhere if you want loads of camera modes and tools. We thought Nothing devices took some solid photos over the past few years using this camera app, although we lamented issues like shutter lag and poor low-light quality on previous phones. But the Nothing Phone 3a series shows the brand has a good handle on hybrid zoom. 5. Xiaomi Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority Xiaomi has delivered some excellent camera phones in recent years, such as the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 14 Ultra. These phones have impressive hardware, but the Xiaomi camera app also delivers good image quality. Even the company's cheap Android phones generally offer solid to good 1x shots, although they do tend to lag behind the Pixel A series. The Xiaomi camera app is packed full of features. Options found on flagships include adjustable color profiles on Leica-branded handsets, an AI Zoom toggle for long-range zoom, Log video, a motion capture mode for fast-moving subjects, and more. Cheaper Xiaomi phones lag far behind in terms of modes, but you still have options like a long-exposure suite of modes, a motion capture feature for fast-moving subjects, and a teleprompter mode. I'd argue that Xiaomi's app still doesn't have its own visual identity after all this time. I can take a split-second glance at Samsung or Google's camera app and know what I'm looking at, but the same can't be said for the Xiaomi app. 4. vivo Hadlee Simons / Android Authority The vivo camera app just misses out on a podium spot, but this is still a good showing. Vivo phones generally offer good photo quality, although over-processing can be an issue in some scenarios (e.g., low light). So, those who prefer more natural-looking images might be a little disappointed at times. Easily the best thing about the vivo camera app is the number of features and modes. The company offers a variety of portrait options (e.g. plenty of bokeh styles), some color profiles, LOG video, SuperRaw photos, a cinematic video mode on recent mid-rangers and flagships, handheld astrophotography, a teleprompter mode, perspective correction for buildings, and a street photography mode. The latter mode can be activated with an upward swipe and gives you a camera-like UI and custom shooting profiles. The app isn't going to win any awards as far as looks are concerned. The black, yellow, and white color scheme reminds me of Apple, and there's also the usual overflow menu at the top of the screen. I really like how vivo handles zoom controls, though. It lets you tap the preset zoom buttons a few more times to cycle through more zoom levels (e.g. tapping 1x will give you 1.2x and 1.4x options). So while it's not the best-looking app here, it makes up for this downside in other areas. 3. Samsung Hadlee Simons / Android Authority The Samsung camera app has just undergone a major overhaul as part of the company's One UI 7 update. This redesigned camera app certainly looks and feels fresh compared to rival camera apps while being optimized for one-handed usage. Samsung's app also has a good number of features, including cool options like Single Take, Director's View, and custom filters. Samsung also offers the Expert Raw app to expand the functionality of the stock camera app, but several rival brands offer some of these features without needing an extra camera app. Samsung's app has also long had a reputation for delivering arguably the best video quality on Android, but photo quality isn't as clear-cut. Photos generally look great, but problems like shutter lag on the Ultra and A series phones have made for a frustrating experience. Samsung's cheaper phones also sometimes capture extremely over-saturated snaps, as I found out on the Galaxy A55 5G last year. 2. OnePlus/OPPO Ryan Haines / Android Authority Are you surprised to see the OnePlus/OPPO camera app in the number-two spot? OnePlus flagships, in particular, used to lag behind the competition in terms of image processing, but the company has made major improvements over the past couple of years. In fact, we said the OnePlus 13 makes our shortlist for the best Android camera phone. You can also capture good-quality 1x shots on recently released mid-tier devices. That doesn't sound like a big deal, but it's noteworthy as the firm's cheaper phones used to offer a disappointing shooting experience. The biggest downside to the OnePlus camera app is perhaps the visual design. The viewfinder itself is inoffensive and relatively clean, but the settings menu rips off the iPhone camera's settings page. Perhaps the camera app's biggest strength is the breadth of features, at least on high-end phones. Flagship devices enjoy Hasselblad color profiles, a neat XPAN shooting mode, a Master Mode, and a variety of smart scenes (e.g. stage, fireworks). Cheaper OnePlus and OPPO phones definitely get the very short end of the stick, but you still have notable features like high-resolution shooting, long-exposure functionality, portrait photo/video capture, and tilt-shift. 1. Google C. Scott Brown / Android Authority Is this the greatest Android OEM camera app ever made? It's hard to argue from a historical perspective, as the Pixel camera app was the gold standard for almost a decade. It says a lot about your camera app when enthusiasts continue to unofficially port it to other smartphones in 2025. Google's camera app certainly looks the business, offering a simple, distinctive UI. I'm still not a fan of the pro settings icon in the bottom right corner, though, as I often confuse it for the main settings menu. Nevertheless, the Pixel camera app's popularity stems from its image quality. Google's HDR+ imaging algorithms were a cut above almost every other brand's image-processing software in the 2010s, as unofficial ports of the app delivered fantastic photos on even $200 phones. A few manufacturers have caught and arguably surpassed Google in 2025, but Pixel phones still generally take fantastic, natural-looking images. Google's app continues to deliver class-leading hybrid zoom, too, thanks to its Super Res Zoom tech. That means phones like the Pixel 9 Pro can take great 10x shots while mid-range Pixels without a telephoto camera still do a decent job out to 3x or 4x. Google's camera app offers standout features like Add Me, Video Boost, a shadow slider, and an astrophotography mode. However, the app is missing features seen on rival devices like user-selectable color profiles, Log video mode, native 8K capture, 4K/120fps video, and multi-camera capture. In spite of the feature gap, the Pixel camera app is still our pick for the top camera app among Android brands.

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

Yahoo

an hour ago

Yahoo

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cybersecurity investigators noticed a highly unusual software crash — it was affecting a small number of smartphones belonging to people who worked in government, politics, tech and journalism. The crashes, which began late last year and carried into 2025, were the tipoff to a sophisticated cyberattack that may have allowed hackers to infiltrate a phone without a single click from the user. The attackers left no clues about their identities, but investigators at the cybersecurity firm iVerify noticed that the victims all had something in common: They worked in fields of interest to China's government and had been targeted by Chinese hackers in the past. Foreign hackers have increasingly identified smartphones, other mobile devices and the apps they use as a weak link in U.S. cyberdefenses. Groups linked to China's military and intelligence service have targeted the smartphones of prominent Americans and burrowed deep into telecommunication networks, according to national security and tech experts. It shows how vulnerable mobile devices and apps are and the risk that security failures could expose sensitive information or leave American interests open to cyberattack, those experts say. 'The world is in a mobile security crisis right now,' said Rocky Cole, a former cybersecurity expert at the National Security Agency and Google and now chief operations officer at iVerify. 'No one is watching the phones.' US zeroes in on China as a threat, and Beijing levels its own accusations U.S. authorities warned in December of a sprawling Chinese hacking campaign designed to gain access to the texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans. 'They were able to listen in on phone calls in real time and able to read text messages,' said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois. He is a member of the House Intelligence Committee and the senior Democrat on the Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, created to study the geopolitical threat from China. Chinese hackers also sought access to phones used by Donald Trump and running mate JD Vance during the 2024 campaign. The Chinese government has denied allegations of cyberespionage, and accused the U.S. of mounting its own cyberoperations. It says America cites national security as an excuse to issue sanctions against Chinese organizations and keep Chinese technology companies from the global market. 'The U.S. has long been using all kinds of despicable methods to steal other countries' secrets,' Lin Jian, a spokesman for China's foreign ministry, said at a recent press conference in response to questions about a CIA push to recruit Chinese informants. U.S. intelligence officials have said China poses a significant, persistent threat to U.S. economic and political interests, and it has harnessed the tools of digital conflict: online propaganda and disinformation, artificial intelligence and cyber surveillance and espionage designed to deliver a significant advantage in any military conflict. Mobile networks are a top concern. The U.S. and many of its closest allies have banned Chinese telecom companies from their networks. Other countries, including Germany, are phasing out Chinese involvement because of security concerns. But Chinese tech firms remain a big part of the systems in many nations, giving state-controlled companies a global footprint they could exploit for cyberattacks, experts say. Chinese telecom firms still maintain some routing and cloud storage systems in the U.S. — a growing concern to lawmakers. 'The American people deserve to know if Beijing is quietly using state-owned firms to infiltrate our critical infrastructure,' U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich. and chairman of the China committee, which in April issued subpoenas to Chinese telecom companies seeking information about their U.S. operations. Mobile devices have become an intel treasure trove Mobile devices can buy stocks, launch drones and run power plants. Their proliferation has often outpaced their security. The phones of top government officials are especially valuable, containing sensitive government information, passwords and an insider's glimpse into policy discussions and decision-making. The White House said last week that someone impersonating Susie Wiles, Trump's chief of staff, reached out to governors, senators and business leaders with texts and phone calls. It's unclear how the person obtained Wiles' connections, but they apparently gained access to the contacts in her personal cellphone, The Wall Street Journal reported. The messages and calls were not coming from Wiles' number, the newspaper reported. While most smartphones and tablets come with robust security, apps and connected devices often lack these protections or the regular software updates needed to stay ahead of new threats. That makes every fitness tracker, baby monitor or smart appliance another potential foothold for hackers looking to penetrate networks, retrieve information or infect systems with malware. Federal officials launched a program this year creating a 'cyber trust mark' for connected devices that meet federal security standards. But consumers and officials shouldn't lower their guard, said Snehal Antani, former chief technology officer for the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations Command. 'They're finding backdoors in Barbie dolls,' said Antani, now CEO of a cybersecurity firm, referring to concerns from researchers who successfully hacked the microphone of a digitally connected version of the toy. Risks emerge when smartphone users don't take precautions It doesn't matter how secure a mobile device is if the user doesn't follow basic security precautions, especially if their device contains classified or sensitive information, experts say. Mike Waltz, who departed as Trump's national security adviser, inadvertently added The Atlantic's editor-in-chief to a Signal chat used to discuss military plans with other top officials. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had an internet connection that bypassed the Pentagon's security protocols set up in his office so he could use the Signal messaging app on a personal computer, the AP has reported. Hegseth has rejected assertions that he shared classified information on Signal, a popular encrypted messaging app not approved for the use of communicating classified information. China and other nations will try to take advantage of such lapses, and national security officials must take steps to prevent them from recurring, said Michael Williams, a national security expert at Syracuse University. 'They all have access to a variety of secure communications platforms,' Williams said. "We just can't share things willy-nilly.' David Klepper, The Associated Press Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data

Associated Press

an hour ago

Associated Press

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cybersecurity investigators noticed a highly unusual software crash — it was affecting a small number of smartphones belonging to people who worked in government, politics, tech and journalism. The crashes, which began late last year and carried into 2025, were the tipoff to a sophisticated cyberattack that may have allowed hackers to infiltrate a phone without a single click from the user. The attackers left no clues about their identities, but investigators at the cybersecurity firm iVerify noticed that the victims all had something in common: They worked in fields of interest to China's government and had been targeted by Chinese hackers in the past. Foreign hackers have increasingly identified smartphones, other mobile devices and the apps they use as a weak link in U.S. cyberdefenses. Groups linked to China's military and intelligence service have targeted the smartphones of prominent Americans and burrowed deep into telecommunication networks, according to national security and tech experts. It shows how vulnerable mobile devices and apps are and the risk that security failures could expose sensitive information or leave American interests open to cyberattack, those experts say. 'The world is in a mobile security crisis right now,' said Rocky Cole, a former cybersecurity expert at the National Security Agency and Google and now chief operations officer at iVerify. 'No one is watching the phones.' US zeroes in on China as a threat, and Beijing levels its own accusations U.S. authorities warned in December of a sprawling Chinese hacking campaign designed to gain access to the texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans. 'They were able to listen in on phone calls in real time and able to read text messages,' said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois. He is a member of the House Intelligence Committee and the senior Democrat on the Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, created to study the geopolitical threat from China. Chinese hackers also sought access to phones used by Donald Trump and running mate JD Vance during the 2024 campaign. The Chinese government has denied allegations of cyberespionage, and accused the U.S. of mounting its own cyberoperations. It says America cites national security as an excuse to issue sanctions against Chinese organizations and keep Chinese technology companies from the global market. 'The U.S. has long been using all kinds of despicable methods to steal other countries' secrets,' Lin Jian, a spokesman for China's foreign ministry, said at a recent press conference in response to questions about a CIA push to recruit Chinese informants. U.S. intelligence officials have said China poses a significant, persistent threat to U.S. economic and political interests, and it has harnessed the tools of digital conflict: online propaganda and disinformation, artificial intelligence and cyber surveillance and espionage designed to deliver a significant advantage in any military conflict. Mobile networks are a top concern. The U.S. and many of its closest allies have banned Chinese telecom companies from their networks. Other countries, including Germany, are phasing out Chinese involvement because of security concerns. But Chinese tech firms remain a big part of the systems in many nations, giving state-controlled companies a global footprint they could exploit for cyberattacks, experts say. Chinese telecom firms still maintain some routing and cloud storage systems in the U.S. — a growing concern to lawmakers. 'The American people deserve to know if Beijing is quietly using state-owned firms to infiltrate our critical infrastructure,' U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich. and chairman of the China committee, which in April issued subpoenas to Chinese telecom companies seeking information about their U.S. operations. Mobile devices have become an intel treasure trove Mobile devices can buy stocks, launch drones and run power plants. Their proliferation has often outpaced their security. The phones of top government officials are especially valuable, containing sensitive government information, passwords and an insider's glimpse into policy discussions and decision-making. The White House said last week that someone impersonating Susie Wiles, Trump's chief of staff, reached out to governors, senators and business leaders with texts and phone calls. It's unclear how the person obtained Wiles' connections, but they apparently gained access to the contacts in her personal cellphone, The Wall Street Journal reported. The messages and calls were not coming from Wiles' number, the newspaper reported. While most smartphones and tablets come with robust security, apps and connected devices often lack these protections or the regular software updates needed to stay ahead of new threats. That makes every fitness tracker, baby monitor or smart appliance another potential foothold for hackers looking to penetrate networks, retrieve information or infect systems with malware. Federal officials launched a program this year creating a 'cyber trust mark' for connected devices that meet federal security standards. But consumers and officials shouldn't lower their guard, said Snehal Antani, former chief technology officer for the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations Command. 'They're finding backdoors in Barbie dolls,' said Antani, now CEO of a cybersecurity firm, referring to concerns from researchers who successfully hacked the microphone of a digitally connected version of the toy. Risks emerge when smartphone users don't take precautions It doesn't matter how secure a mobile device is if the user doesn't follow basic security precautions, especially if their device contains classified or sensitive information, experts say. Mike Waltz, who departed as Trump's national security adviser, inadvertently added The Atlantic's editor-in-chief to a Signal chat used to discuss military plans with other top officials. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had an internet connection that bypassed the Pentagon's security protocols set up in his office so he could use the Signal messaging app on a personal computer, the AP has reported. Hegseth has rejected assertions that he shared classified information on Signal, a popular encrypted messaging app not approved for the use of communicating classified information. China and other nations will try to take advantage of such lapses, and national security officials must take steps to prevent them from recurring, said Michael Williams, a national security expert at Syracuse University. 'They all have access to a variety of secure communications platforms,' Williams said. 'We just can't share things willy-nilly.'

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Let's rank all the Android phone camera apps from worst to best

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

Oppo's New Ultra Flagship Has Two Periscope Zoom That Work Well

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Try Our AI Features

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Let's rank all the Android phone camera apps from worst to best

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

Chinese hackers and user lapses turn smartphones into a 'mobile security crisis'

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