What is the most productive Android phone for photography right now? Whether you’ve been waiting a long time to upgrade your existing Android phone or you’re an iPhone user and have been tempted by some of the newer versions of Android phones like the Pixel. nine Pro XL or the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, I’m here to help you discover what’s best for you.
Why choose an Android phone over the best iPhones? The main reason is variety, Android phones come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes and each offers different versions of what the best camera phone deserves to offer. Possibly they would concentrate on the superior camera solution, others would concentrate on the photographic features.
Another merit of the Android platform is that some of them have oddly competitive prices, which is a direct result of the number of Android phones available lately. If you’re looking for a good deal, ask our advisor about the best budget camera phones.
There are so many devices for your next Android phone, however, the devices included here are based on their design, screen quality, processing power, battery life, unique matrix features, camera quality, price and usability. Let’s dig!
Gareth is Digital Camera World’s Reviews Editor and the user’s guilty thumb for approving the latest camera technology. A photography and phone enthusiast, he shoots with his Google Pixel or mirrorless camera and knows exactly what qualities he expects to see in a photograph.
Our expert review:
The Google Pixel nine Pro and nine Pro XL will offer the same camera systems and user experiences, differing only in size. The Pixel nine Pro’s 6. 3-inch display is aimed at anyone looking for a more compact flagship experience, while the 6. 8-inch Pixel nine Pro XL caters to those who prefer larger screens. Both models feature flat screens, offer brilliant colors, deep blacks, and sleek 120Hz refresh rates, with maximum brightness degrees that ensure perfect visibility outdoors. Both models also have 45W fast charging, allowing for a full charge in less than nine minutes, and come with wireless charging capabilities.
Installing the same cameras on both models contrasts with other brands reserving high-end cameras for larger models, and will be popular with smaller phone enthusiasts. Both devices feature a triple camera setup, adding a periscope zoom.
The camera system includes a 48MP ultra-wide lens with macro capabilities, a 50MP primary sensor with optical image stabilization, and a 48MP telephoto lens providing approximately 5x optical zoom. The 42MP front camera delivers high-quality selfies.
The Pixel nine series especially excels at night photography, generating well-balanced images on all cameras. The phone is also enhanced by AI-powered photo editing and processing equipment with Google’s Magic Eraser in the Photos app.
Read our full Google Pixel nine Pro and nine Pro XL review
Our expert review:
The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra has long been the default Android flagship for many people, as it combines premium design with state-of-the-art performance. This year is no other with a titanium frame, surprising design and a beautiful flat screen that makes it very premium.
Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, the S24 Ultra offers lightning-fast performance, perfect for multitasking and demanding apps. Advanced AI features integrated into the software enhance productivity and user experience, while the device’s battery life is notably strong, thanks to the efficiency of the new chipset.
The camera formula consistently delivers high-quality images and videos, with a huge array of five cameras you can capture everything from ultra-wide-angle shots to 10x telephoto; Samsung’s symbol processing is arguably not to everyone’s taste. Although the S24 Ultra introduces significant improvements, it maintains many similarities with its predecessor. Finally, the 200MP camera mode, while impressive, arguably doesn’t offer practical benefits to all users.
It’s also one of the most expensive features on the list, and plenty of other phones have similarly rugged cameras for less money, but if you like the design and are already embedded in the Samsung ecosystem, then this camera phone is for you.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
Our opinion:
The Google Pixel 8a is a mid-range smartphone with an affordable price point, but don’t let that fool you into thinking this is any less of an incredible camera phone than its Pixel 9 Pro siblings.
Its design features a metal frame and plastic back, which offers durability with IP67 water and dust resistance, but the plastic does feel much less premium than other phones on the list – and phones for the same price.
The 6.1-inch OLED display provides a 120Hz refresh rate, and the phone is powered by Google’s Tensor G3 chip and 8GB of RAM, so can handle daily tasks efficiently, though it may lag behind competitors in photo and video editing performance. With a 4,492mAh battery, it can last the full day with moderate use, and there is also up to 30W wired charging for topping up quickly.
The camera formula includes a 64 MP main sensor and a thirteen MP ultra-wide-angle lens, which delivers stunning images thanks to Google’s complex photo processing. The device supports 4K video recording, the quality of which depends on sufficiently good lighting. The Pixel 8a also shared Google’s AI-based editing features with Magic Eraser tools, blur removal, and more, as well as AI on the phone, adding live audio transcription of any video.
Notably, Google promises seven years of software updates, so this phone will keep you going long into the future – which certainly can’t be said for all Android phones.
Read our full Google Pixel 8a review
Our opinion:
OnePlus 13 has started 2025 on top with not only the brand’s phone yet, but also one of the phones you can buy lately if you care about your photos.
The camera system, developed in collaboration with Hasselblad, includes a 50 MP main sensor, a 50 MP ultra-wide-angle lens, and a 50 MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom. This setup provides stunning detailed photos that rival the most productive of any other phone. The only problem is that while the 3x optical zoom is effective, a longer optical zoom would improve versatility – the phone has an impressive AI-assisted virtual zoom.
The OnePlus 13 is powered by the latest Snapdragon processor and has really swift performance, and photos and video editing are a breeze. Its 6.82-inch color-accurate display is absolutely stunning, making it ideal for photo and video editing with great clarity, accurate color, and a top peak brightness of 4500nits for editing outside. The build quality is also exceptional, and the phone is available in three colors and finishes – I especially like the Midnight Ocean (blue) faux leather for its premium feel. The OnePlus 13 supports rapid charging up to 80W and has a 6,000mAh which kept me going all day.
Read our full OnePlus thirteen review
Our opinion:
The OnePlus Open stands out as the first camera phone among foldables, thanks to its exceptional photo processing and physically powerful hardware. Equipped with 3 rear cameras (a 52MP main sensor, a 48MP ultra-wide-angle lens, and a 3x telephoto camera), it excels at capturing detailed and flexible photos. The main camera stands out for its ability to render perfect shadow detail and take good care of mixed lighting conditions. Its low-light functionality is impressive, backed by a reliable automatic night mode that allows for sharp, handheld photography.
The telephoto lens stands out for generating sharp, product-quality photographs even at close range, although it lags behind the wide-angle lens in low-light scenarios. The ultra-wide-angle lens, although generally less notable, offers useful macro functions for situations of excessive proximity. -oops. Plus, Dolthrough Vision HDR 10-bit video support makes it a must-have selection for video creators.
Despite its strengths, the OnePlus Open has some drawbacks. The most notable is color inconsistency across its lenses, and its zoom capabilities are less competitive when compared to non-foldable flagships like the Google Pixel 9 Pro or Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.
If you’re looking for a foldable phone that offers the best camera experience available, the OnePlus Open is a great option. However, if having the most productive camera is your most sensible priority, a non-folding flagship might be a better option.
Read our full OnePlus Open review
Our opinion:
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra is every bit a premium smartphone as it is a camera. The combination of best-in-class hardware, pioneering camera tech, Leica’s more classical take on photography tuning, and the best first-party accessory we’ve ever tested make the Xiaomi 14 Ultra the ultimate phone for photographers right now.
With a 1-inch Sony sensor, variable aperture from f/1. 63 to f/4. 0 and a Leica Summilux lens on its 23mm main camera, plus 3 secondary 50MP cameras: a 12mm ultra-wide angle and a 75mm telephoto lens. and a 120mm periscope. Telephoto lenses, all equipped with fast apertures and close-focus capabilities. The device supports 8K video recording.
The most interesting thing about the 14 Ultra is the photography kit accessory that adds physical controls and improves ergonomics. Photographers have expanded out-of-the-box manual controls and freer zoom than ever before.
Unfortunately, the telephone doesn’t help make the eSIM, its operating system, and its user interface cleaner to use. Plus, all those cameras mean that the Xiaomi 14 Ultra is also very expensive and rarely the easiest phone to buy in some places.
Read our full review of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra
Our expert review:
The Oppo Find X8 Pro stands out as a remarkably versatile camera phone, adept at capturing a range of subjects from sports and wildlife to portraits and close-ups with its two periscope telephoto modules.
Although the main camera sensor may be larger, the phone’s remarkable symbol processing makes up for any length limitations, resulting in high-quality symbols. The phone’s rugged AI is helping to deliver even higher telephoto symbol quality, which belies its light weight. But as with other AI-enhanced camera phones, those “assisted” symbols have more to do with interpreting the scene than offering a literal representation, and while the algorithms can fail at times, those trade-offs were pretty clever in our tests. .
The phone is well-built with an impressive is its IP69 ingress protection, making it suitable for underwater photography (but not in the ocean) – although its robustness is questionable as we managed to easily crack its glass back. Although the Find X8 Pro isn’t the cheapest phone, it undercuts similarly equipped rivals like the 512GB Pixel 9 Pro XL, the 512GB Galaxy S24 Ultra, or the 512GB iPhone 16 Pro Max. With its impressive camera specs and performance that can compete with any of these phones, the Find X8 Pro offers great value for its price.
Read our full version of the Oppo Find X8 Pro
The main considerations to take into account when purchasing a new Android phone are the camera, design and price.
Let’s start with the cameras, as most trendy smartphones come with two or more cameras that offer other perspectives. To choose the right camera for you, you need to ask yourself what you like to take a photo of, if you take for many close-up photographs, make sure that the Android phone you have has a smart macro mode; If you like big and spectacular landscapes, then it is essential to opt for a phone with the wide-angle camera for maximum productivity, and for remote photography, a smart telephoto lens is a must.
However, it’s easy to get carried away with cameras and specs but find that most Android phones offer a wonderful experience. Find the design that suits you, with the features you really need, and luckily there’s an Android phone to suit virtually every budget.
Unfortunately, any apps or content purchased directly from the Apple App Store can only be used on Apple devices. You will need to repurchase any apps or content from the Google Play Store. The only exception is any app subscriptions or installations you have. was registered through the Apple Store, which would likely be valid on any device on which that app or service is offered. Please do not replace your billing information or cancel your subscription with Apple if you intend to move away from Apple devices completely. .
Android is the core OS that powers all these phones and manages the way the phones function, but this is separate from how Android looks – and each manufacturer is free to come up with their own take on the OS’s style. Google as the developer of Android offers the most “stock” version of how they intend the underlying Android to be interacted with, and also emphasizes Google’s comprehensive apps and services. Other phone makers have their own services and features that they want to push – Samsung for example has an extensive ecosystem of apps and devices. So what Android phone you buy might well depend on if you like the look of that phone’s take on Android.
As a photography website, I pay special attention to the photo and video quality of Android phones. Camera phones are all-around digital assistants too, of course, so I will also check general handling, usability, and practicality – such as battery life. And as I do more and more editing on my phone now – it’s essential that my choice has a sharp and color-accurate screen.
To test Android phone cameras, I take a bunch (sometimes thousands) of photos with the phone and carefully compare them side by side to detect any inconsistencies in quality or color between shots. I also compare the cameras of Android phones with each other. I keep a variety of the latest telephones on hand so I can take the same photos with devices and see which works best.
For images, I compare resolution, noise, and color reproduction in the context of what competing Android phones can do and what the manufacturer promises. I also look at the camera’s special features, such as “night modes” or “portrait modes,” to see how effective they are and how they compare to the competition.
I can then include all the information, along with a good dose of my informed opinion, in this list to help you which might be the most productive Android phone for your photography needs.
Gareth is a London-based photographer, working as a freelance photographer and videographer for several years and has the privilege of photographing for household names. With paintings focused on fashion, portrait and lifestyle content creation, she has developed a diversity of skills spanning everything from editorial shoots to social media videos. Outside of his painting, he has a personal hobby for nature photography, with a commitment to sustainability and environmental causes.
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