General A Detailed Review | OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G | OPPO Ambassador - OPPO Reno8 Pro (Global/ Reno 8 Pro+ China)

Introduction
Hello all, I've been using the OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G as my primary device for over a month now, and I've fairly used the device to give my thoughts and detailed review.
The subjects that I will be reviewing in detail are,
Design & Build
Camera
Software & Performance
Battery & Charging
My review will be totally unbiased and detailed. Feel free to ask if you have any questions or doubts related to the device.
Now let's take a closer look at the OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G.

Design & Build
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Starting with the design & build first, the device has a glass sandwich design with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection at the front and a matte finish aluminum frame, giving the device a premium look.
The Reno8 Pro 5G has a boxy design with a flat display along with flat sides and being lightweight at just 183 grams gives a really good hold on to the device and is quite comfortable to hold for a longer duration.
OPPO has given a lot of attention to its design for the Reno8 Pro especially the camera which is based on the design philosophy of the Golden Ratio (1:.618) from the Sacred Geometry.
The Glazed Black color has a glossy back and I like the liquid metal-like finish but it's a huge fingerprint magnet. Someone like me who uses the phone without the case will have a hard time keeping the device clean.
This wouldn't be an issue if you use a case. But if you don't, then I recommend you go for the other color version, Glazed Green, which will do a better job of hiding those fingerprints and smudges.
The branding is very minimal with just a horizontal "OPPO" logo at the bottom right and "POWERED BY MariSilicon" branding on the camera bump.
Speaking of the buttons and ports, you get the volume rockers to the left, and the power button to the right. The buttons are tactile and are also positioned where your fingers would easily reach.
The bottom houses a dual-sim card tray, microphone, Type-C port & the main speaker grill and on the top, there is a noise-cancellation microphone along with the secondary speaker.
The speakers are loud enough and have no distortion at high volumes.
There's an IP54 rating which means it should save it from occasional water splashes.
The optical in-display fingerprint scanner is placed a bit low. I have medium hands so it wasn't an issue but if you have small hands, then you might have to do a bit of thumb stretching to unlock the phone.
It would have been nice if it was placed slightly above its current position where the thumb would reach irrespective of the size of the hand. Unlocking was fast and accurate.
The display is a huge 6.7'' AMOLED panel and it's a good quality display. The display is a 120hz variable refresh rate panel, so scrolling through UI and apps on the phone felt very smooth.
There's a centered punch-hole selfie camera on the screen and the device has got quite impressive thin bezels. The chin though is ever so slightly thick compared to the other three sides of the display but it's still better than other devices in this price range. Watching videos on this device would be a treat to the eye.
Overall, I would say apart from the glossy and fingerprint magnet back, the OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G is a solid-built, premium-looking device.

Camera
Moving on to the camera, the primary lens on the Reno8 Pro is a 50MP f/1.8 Sony IMX766 sensor found on the OPPO's much more expensive devices, the Find X5 series.
The ultra-wide angle is an 8MP Sony IMX355 camera with an aperture of f/2.2 & a field of view of 112°
The third lens is a 2MP Macro camera with an aperture of f/2.4
The phone also has the MariSilicon X NPU which was first introduced in the flagship Find X5 series.
MariSilicon X is OPPO's self-developed 6nm chip that helps the device shoot better pictures & videos under low light.
The camera test was done under daylight, artificial and lowlight conditions, here are my thoughts on the camera of the OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G.
Outdoor shots with the primary camera are very good. They are contrasty and detailed. It even handles dynamic range better most of the time.
The white balance is correct, never encountered any color shift.
There's no dedicated Telephoto lens but the 2x pictures, even though they are digitally cropped from the main sensor are quite good and useable.
Pictures from the ultra-wide angle are decent. The lower megapixel count does show its downside.
They are quite soft and lack detail in comparison with pictures from the primary camera. I do wish OPPO had implemented a higher resolution ultra-wide angle camera, at least a 16MP. That could've helped avoid the softness and lack of detail in the pictures.
It also sometimes struggles with the highlights and the pictures are less contrasty in comparison with shots from the Primary lens. The white balance between both lenses is mostly consistent however the colors are a little washed-out on pictures from the ultrawide angle if compared with the primary lens.
Here's a comparison of the saturation level between pictures from both the lens.
Under artificial lighting conditions, pictures from the primary lens are bright and detailed with very less noise. But the ultra-wide angle struggles a bit with the pictures having less detail in them.
The same goes for low light.
The f/2.2 aperture and low-resolution camera struggle to capture enough light resulting in dark, soft, and noisy pictures.
There's no Optical Image Stabilisation, even on the primary camera and the app does point that out by prompting you to keep the device steady while taking pictures in low light conditions.
OIS is very important when it comes to low light as it avoids slight hand movements while taking pictures & I've had issues with Reno8 Pro 5G where the pictures come out blurry.
Considering it's a "Pro" phone & does not have such important hardware is a huge bummer.
The third camera is a 2 Megapixel f/2.4 macro camera and I find it to be average as the pictures shot with this lens come out quite soft, dark, and have artifacts. Here are some samples.
I actually prefer using 2x zoom to take macro pictures instead of the dedicated 2MP lens. Here's a side-by-side comparison of 2x & macro lens.
You also get Pro mode which lets you have manual control over ISO, Shutter speed, White Balance, Focus & Exposure Values. However, I noticed there's no option to shoot in RAW Format.
Not sure why a "Pro" phone misses out on such a "Pro" feature. I shoot all of my pictures in RAW and it's something I missed on the Reno8 Pro 5G. Anyways here are some samples shot with the Pro mode and edited on Lightroom.
I also tested Portrait mode, it works great and the edge detection is spot on with animal and human subjects. Human skin tones are close to natural.
The front camera is a 32 Megapixel Sony IMX709 with an aperture of f/2.4 and supports autofocus. Pictures from the front camera come out great.
The main camera can only shoot up to 4K at 30fps & there's 1080p & 720p options at both 30fps & 60fps.
Again I wish there was a 60fps option since the processor is capable of recording at 4K/60fps.
The ultrawide angle is limited to [email protected] recording. There's EIS which kicks in at 30fps videos on both 4K & 1080p. Video samples with different settings can be found here.
There's also a Film mode that lets you shoot in a cinematic ratio and has an option to set shutter speed, ISO, white balance, manual focus, and exposure values.
However no option to shoot in a flat profile.
Other video recording features include Time-lapse and Slow motion at 1080p at 480/120fps and 720p at 960/240fps.
Overall I would say the camera experience with the Reno8 Pro 5G has been good but that can be only said for the primary camera. The primary camera is very capable both under daylight and low light, but the pictures under low light might not be that reliable due to the lack of OIS. The ultra-wide angle is decent and the macro camera is just average.
In my opinion, OIS on the Primary camera and a better resolution ultra-wide angle camera that can double as a macro shooter would've made the camera experience much better.

Software & Performance
OPPO's software has evolved dramatically over the past few years. From once being an unlikeable software skin to now providing a much clean software experience with some handy features.
Starting with the Android version, the phone ships with ColorOS 12.1 based on Android 12L out of the box.
The launcher has a good amount of customization options, from the option to change the icon shapes & sizes, and grid layout, to the option to change transition while switching pages & more.
Under the personalisations section, you will find a good amount of customisation options such as enabling the always-on function, edge lighting for notifications, changing the font, fingerprint animation, and more.
ColorOS12.1 also includes wallpaper based theming which also supports Google apps and is not just limited to stock OPPO apps.
There's a Portrait Silhouette feature that draws an outline around a portrait image you've selected from your gallery and lets you set it as a background for your Always-on display.
Another always-on feature I liked and personally use is the Omoji. You can set your own custom animated version of yourself and you also have an option to select facial expressions that you would like to set.
With Android 12 out of the box, the phone also comes with some privacy-related features like providing an approximate location instead of a precise one, a Privacy dashboard to check which apps are using your sensors and other permissions and quick settings toggle to turn off the camera and microphone access altogether.
OPPO has also implemented some security and privacy features such as requiring fingerprint/passcode to turn off the phone & Smart notification hiding so that only you can read your sensitive notifications when you're in public.
OPPO has also included Kid Space which allows only certain selected apps that are safe for the kids to use.
ColorOS also includes some handy features such as quick launch by holding fingerprint sensor while unlocking the phone, a smart sidebar to access certain features and apps quickly, flexible windows for multitasking & more.
My unit wasn't an Indian unit and had a lot of bloatware apps that I'd never even heard of. Here is the list of apps that were preinstalled out of the box.
Most of these apps can be easily uninstalled which is a good thing although I wouldn't like to have them in the first place.
Another inconsistency I want to address which I also addressed in my X5 review is that the folders do not adapt to the selected icon shape.
This makes the home screen look a bit inconsistent.
Talking about the update policy, OPPO supports its Reno Series with 2 years of OS updates + 4 years of security patches. Although 4 years of security updates look very promising, I wish OS support was 3 years instead of 2 years since other phones at this price range do provide 3 years of OS upgrades.
Talking about performance, it was very solid with the Mediatek Dimensity 8100-MAX. The Dimensity 8100-MAX SOC is quite a capable chipset and it performed very well during my usage.
The device never slowed down or stuttered nor did it require any force shutdowns. With 12GB of RAM, apps running in the background were always in the memory and never faced and app restart issues while multitasking
Now I test SOC performance based on usage and my own experience and not with numbers. But if you're still curious to know the numbers then here are some Geekbench scores with and without 'High-performance mode' turned off.
I also ran the CPU throttling test for 10 mins and the device maintained its performance and only throttled to 92% which was quite impressive.
Software experience with ColorOS 12.1 has been mostly positive with the Reno8 Pro 5G. ColorOS12.1 does provide a clean software experience and the included features are quite handy. I do wish the update policy was a little better. Overall performance has also been solid with no thermal throttling issues.

Battery & Charging
The battery size on the Reno 8 Pro is 4,500mAh, similar to its predecessor, the Reno7 Pro, and it's plenty.
In my usage, I was easily getting about 8-9 hours of screen on time which was under light to moderate use. Under moderate to heavy use, the screen on time was around 7-8 hours.
My usage includes YouTube, using social media apps such as Instagram, WhatsApp, and Twitter, browsing on Chrome, and editing pictures in Lightroom.
There's a Power saving mode that you can enable manually or set to enable automatically based on specified battery levels from 5% to 75%
Power saving mode also has options to enable or disable certain features such as control over screen brightness, screen time-out, background sync, and screen refresh rate.
There's also a High-performance mode that increases device performance. However, I would suggest not to as this would increase battery consumption and I did not find any need to turn it on.
Other features include Sleep standby optimisation and Optimised night charging to preserve battery life and health of the device.
There has been an upgrade in terms of charging. The device now supports 80W SuperVOOC charging which was 65W in the Reno7 Pro 5G. As per OPPO, the device charges 50% in just 11 minutes.
Under my testing, the device charged to 45% in 11 minutes which is still very impressive. The phone charged to 100% in about 31 minutes.
OPPO has also implemented Battery Health Engine which preserves battery health while charging at high speeds. OPPO claims the battery health to last up to 1600 charging cycles which is about 2x than that of the industry standard.
Overall, I would say OPPO has done a great job in terms of the Battery and Charging department and I have no complaints whatsoever.

Verdict
The OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G is a good smartphone.
The display & build quality is very premium, the charging speed is more than enough, and the battery life has been very solid. With the Mediatek Dimensity 8100-MAX, the performance is more than enough. Software is another aspect that I liked however I hope OPPO increases the OS update policy for its Reno Pro series. The camera is good but not having OIS is a huge bummer and the secondary cameras are decent to average.
And that's the end of my review of the OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I'd be glad to answer them.
I'd like to thank the @OPPO Ambassador Team again for giving me the opportunity to review OPPO Reno8 Pro 5G!
Looking forward to what OPPO has in store for us with the Reno9 Pro 5G!

Happy to see here, there's a threat about the Oppo Reno 8 pro. I'm using this wonderfull phone now since one week, as replacement for an Galaxy S22 ultra.
The Reno 8 pro runs as we can aspect from an flexible phone. Mine is the 8 gb version, but everything runs much smoother than on that S22 ultra with 12 gb.
In my contacts I have made more groups of persons. Now I want to give every group its own ringtone. Probely, I'm not looking on the right place but I can't change this for the whole group at ones.
Can someone help me, where to find this setting?
This is what I found online, but its not working for the Reno 8 pro:
1. Open [Phone] > [Contacts] > [My Groups].
2. Tap the group you wish to set the new ringtone for.
3. Tap [Ringtone
] at the bottom and select the desired ringtone for the group.

Related

[PHOTOS] ISOCELL camera discussion - my review is up!

We discuss ISOCELL camera technology and new camera features, photos shared on the internet, and Your user photos and videos here.
Features of the Galaxy S5 ISOCELL camera unit:
15.87 MP (5312x2988) 16:9 aspect ratio Samsung BSI ISOCELL sensor
PDAF (phase detection auto focus) for fast auto focus
4k video recording, [email protected]
Live HDR phoro and video preview (Rich Tone available for video)
Software image stabilization
Selective focus
Drama mode
I got my hands on the S5 thx to the guys at XXL GSM, so here's my review:
Since smartphones took over compact cameras as the most popular tool for daily photography, each manufacturer is trying to create it's own camera tech. Sony put the metal wiring behind photo diodes to capture more photons (BSI), HTC introduced the large UltraPixels, and Nokia came up with the large sensor 41MP PureView tech with OIS. Samsung only slightly adjusted it's sensor size (1/2.6") and pixel count (16MP with 1.12um sensor pixels) for it's 5th Galaxy S phone, but with a new sensor manufacturing method, they are introducing higher dynamic range and better color reproduction, in what they call "3D-Backside Illuminated Pixel with Front-Side Deep-Trench Isolation (F-DTI) and Vertical Transfer Gate", or because they're physically isolating pixels to decrease light crosstalk, "ISOCELL". For faster focus they also added a phase detection auto-focus layer (PDAF) delivering ~0.3s focal speed, plus image processing capable of live HDR and HDR video recording. Add sensor-level digital zoom in video, meaning you don't zoom into the 1080p picture anymore but use all the 16MPs, and the S5s new 16:9 sensor delivers a much needed step-up in camera technology.
In good light conditions the S5 rivals any rival phone in snappiness, white balance, color gamut and focal accuracy, also offering healthy amounts of details for print quality images. HDR works seamlessly and sometimes you can't tell it was on, only you realize little to no detail is lost to clipping, it works darn fast too, albeit with some loss of details. Facing directly into sunlight, and dynamic range stays solid without lens issues, color errors or aberrations, and noise levels are kept at a minimal. Jpg compression is slightly above ideal as seen in the smallest details, on the other hand, speeds are excellent, tap-to-focus and tap-to-shot is almost instantaneous, and the app opens and finishes the first shot from cache in about 1.5s, 2,5s from a locked screen. The S5 can take about 7 shots per second in a photo burst (long tap on the photo icon).
Check my full size daylight album with EXIF info here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157643999248563/
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In lower light conditions, as most small sensor smartphones, the S5 is a mixed bag, but an improvement in color reproduction, focal accuracy and snappiness over the S4. Missing are the optical image stabilization (OIS) and longer than 1/17s exposure times (Camera Zoom FX can do 1/10). The Photography app ranges from ISO40 to the very soft ISO2000 shots with manual setup available between ISO100 and ISO800 (Zoom FX does ISO1600 too). In dark conditions, if LED flash not used, you can turn on image stabilization (former night mode) to battle noise, and a multi-exposure of about 3-4 seconds (hold the phone steady) compiles an improved low-light image. HDR works too (with more noise on the sides), and while movement requires stability turned off with higher ISO or flash, optionally Sport Mode, overall I like the accurate color reproduction, which is a problem for many rivals. My biggest criticism besides OIS is the lack of 1/5 1/2 1s and other longer exposure times and manual control for it, at ISO100 with a 1 second exposure the ISOCELL sensor could capture much more details, and since the Lumias have OIS, they are better than the S5 in this category.
Full-size low-light album here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157643997683364/
The S5 works well in macro mode too with tight DOF, full-size shots with EXIF here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157643999323404/
Besides setting up ISO, exposure, white balance, resolutions, timer, voice control etc. from the menu, there are Samsung's various camera MODEs. Selective Focus shoots multiple focal shots of the same subject, and you can later select the preferred focal point - foreground, background or both - algorithm is not perfect. In Shot and more the camera takes a series of images before a fixed background, and allows you to choose Best photo, Best face, Drama mode to record multiple phases of a movement on one image, delete unwanted stuff with Eraser and add motion blur via Panning shot. The Shot and more editing menu comes up after taking the shot, later you can access it from the Studio.
Beauty face lets you play around with skin tones and stuff, Virtual tour is like moving around in Street View: you turn and walk around taking several shots in a house for example, and later revisit it virtually moving around with arrows. Dual shot places both camera images on a single shot, Animated photo creates a gif, Sound and shoot allows you to add a voice comment to your shot and Sport mode uses high ISO and wide focus not to miss any fast movement, have this one on with kids around. There are two Panorama modes, regular 2D one with horizontal movement, and the Nexus-like Surround shot that does 3D photosphere, with some inconsistency. Trick for a good sphere is to hold the camera lens at the same spot and move the phone/yourself around it.
Full gallery here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157644000900844/
The Samsung Gallery is quite advanced app, you get several views of you single images, folders and multi-folders with previews, and Air View helps checking content without tapping on it, hovering over with your fingers. Studio gives you a whole lot of options for editing, besides Photoshop-like functions and manipulations, you can make photo montages, trim videos, render slideshows and edit Shot and more mode photos.
Video recording is a great joy on the S5. Sound is clear (though I made the mistake of covering one of the stereo mics due to hand stabilization), software stabilization is quite usable and HDR is good, as well as recording in 60fps for smooth motion, though these are limited to 1080p resolution maximum. There's fast motion up to 8x and slow motion recording down to 1/8 speed without sound, but the real gem is recording the the marvelous 3840x2160 or 4k resolution, which is 4 times the pixel count of 1080p. Eventually we'll get 4k TVs and monitors, heck, tablets and phones come out with 2k/4MP displays nowadays which is almost there, so why not record in 4k right now? Just check the frame captures I posted below to see the details and low level of mp4 compression, you could print some of these frames. The trade-off is the lack of HDR, stabilization and 60FPS at this resolution, and a 5 minute clip limit since each 60 seconds recorded at 47MBit/s takes up around 350MBs. Yeah... In lower light you obviously lose some of the gorgeous details and noise comes up, but it's still quite nice.
60FPS sample 1: https://app.box.com/s/l5fwiyo0rfsm1wj2q328
60FPS sample 2: https://app.box.com/s/o1vlbzgjcel1pslw9nkv
Single frames: (click)
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-12-00c0j9q.jpg
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-17-142fjwg.jpg <--- 4x zoom!
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-17-146ekni.jpg
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-12-00aek89.jpg
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-17-1486j80.jpg
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-17-14tjk0l.png
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-17-14lokom.jpg
http://abload.de/img/vlcsnap-2014-04-12-00kyj81.jpg
More frame captures here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157644093280315/
Conclusion
Overall the S5 camera is highly satisfying in this reviewer's option. I did not find a single case when white balance, saturation or exposure was off, operation is fast unless you have stability mode on in low-light, focus and dynamic range definitely improved, and you can choose among many video and photo options. Where's the biggest step forward? In consistency. Out of 10 shots you'll get good ones at a far better rate than before.
Obviously low light is the S5's weaker point, with less light you get softer images and need flash or high ISO to capture movement, but where you lose details to some rivals, you gain color accuracy, so Samsung's ISOCELL is getting there. Next stop should be OIS, but one thing they could do right now: allowing longer than 1/17s exposure times so we can set low ISO value and capture more dark details. Maybe the future Google camera API will open this option. Overall however, I think the shots speak for themselves: the S5 is a very capable shooter with some room for improvement, and you'll be able to pull many print-ready shots over your long usage. Just be aware: as good as the S5 battery is, things like 100% screen brightness and 4k recording kills the 2800mAh quite quickly, bring a spare battery or power bank.
Check the full gallery with EXIF info here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/
Tips and tricks
- Do multiple shots of the same subject, a good momentum or less handshake can later be selected out of the many
- HDR is one tap away, so do one with and without it, some shots look better with high contrast, others benefit from HDR
- In low light with movement, you have to use LED flash without stability, cause high ISO and longer shutter will not capture these moments with good detail
- In low light with stationary subject however, use stability, optionally LED, no HDR cause of noise. With enough lights you may try using ISO800 with darker results but more details. Much will depend on the amount of available light
- use voice commands to avoid tap-shake, hold the phone steady with two hands, optionally use a monopod
- try and use the photo Modes, some will do fancy images, others come handy like Sport mode to capture fast movement
- between Panorama and Surround Shot, I prefer the latter, cause it captures surroundings vertically too, so result won't be an overly wide image. The trick with photospheres is to not be close to the surrounding objects and have the camera lens in the absolute middle in space, and move the phone and yourself around that spot as the take the sphere images
- try alternative apps if they are better for you: CameraZoom FX, Focal, Google Camera etc. Camera Zoom FX allows 1/10 exposure and ISO1600 manually
- be aware not to cover the top and bottom microphones during video shoot. Best image quality comes from 4k, but image stabilization, 60FPS or HDR only works with 1080p, again best to test all these and later use the one best suited for you or the scene
- use AirView in Gallery, and try out Studio options for your recordings
- bring a power bank with longer photography tours cause a lot of camera usage and 100% brightness eats the battery quickly
Let's analyze! The first two striking qualities of the ISOCELL samples are: 1) eye popping wide dynamic range with rich colors, and 2) relative high noise and softness of the picture. I guess that's the tradeoff here.
Saturation is quite high yet not unrealistic, it simply looks to capture a wide color range, especially impressive in the Angry Birds photo inside. White balance is spot on. As far as Rich Tone (HDR) shots goes, it's pretty impressive as well, look how much more detail is presented without overprocessing the image. On the other hand, noise and softness is always present on these shots, even at low ISO, PureView and Exmor technology seems well ahead in per pixel sharpness. More to come.
men.. you are sure that it photo's from SGS5 ?
Pako7 said:
men.. you are sure that it photo's from SGS5 ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup. :good:
BTW, it appears that selective focus takes 4 photos or at least renders 4 photos, as samples played around with that setting have ~16MB size instead of the regular 4. So I guess the file can be shared and focus changed afterwards, wouldn't mind Google+ and other services allowing you to choose focus after upload.
BoneXDA said:
Yup. :good:
BTW, it appears that selective focus takes 4 photos or at least renders 4 photos, as samples played around with that setting have ~16MB size instead of the regular 4. So I guess the file can be shared and focus changed afterwards, wouldn't mind Google+ and other services allowing you to choose focus after upload.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
but why you delete all info? including EXIF.. It's not secret
Again its not isocell ( probably they saving it for Note 4 or GS6 )
no new flash ( same old led flash )
indoors photos still look like oil paint -->> no OIS indoors and low light images will suck
overall i think it will be like most of Galaxy flagships : great images when there is enough light but when there is not the image will suck
I think it is ISOCELL technology, the photos on PhoneArena are really not bad at and higher 5s z1.
yahyoh said:
Again its not isocell ( probably they saving it for Note 4 or GS6 )
no new flash ( same old led flash )
indoors photos still look like oil paint -->> no OIS indoors and low light images will suck
overall i think it will be like most of Galaxy flagships : great images when there is enough light but when there is not the image will suck
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is the 16MP ISOCELL sensor they developed.
Pako7 said:
but why you delete all info? including EXIF.. It's not secret
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, sorry about EXIF, I think that's the upload site doing, not sure why.
BoneXDA said:
Oh, sorry about EXIF, I think that's the upload site doing, not sure why.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
please re-upload a few full shot on other fileshare
These are apparently the official Samsung Galaxy S5 samples, normal vs. HDR
source, full size: http://www.mobile-review.com/articles/2014/mwc-samsung-galaxy-s5.shtml
Skander1998 said:
It is the 16MP ISOCELL sensor they developed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
why they didn't mention anything about it in the unpacking event ? even the official spec didnt say anything about isocell
all i can see some news writers bs
yahyoh said:
why they didn't mention anything about it in the unpacking event ? even the official spec didnt say anything about isocell
all i can see some news writers bs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They just started mass production for the 16MP ISOCELL sensor.
http://global.samsungtomorrow.com/?p=34630
The article also mentions the new octa for the octa variant for the S5, also beginning mass production.
Samsung doesn't mention specific hardware specs anymore.
4k video sample in dim light:
yahyoh said:
why they didn't mention anything about it in the unpacking event ? even the official spec didnt say anything about isocell
all i can see some news writers bs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because Samsung never EVER goes technical about sensor tech, check their track record, they don't.
It is a vastly different sensor to the Exmors however, closer to Samsung own's Galaxy Cameras (softness of image, noise), but far superior in color balance and dynamic range, which is exactly what ISOCELL is all about. Add that announcers did show off new camera HW features and Android Authority claims ISOCELL was confirmed to them, so it's almost certainly that tech.
So where do you get your information that it isn't?
BoneXDA said:
All right, new stills from GSM Arena, normal vs. rich tone (HDR), direct linking so EXIF info should be included. Level of details don't justify 16MPs, but color reproduction and HDR quality is quite awesome!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, but I saw this "photo".. It's not include full EXIF (view software version - Adobe Photoshop Ligthroom )
Pako7 said:
Thanks, but I saw this "photo".. It's not include full EXIF (view software version - Adobe Photoshop Ligthroom )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use this site, just copy image link:
http://regex.info/exif.cgi?
BoneXDA said:
Use this site, just copy image link:
http://regex.info/exif.cgi?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hmm.. you don't understand
I know how will view full_exif. Full EXIF will be for example such as (sorry by russian lang)
Pako7 said:
hmm.. you don't understand
I know how will view full_exif. Full EXIF will be for example such as (sorry by russian lang)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure I understand you.
GSM Arena samples show EXIF info just fine.
BoneXDA said:
I'm not sure I understand you.
GSM Arena samples show EXIF info just fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok..
ps.. View snapshots from gsmarena, I found that on MWC_devices used camera modules :
16 Mp
ISP - Qualcomm
Sensor manufacturer - Samsung LSI
Release date - January 2014
Manufacturer of the module - is not yet known
BoneXDA said:
I'm not sure I understand you.
GSM Arena samples show EXIF info just fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is what he means, the S4 pic shows which fw the device was running, while the S5 pic shows Photoshop.

Shooting in good light – get the best image quality out of your Note 4!

NOTE: currently, as of KitKat 4.4.4 and firmware version NK4 (Snap805) / NK5 (Exynos) and all versions before, this article only applies to Snapdragon 805 users. Exynos users in no way can improve the image quality of their shots and are, consequently, advised to use the stock Camera app. Consequently, they won't learn much from this article either.
Introduction
This article only concentrates on getting the best possible image quality while shooting in GOOD light, that is, when the phone can use as low sensitivities (ISO's) as possible, resulting in typically low noise levels. The Lightroom etc. settings I present are, consequently, typical for low-ISO shots taken in good light. Should you be interested in low-light shooting, head for THIS article instead. I don't discuss any kind of HDR, including that of the Note4 camera app, here. Please read THIS article for HDR tips and tricks.
If you've read my previous posts / articles on the camera of the Note4, you know very well the stock Camera app is not capable of very good results because it applies unnecessary noise reduction and sharpening, practically destroying the image quality. Up to now, I've recommended Snap camera HDR (“Snap” for short; PlayStore link; please see my original low-light article for more info on obtaining the latest beta) as an all-in-one app for shooting both video (including 4K) and stills. It may not have the best GUI (in this regard, the FV-5 apps (Camera/Cinema) are far superior) and lack essential features like exposure bracketing (see my HDR article linked to above) but it's the only app that can produce images making full use of the hardware capabilities. For example, it's the only app to be able to go under the shutter speed of 1/15s I know of (please see my above-linked low-light article for more info on this very subject).
If you really want to achieve the best image quality, you'll, as you'll see below, do a little bit of additional work. This is what this entire article is all about: a very detailed one on color noise reduction (CNR for short) and sharpness increasing during post processing in
- Lightroom on the desktop
- Neat Image on the desktop
- Topaz DeNoise on the desktop
- Lightroom Mobile on Android (the iOS works in exactly the same way)
- Photo Mate R2 on Android
compared this to shooting with Snap camera HDR using its built-in CNR and sharpening support.
1.1 Recommended reading before reading on
If you don't know much of the theory of photography please read THIS and THIS for more info on image noise and sharpening, respectively.
Note that the former link takes you to Part I of the article series; the second one is HERE and is a hugely recommended read because, among other things, it clearly explains the differences between luminance and color noise. It's the latter of these that I'm specifically discussing in this article, the former being not as unnatural.
The article on sharpening provides several examples of oversharpening artifacts. It's these artifacts that - along with color noise - we'll try to minimize while keeping our shots sufficiently sharp.
1.2 The goal - why do you want to read this article at all?
To produce as good images as possible. Regretfully, the stock Camera app coming with the Note4 applies far too much CNR and oversharpening even when shooting in broad daylight, at base ISO. In the comparative examples below, I show you several crops that do show this in practice.
1.3 Three ways of shooting
There are three ways of shooting. Below, I introduce them in decreasing complexity (need for additional work) and, regretfully, strictly in this order decreasing achievable image quality too.
1.3.1 Using a camera app producing as little-processed images as possible and (possibly) using desktop apps to make these images more natural-looking
First and foremost, if you don't want to lose any bit of (later) achievable image quality, you must save your images with as little processing as possible. This is exactly what is done when using Snap camera HDR with the non-default settings ("Samsung camera mode" on, sharpening set to zero and JPEG output quality set to "Best") I recommend.
However, the output won't really be eye-friendly then, even if you shoot in the most optimal conditions, that is, in as much light as possible. If you do have the time for desktop (x86) post processing, you can achieve significantly better image quality than with Android-only image processing, let it be done straight in the camera app doing the actual shooting or another Android app you use for post processing.
In the following two subsections, I show you several examples of the typical noise reduction and sharpening you can achieve with high-quality desktop tools working on as little-processed input as possible. As you'll see, the results they produce are not only significantly more eye-pleasing than the original, somewhat noisy and definitely soft (RAW-like) output of Snap camera HDR, but also orders of magnitude better than the absolutely messy output of the stock Camera app.
1.3.1.1 Noise in the near-RAW output images
The sensor of the Note4 has relatively small pixels. This, as you are already aware of, results in a low(ish) signal-to-noise ratio, meaning visible color noise even in the best conditions if absolutely no noise reduction is used. (Actually, you'd need significantly larger pixels (full frame, assuming a Bayer filter) and/or special filter (APS-C sensor size paired with Fuji's X-Trans filter array) arrangements to achieve the total lack of visible noise.)
Let me show an example of this. The following crop (cropped from the original image) shows visible color image noise in the near-black window area:
{
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"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
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"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
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"lightbox_download": "Download",
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And yes, this shot was taken in broad daylight at base ISO.
Note that, in section 1.3.1.2.1 below (obviously, in the first, unaltered, almost-RAW crop), you can also spot some color noise in the tree trunk. However, on dark, homogenous surfaces like, in this case, a black window it's far easier to spot color noise – and to fine-tune CNR while trying to (almost) completely get rid of the noise.
For comparison, here are the already CNR'ed (and sharpened, see next section) output crops of the three desktop tools (Lightroom, Neat Image and, finally, the Lightroom + Topaz DeNoise combo) I'll introduce in section 1.3.1.2.1 below:
Lightroom:
Neat Image:
Lightroom + Topaz DeNoise:
1.3.1.2 Lack of sharpness in the near-RAW output images
The output of the sensor, generally, is pretty soft with most cameras (not only with the Note4). This is caused by the not very good lens (or one operating far from its "sweet spot"), the Bayer / X-Trans filter sensor as opposed to Foveon sensors paired with tack-sharp lens. This (relative) softness can, purely in software, somewhat fixed. This is called 'sharpening'. Unfortunately, you can't use arbitrarily high amounts of sharpening, as it'll lead to the appearance of both very ugly oversharpening halos around the contrasty edges and much more pronounced luminance noise.
Let me show you a pair of crops from the same original image and, then, compare it to both a decently-sharpened one (still without major oversharpening artifacts) and, finally, that of the stock Camera app, showing absolutely awful oversharpening halos.
1.3.1.2.1 Trees (oversharpening halos):
The original, non-sharpened image (shot with absolutely zero software sharpening):
(original, full image)
After processing with one of the most widely used desktop apps for image post processing (with the parameters CNR=10, Sharpening=40, everything else being default, incl. LNR=0), Lightroom 5.7:
(original, full image)
and another one from the, for private, non-commercial use (with some not very severe restrictions), free(!!) and multiplatform (Windows, Mac and even Linux) Neat Image, with LNR 0, CNR set to maximum and Sharpness also set to maximum:
(original, full image)
Finally, the output of another excellent desktop noise handler, Topaz DeNoise (5.1.0) with Clean Color set to 50 and all other settings at default after Reset and additional Lightroom Sharpening of 40 (that is, the same as with the Lightroom-only image above):
(original, full image)
And this is how the stock Camera app renders the same:
(original, full image)
In the last image, notice the absolutely hideous "edges" around the tree trunk over the bright wall. (I'll also discuss with the visible disappearing of fine detail on the trunk of the tree.) Also, in all previous images but the very first (the one originally saved by Snap camera HDR), notice the lack of color noise (which is somewhat present in the original Snap output in the dark windows and on the dark brown tree trunk) and the significantly higher sharpness (but still without annoying oversharpening halos).
1.3.1.2.2 Bush (sharpening, smearing):
The original, non-sharpened image as saved by Snap:
(Note that the original, full images are at exactly the same URL as in the previous section. Also, for the next three shots, the processing parameters are also equal to the ones I've already listed above.):
Again, notice how soft this shot is compared to the next images – that's because of the complete lack of any software post-sharpening.
Lightroom (CNR=10, Sharpening=40):
Neat Image:
Topaz DeNoise:
Finally, for comparison, here's the output of the stock Camera app:
The last image is, as with all the other stock Camera app crops, absolutely awful. There is some major detail smearing, the color saturation is heavily reduced and the edges oversharpened. Yes, another example of why in no way recommend the stock Camera app unless you absolutely need to make use of its features.
1.3.2 Post-processing on Android & most known problems of lower-quality CNR algorithms
In the previous section, I've shown you examples of the achievable quality when, with strictly desktop (x86, true Windows / OS X and, in some cases, even Linux) tools, processing near-RAW images shot on the Note4. In this section, I elaborate on doing the post processing right on your Android phone. As you'll see, the results will be substandard compared to the desktop-based results. Nevertheless, they'll still deliver better-quality results than using the in-app CNR and sharpening features of Snap camera HDR.
1.3.2.1 Photo Mate R2
The following are the same crops as above from the well-known, quite expensive, (for Android) professional Android app “Photo Mate R2” (current, tested version: 2.6). The parameters I used (and found the most optimal): CNR=30, Luminance=High quality, Sharpening=75. (Original, full image; screenshot of the settings)
Black window:
Tree:
Bush:
As you can see, while these crops are still orders of magnitude better than those of the stock Camera app and still deliver more eye-pleasing (that is, significantly sharper and definitely less noisy) images than the near-RAW output of Snap, it can't match the output of the desktop tools.
If you do compare these results to those of the three desktop tools introduced in Section 1.3.1, you'll immediately see that CNR, while not being as effective as with them (just compare the color noise in the black window shot!) has resulted in a significant drop in color saturation. Just compare the saturation of the color brown in the bush shot to those of the desktop tools.
1.3.2.1.1 Why can't you just increase Photo Mate R2's CNR to reach the level of cleanness of desktop tools?
Unfortunately, it's not only color saturation that suffers when increasing the CNR level in Photo Mate R2 – as opposed to the three desktop tools.
Simple(r) and/or faster CNR algorithms just smear colors. This was the major reason (and not the further decrease of color saturation) that I simply couldn't further increase the CNR level in Photo Mate R2. Let's take a look at the following crop at CRN=30 (that is, the above (section 1.3.2) one):
and compare it to the CNR=40 case, that is, with slightly increased CNR strength:
Do you notice the difference? Surely you do. The bench's thin, vertical boards look completely unnatural (as if they were discoloured) in the second case, while they don't exhibit similar problems in the first one. In order to avoid this, you absolutely must stay with lower noise reduction levels.
Now, let's compare how the bench is rendered by the top desktop PP tools (incl. the three introduced in Section 1.3.1) at their significantly higher (again, they got rid of the color noise much(!) more effectively) CNR level:
Lightroom:
Neat Image:
(Sharpening = 75)
(Sharpening = max)
Topaz:
1.3.2.2 Lightroom Mobile
Regretfully, the otherwise (for Adobe's Creative Cloud subscribers) free Lightroom Mobile (LRM for short) is absolutely a no-go if you want to do Android-only post-processing.
1.3.2.2.1 Need for a “true” desktop
First and foremost: LRM doesn't do any kind of mobile-side processing, unless you do share your images right from the client (then, however, you can only share a low-res, pretty much useless one). It just communicates back the processing parameters you set and you'll need to use the desktop LR to post process your images based on the parameters you set in the GUI.
For example, the three levels of Detail > Noise Reduction sets the following parameters for further (again, desktop-based) processing:
Low: Luminance: 25/ CNR: 25
Med: 50/25
High: 75/25
(The original setting, that is, the one if you don't set any NR level, is 0/25).
That is, there's absolutely no way to get desktop-level output on mobile, without involving any kind of desktop post processing. This also means that, if you directly access the, on mobile, (seemingly) edited images synchronized back to the cloud in
- either the desktop file system (in its temporary directory, via "Show in Finder/Explorer")
- or via explicitly exporting it using the "Export" button in the bottom left corner of the Library view and setting "Image format" from "JPEG" to "Original" in the "File Setting" group in the export dialog,
all you get is an unprocessed (original) image.
1.3.2.2.2 The built-in “Share” feature
And if you do share on-mobile processed images right from the client, it'll be downsized, no matter what you do. HERE is the output of the LRM-postprocessed and, then, in-app shared image. A crop of the same bench:
See the VAST difference in resolution?
1.3.2.2.3 LRM Summary
All in all, you can forget about LRM right away if you want to stay away from desktop PP. Even the (otherwise, if you can do desktop PP, not recommended)
- denoise / sharpening in Snap and
- CNR in Photo Mate R2
produces waaaay better results because they don't downsize their output, unlike "Share" in LRM.
Also note that, as has been explained above, the CNR setting LRM uses will always be 25, which is definitely an overkill for Note4 base ISO shots. This is why I recommend against using the presets of LRM – you'll, most probably, want to decrease the CNR on the desktop so you'll need to touch the sliders there, making setting NR on the mobile unnecessary. Just manually decrease CNR to (if you shoot at base ISO) around 10 in the desktop LR, it'll produce the best possible compromise. And, again, then, the output will significantly be better than with either Snap or Photo Mate R2's built-in CNR options. (The latter remark also applies to sharpening quality of Snap.)
All in all, you can't expect much from post processing on Android. Desktop tools will always produce significantly better results. Only use these (along with shooter apps already supporting in-app denoising / sharpening) if you really can't use a full computer for image post-processing.
1.3.3 Using a camera app with built-in CNR and sharpening
Assuming you want the fastest possible way of sharing your images with, for the Average Joe, more pleasing “looks” (read: no color noise, sharp), you may want to give a try to the built-in CNR and sharpening support of the camera app you use. Ideally, support for sharpening / CNR should be achievable right in the app you shoot with. This is the classic case of social shooting in, say, pubs, when you want to share your shots right away (as soon as possible) and, consequently, can't wait for editing your images in another Android app on the same phone after shooting, let alone transferring your images to an x86 computer for post processing (and, consequently, later sharing).
I have bad news for you: Snap has definitely bad sharpening and not very good CNR support. (Nevertheless, even these, when used, produce better images than the stock Camera app's complete mess.) Let's start with the latter.
1.3.3.1 CNR in Snap
1.3.3.1.1 Enabling CNR
In Snap, CNR isn't enabled by default. Enabling it needs to be done via ticking in the “Photo > Denoise” checkbox annotated with a rectangle below:
Note that I also annotated the “Sharpness” menu (with an arrow), in which you can configure post-sharpening. (Generally, as you already know, you'll want to completely zero it out, unless you really need to do the sharpening right during your shooting.)
Also note that, in order for the Denoise checkbox to be displayed, you must enable “Others > Show Advanced Settings”, also annotated below:
1.3.3.1.2 And what about the quality?
As I've already hinted on, you can't expect much from Snap's CNR algorithm. The good news, however, is that isn't worse than that of the standalone Photo Mate R2. That is, if sharpening isn't important (and, again, you absolutely must do everything on Android), you can just use Snap's built-in CNR and won't end up having to load the same image to Photo Mate R2 afterwards.
1.3.3.1.2.1 Snap, “Denoise” disabled
A pair of Snap crops of the original image shot without “Denoise” enabled:
Bench:
Black window:
1.3.3.1.2.2 Snap, “Denoise” enabled
And with “Denoise” enabled (original, full image):
Bench:
Black window:
1.3.3.1.2.3 Photo Mate R2, CNR=30, Sharpening=0
Finally, compare the above crops to those of Photo Mate R2 with CNR=30 and without(!) any kind of sharpening in order to provide level playing field for the two apps. Original image; the settings I used.
Again, as has been explained in Section 1.3.2.1.1, you won't want to go over CNR=30 with Photo Mate R2 because of the major smearing effects. In that section, I've shown you sharpened crops. Note that the sharpened black window crop is HERE (screenshot of the settings used)
Bench:
Black window:
1.3.3.1.2.4 Summary
As you can see, unlike Photo Mate R2 with its separate color and luminance NR sliders, Snap applies a sizable amount of luminance NR as well. Consequently, the resulting image is, as you may have already noticed, significantly softer.
After all, luminance NR equals to blurring the image itself, and not “only” the colors on it. Also, luminance noise is far more natural, film-like and, consequently, acceptable. This is why I, generally, don't apply luminance NR to my low-ISO shots. Too bad Snap doesn't allow for separate noise reduction – currently, luminance NR is just too heavy-handed and results in pretty soft results. (Nevertheless, needless to say, these results are still way superior to those of the stock Camera app!)
1.3.3.1.2.5 Color saturation decrease
Note that, as with Photo Mate R2 (and unlike with the three desktop apps when properly configured), the color saturation definitely decreases in Snap's shots. Just compare the intensity (saturation) of the brown of the branches in the following shots, starting with the non-denoised Snap original:
Snap, denoised:
Photo Mate R2, CNR=30, no sharpening:
(note that you can find the output of desktop apps, along with the absolutely awful stock Camera app, in section “1.3.1.2.2 Bush”. Technically, the non-denoised Snap original can also be found in that section; however, for easy comparison without having to scroll much, I've repeated it here.)
1.3.3.2 Sharpening in Snap
As has been mentioned several times, in order to get the best possible results via post processing, you REALLY want to set Photo > Sharpening to zero (screenshot of the whereabouts of the menu item is in section “1.3.3.1.1 Enabling CNR” above). In this section, I scrutinize the sharpening quality of the app. Regretfully, it's pretty bad; no wonder I recommend getting rid of it entirely.
Now, let's take a look at the default (3) settings:
Tree:
Compare this screenshot to those of in section “1.3.1.2.1 Trees (halos)” above. See why I don't recommend using sharpening in Snap at all?
Naturally, the maximum sharpness level, 6, results in even worse output, with even more prominent sharpening halos:
Nevertheless, should you really need on-Android sharpening and want to refrain from using Photo Mate R2, you can still use a sharpness value “1”. It'll correspond to 50% (or even more) sharpening in Photo Mate R2.
2. Tips and tricks for desktop post-processing
Above, we'll seen the relative quality of the three approaches:
1. desktop (section “1.3.1 Using a camera app producing as little-processed images as possible (and possibly using desktop apps to make these images more natural-looking)”)
2. Android with an additional app (section “1.3.2 Post-processing on Android & most known problems of lower-quality CNR algorithms”)
3. not using any kind of post processing but using the built-in NR and/or sharpening of the camera app itself (section “1.3.3 Using a camera app with built-in CNR and sharpening”)
We have seen the achievable quality gradually decreased in the above order.
In this chapter, I provide you with other tips on post processing Note4 images on the desktop; that is, the best way to achieve the best image quality.
Basically, I've found the, for private (non-commercial) use, if you accept the (not very restrictive) limitations, free “Neat Image” and “Topaz DeNoise” somewhat better than Lightroom. Nevertheless, even Lightroom can produce significantly better results than anything on Android, even the expensive Photo Mate R2.
(to be continued!)
(reserved for future updates)
(reserved for future updates 2)
(reserved for future updates 3)
excellent analysis as usual. much appreciated!
Great work. You are legend Menneisyys.
Sweet
As you may have noticed, Microsoft have released version 2 of their absolutely excellent panorama stitcher app, Image Composite Editor (ICE for short) with several new features, including being able to create panoramas out of videos. As I'm a big fan of panoramas and always loved ICE for its speed, accuracy and being free, I've very thoroughly tested the new feature, particularly in order to find out whether it can significantly increase the quality of panoramas one can create with the Samsung Note 4, the, otherwise, best and most versatile high-end phone today.
During my tests, I shot 4K videos in 32-33 seconds for a 360-degree turn (to maximize resolution, in portrait orientation) and, then, processed it with ICE. First, five stitches (three of them with inline crops): four by ICE and one created by the dedicated “Panorama” mode of the stock Camera app:
ISO Auto, stock Camera app:
Flickr
ISO 800 (max.), stock Camera app:
Flickr
ISO Auto, Snap camera HDR, 48 Mbps, 0 Sharpening:
Flickr
ISO 1600 (this has no effect on the end result), Snap camera HDR, 48 Mbps, 0 Sharpening:
Flickr
OOC image:
Flickr
Please check out my writeup HERE for more info on the intricacies of the above shots – what one wants to pay attention to, how to properly assess noise reduction etc.
Note: as with non-sharpened Snap camera HDR shots, the untrained eye may find the results of Snap camera HDR too soft. After all, as I always recommend, I've shot the video with fully disabled sharpening. After, in the built-in “Preview” app of OS X, some sharpening applied (in Preview, maximal) to the above shot, it becomes far more eye-candy:
My remarks:
1. the 4K + ICE combo produces significantly more detailed panos than the OOC panos shot in the dedicated “Panorama” mode of the stock app, particularly if you're on a Snapdragon 805 CPU-based Note4 and use “Snap camera HDR” at its 48 Mbps, 0-sharpening mode for recording.
2, it extracts far (about an order of magnitude) fewer input images for stitching than the number of separate image slices used by the dedicated “Panorama” mode of the stock app. Basically, in general, it uses some 32-34 images for a 360-degree turn (meaning one image each 12 degrees).
This means that, if there are stitching errors because of the parallax error, they will be more far more severe than with the stock app. Some example of them is annotated in the following crop of the above Snap 1600 shot (original):
With the stock app, thanks to the much higher frequency of sensor sampling, such huge errors aren't at all common.
Nevertheless, Samsung's implementation of isn't as fast as, say, that of Apple. Apple's panorama mode uses an even higher sampling frequency, resulting in parallax errors not being present in the target pano almost at all, assuming shooting the panorama just turning around and not paying attention to trying to rotate the phone around its vertical axis to minimize the parallax errors.
(Note that by restricting the panorama area to 2 some 0.3 seconds in the input video (see THIS screenshot), ICE only used two input frames. As these frames were different from the ones extracted from the video for the 360-degree panorama, the resulting stitched images has different parallax error-induced stitching images – in this case, none. See THIS for the resulting (of course, not very wide) pano.)
3, as with still images, videos created by the stock Note4 Camera app are heavily oversharpened after applying some very serious and, in good light, absolutely unnecessary noise reduction. This means that, if you do have a Snapdragon 805 CPU-based Note4, you'll, as with still shots, want to use Snap camera HDR for shooting 4K video instead. (Note that you must use the configuration settings HERE to make it shoot usable 4K footage.)
All in all,
if you cannot use an iPhone (or, if the smaller sensor and subsequent worse noise performance and lower dynamic range isn't a problem, iPad) for shooting sweep panos, you'll want to prefer shooting 4K video with Snap camera HDR and processing the end results using ICE. It may deliver significantly better-quality results than the Panorama mode of the stock Camera app. Nevertheless, as it doesn't sample the sensor very often, you'll really want to minimize parallax error while shooting. The above panos were shot without trying to do so – I just turned around my axis so that, introducing a lot of parallax errors, I could find out how ICE handles them.
One of the best thread on Note4 board I've ever seen. :good:
There is no option for denoise even if I have got the 6.3.0. The advanced parameters do no change in photo mode. I'm running 4.4.4
Help appreciated
akshaypatil869 said:
There is no option for denoise even if I have got the 6.3.0. The advanced parameters do no change in photo mode. I'm running 4.4.4
Help appreciated
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Denoise is definitely here on my KitKat Snap805 as of 6.3.0. Is yours also a Snap805 phone, or an Exynos one?
2. Nevertheless, as I've explained above, I don't really recommend it as its denoising algorithm isn't very good. So, you don't lose much.
Menneisyys said:
1. Denoise is definitely here on my KitKat Snap805 as of 6.3.0. Is yours also a Snap805 phone, or an Exynos one?
2. Nevertheless, as I've explained above, I don't really recommend it as its denoising algorithm isn't very good. So, you don't lose much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn, I thought it was Snapdragon. I was under the impression that 910c pointed out to snapdragon. I am disappointed.
akshaypatil869 said:
Damn, I thought it was Snapdragon. I was under the impression that 910c pointed out to snapdragon. I am disappointed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have bad news - Snap camera HDR will not deliver better IQ for you, then.
Yes, I read about it. My parents had got the phone under my advice from this link.
http://www.xcite.com/phones/mobile-...mp-4g-lte-wi-fi-smartphone-5-7-inch-gold.html
See for yourself how misleading the specs are.
Should I sue them? ;D
akshaypatil869 said:
Yes, I read about it. My parents had got the phone under my advice from this link.
http://www.xcite.com/phones/mobile-...mp-4g-lte-wi-fi-smartphone-5-7-inch-gold.html
See for yourself how misleading the specs are.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, they've completely messed it up - "Snapdragon 805" as the CPU and "Octa Core " as "No of Cores".
Should I sue them? ;D
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, if image quality is of enormous importance for you and you've purchased the phone from them, believing it's Snap805-based, because you wanted to make use of the additional image quality offered by near-RAW saving, you could ask them for an exchange into a real 805-based model.
Don't forget to mention Samsung's Lolli update doesn't support RAW export so the only way to have natural photos on the handset is going the Snap HDR way on Snap805-based devices.
Menneisyys said:
Yup, they've completely messed it up - "Snapdragon 805" as the CPU and "Octa Core " as "No of Cores".
Well, if image quality is of enormous importance for you and you've purchased the phone from them, believing it's Snap805-based, because you wanted to make use of the additional image quality offered by near-RAW saving, you could ask them for an exchange into a real 805-based model.
Don't forget to mention Samsung's Lolli update doesn't support RAW export so the only way to have natural photos on the handset is going the Snap HDR way on Snap805-based devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no need to do such things on Exynos variables because it does offer much better image/video quality but if you like to flash kernel stuffs then Qualcomm based is prefered.
Personally, I will pick the Exynos one as Android is mature now I can live with stock kernel and I real won't have time to process every image and video. The only real reason now to get Qualcomm is Exynos still no offer dual band.
You can watch it started from 7:32 ... N9100(S805) vs N910U(Exynos)
TheEndHK said:
There is no need to do such things on Exynos variables because it does offer much better image/video quality
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm afraid you're wrong. While I haven't had the chance of directly comparing the two models' image quality under exactly the same circumstances, in well-controlled comparative tests, all Exynos photos I've seen exhibited exactly the same problems as Snapdragon 805-based ones and were equally as bad.
The only difference between the two models is the ability of Snap camera HDR to access the image before the latter's undergoing noise reduction and sharpening (but after WB). This is why it's capable of exporting almost-RAW images with the right settings (basically, Sharpness at zero).
@Menneisyys again a amazing post, thx for your time, 2 thumbs-up
Menneisyys said:
I'm afraid you're wrong. While I haven't had the chance of directly comparing the two models' image quality under exactly the same circumstances, in well-controlled comparative tests, all Exynos photos I've seen exhibited exactly the same problems as Snapdragon 805-based ones and were equally as bad.
The only difference between the two models is the ability of Snap camera HDR to access the image before the latter's undergoing noise reduction and sharpening (but after WB). This is why it's capable of exporting almost-RAW images with the right settings (basically, Sharpness at zero).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think I'm wrong because there are a couple of sites to compare image quality between Exynos & Qualcomm(not must be Note4, but also on Note3 or S5). All the results are same just like in the video link above, Qualcomm got huge noise reduction and hence loss many details and your solution is to avoid the stock camera to do this because Snap Camera HDR can stop the noise reduction and sharpening. Furthermore, I have to point out Exynos usually got better focus speed and accurate rate because the ISP is better than Qualcomm one so it is not only just about the image quality.
I forgot all the links so I can't share the information here but I'll try to find them out later. There is also a thread talk about Note4 image quality in a HK forum and because we can buy Exynos and Qualcomm easily in HK(Samsung does launch all of them here) and a couple of them who tried both model reported Exynos got better quality and focus.
I've to admit your method is even better(nice trying :good in terms of quality because not only hijack the denoise but also included the sharpen processing but it gonna spend some time on each image to do after-processing. Personally, I will pick Exynos for convenience because I always record videos and impossible for me to process all of them(especially 4K), I will need an i7 PC to do that overnight.
I'm already planning to get S6 on April, let's see how capable of the new camera.

General [CLOSED]Asus camera update vs GCam

The recent Asus system update includes improvements to the stock camera’s picture quality, so I did a quick test to see if I could spot any obvious difference when compared to the GCam (Wichita 1.4) that’s also on my Zenfone 8.
In my previous tests I found pictures from the Asus camera to be over sharpened. This makes foliage look good on a small screen but when viewed large the pictures have an overall processed look. This is something I’m aware of since I’ve made largish prints (50 x 70cm) from some of my previous smartphone shots.
Unfortunately I didn’t spot any improvement that the latest update has made as they are still aggressively sharpened.
GCam pictures have the opposite problem and look too soft when enlarged. So in this test I’ve altered the sharpness: Settings > Advanced > Ram Patcher > Sharpness > 1.500.
The GCam Jpegs are also consistently too dark. I tried to alter the brightness using Settings > Advanced > Ram Patcher > HDR Overall Lightness, but this just blew out the highlights and negated the HDR effect. I’ll have to experiment with some of the other HDR settings to see if I can lighten just the shadows and midtones. I lightened the Jpeg in Photoshop for this comparison.
It’s also possible to shoot a Raw+Jpeg with the GCam. Raw files look flat and greyish straight from the camera but when post processed they give a slightly cleaner and sharper result. They are only16MP rather than the full 64MP the camera is capable of, so hopefully Wichaya will alter this in future mods.
The GCam still gives better picture quality compared with the Asus, but the bright and punchy look of the Asus shots is very good too. If you are into photography and want to get the most from the Zenfone 8 then it’s worth trying the GCam and fine tuning it to suit your needs. The examples below are cropped from the central area of the picture.
If a developer brings out a mod of the Asus camera that allows adjustments to sharpness and brightness, etc, I’d certainly be interested, especially if it could also shoot 64MP Raw.
Have you tried toggling the model settings on GCam to see if that improves the detail?

Question Impossible to use flashlight with ultra wide camera

Why It is impossible to turn on the flashlight during usage of ultra wide camera?
mrduta said:
Why It is impossible to turn on the flashlight during usage of ultra wide camera?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. The wide-angle camera uses multi-frame technology that combines multiples shots to get the best picture. However, flash light only allows single-frame shot. Therefore, flash light is disabled by default for these cameras to allow multi-frame shots with better effects. This is an official explanation by oppo for similar behaviour on their phones. Must be similar for Samsung. OnePlus does this too.
2. Wide angle cameras are usually meant for landscape photography where the subject is beyond the range of a phone flash, and flash usually introduces refraction artefacts from suspended particles in air.
3. When used for near object photography, wide angle also doubles as the macro camera, which doesn't play well with flash at close range. Once again, it probably has to do with multi frame capture and composite image processing which won't play well with only single frame photo that flash allows for.
enigmaamit said:
1. The wide-angle camera uses multi-frame technology that combines multiples shots to get the best picture. However, flash light only allows single-frame shot. Therefore, flash light is disabled by default for these cameras to allow multi-frame shots with better effects. This is an official explanation by oppo for similar behaviour on their phones. Must be similar for Samsung. OnePlus does this too.
2. Wide angle cameras are usually meant for landscape photography where the subject is beyond the range of a phone flash, and flash usually introduces refraction artefacts from suspended particles in air.
3. When used for near object photography, wide angle also doubles as the macro camera, which doesn't play well with flash at close range. Once again, it probably has to do with multi frame capture and composite image processing which won't play well with only single frame photo that flash allows for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for information.
enigmaamit said:
1. The wide-angle camera uses multi-frame technology that combines multiples shots to get the best picture. However, flash light only allows single-frame shot. Therefore, flash light is disabled by default for these cameras to allow multi-frame shots with better effects. This is an official explanation by oppo for similar behaviour on their phones. Must be similar for Samsung. OnePlus does this too.
2. Wide angle cameras are usually meant for landscape photography where the subject is beyond the range of a phone flash, and flash usually introduces refraction artefacts from suspended particles in air.
3. When used for near object photography, wide angle also doubles as the macro camera, which doesn't play well with flash at close range. Once again, it probably has to do with multi frame capture and composite image processing which won't play well with only single frame photo that flash allows for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It has to do more with reach than it does with multi frame technology since every camera (not just the ultra wide) uses multi frame tech. Cameras uses multiple frames to increase dynamic range (HDR) and reduce noise. Both are less necessary when flash is used. The problem is weak phone flashes don't have the ability to provide even lighting across the ultra wide angle, even in a smaller room. It's disabled at the API level so even third party apps won't have the option to turn on flash with the ultra wide.
beserker15 said:
It has to do more with reach than it does with multi frame technology since every camera (not just the ultra wide) uses multi frame tech. Cameras uses multiple frames to increase dynamic range (HDR) and reduce noise. Both are less necessary when flash is used. The problem is weak phone flashes don't have the ability to provide even lighting across the ultra wide angle, even in a smaller room. It's disabled at the API level so even third party apps won't have the option to turn on flash with the ultra wide.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that's a better explanation than the one I posted above

Themes / Apps / Mods Gcam for X90 Pro+

I think this deserves it's own thread.
Installation description and download link is given here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...vivo-system-app-ver-2-5.4533545/post-87946927
Right now only the version 8.4 is working - though 8.7 is already published.
It's a tiny bit slower - especially in the dark vs the vivo camera. The colors are very different - in general I feel in the dark Vivo is more correct - but gcam has the advantage of no auto night mode mwhich means you have to use Sports mode (which isn't perfect at night as it's exposure is very quick).
In general pictures - especially on the zoom lens are a bit sharper vs stock camera. On the zoom lens at 10x and above it's significantly sharper. I would say at 20x the Google camera manages 20-30% more detail minimum and avoids the oversharpening that the Vivo camera does (do not pixel peep at the 10x or 20x pictures of the vivo camera - it's mostly awful when the vivo AI for example detects text - but much much batter on the gcam).
However I think we somehow miss the HDR - or am I top stupid to find it? Could it be that because we need to select Pixel 2 - we only get features that are available on Pixel 2?
I'll attach a screenshot showing the missing HDR and the difference in zoom detail.
It's a bit annoying that at night the gcam sometimes is way off on white balance at night. With way off I mean way off. Otherwise I prefer it over the stock camera for pictures (I didn't really take videos so cannot comment there).
The really nice thing about gcam is how you can select each lens and force it to be used - unlike Vivo that especially at night does not use the 2x camera - and sometimes not even the periscope. All lenses work.
Edit - I found the HDR mode. You can enable it by clicking on HDR in the Auto white balance row - then another row pops up with HDR settings (off, on, enhanced).
Screenshots examples.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Missing HDR+
Details in gcam - 1 level above the stock camera.
It's noisier but the colors are more accurate on the vivo stock camera except the dark green which is better on gcam. The orange in the middle in reality is a tiny bit darker than in the Vivo pic. But here it appears red. Besides that it's actually hard to tell which color is more accurate. There are many examples which I will not show here however - where the gcam was way off indoors at LED lightbulb light.
Details on stock camera below
Oh yeah - I did check that the Vivo here choses the periscope camera. Cropping into the main lens is a bit worse. Let me attach a sample too (taken with gcam as I cannot force the vivo stock camera to use the main lens). I really do feel Vivo should have gone for 4.5x zoom on the periscope camera. Up to 4x the main sensor doesn't do too badly. And just for the sake of it I will take one with the 2x cam too - I think the 2x is worst at zoom. It's a portrait camera only.
Main sensor (10x zoom is max so it's s but bigger than the other ones)
2x sensor.
Actually - well the 2x sensor does capture more detail than a crop into the pixel binned main sensor (or is gcam going into the unbinned sensor? But it's clear the lens of the 2x is too slow / surface too small so it suffers here at roomlight and is really really noisy.
@extremecarver Could you change thread title to Themes/ Apps/ Mods. I think is better than "Question"
done
Btw, the gcam from BSG version 8.7 (current) is also compatible.
Just if you mess up a setting you have to reinstall. Not sure why, changing the setting back doesn't help. It seems to have better colors on first try, but resolution identical to stock camera...
It's bad you cannot install BSG and bigkaka in parallel. It gives me an error notice when I try to do so
extremecarver said:
It's bad you cannot install BSG and bigkaka in parallel. It gives me an error notice when I try to do so
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are trying to install 2 mods that have the same signature (Snapcam for example), it's normal that it doesn't work.
I know in the other thread I stated that SNAPCAM package is recommended for Vivo/Oppo/OnePlus devices because it allows access to all camera lenses, however it looks like something has changed for the better because I'm currently using the com.agc.cam signature for the AGC GCam, and all lenses are recognized without issues.
In short, if you want to have both BSG GCam and Big Kaka AGC ,
Download the BSG version that has Snapcam signature (others like com.android.mgc could possibly work as well, it's just that I haven't tested them):
BSG: MGC_8.7.250_A11_V6
Download MGC_8.7.250_A11_V6 by BSG.
www.celsoazevedo.com
And for AGC, download the one that's on top (com.agc.cam)
BigKaka: AGC8.4.300_V9.3
Download AGC8.4.300_V9.3 by BigKaka.
www.celsoazevedo.com
IMPORTANT FOR AGC USERS:
Noise models for our X90 Pro+ have been submitted by user Viktor. The .c files can be imported in AGC settings. BSG doesn't have this feature.
If you don't know what this stuff is, you can read on the topic here https://www.celsoazevedo.com/files/android/morgenman/noise-modeller-how-to/
Download noise models for all 4 back cameras here: https://drive.google.com/drive/fold...rIYRBKKq_6NlufPwrgGQMNXkbNJA-OInawB64cO9U9zSJ
the models can be imported in
Lens settings > choose lens (Main 1x, Ultrawide 0.6x, Tele 2.2x, Tele 3.9x) > Noise model > and finally Import noise model
from my short testing, the OV64B tele benefits the most from the custom noise model.
extremecarver said:
The really nice thing about gcam is how you can select each lens and force it to be used - unlike Vivo that especially at night does not use the 2x camera - and sometimes not even the periscope.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"Auto switch of lens" should be disabled
Thanks for that info - However after I selected to show debug focus information in the gcam - now it seems something is broken/leftover. I rebooted, uninstalled, reinstalled, tried different versions - and now any version is crashing on boot.
In general my gcams would crash if I don't select Pixel 2 XL (Taimen) interface mode. Strangely this was not needed at the beginning.
Important things for setup and getting the colors much more accurate: - strangely this worked for all lenses -
In color transform - chose IMX989 Mi12US AGC
this changes the colors dramatically and makes them much more accurate (bigkaka). Clearly a proper color transform for Vivo x90 Pro+ would be evne better - but with that setting you get close to the vivo camera.
Then enable Auto-CT and put a slight offset of 1.1-1.3 on the CCT WB Offset.
If you prefer more vivid and contrast - similar to the Vivid mode on the stock camera - set WB-Intensity to 1.2
and WB Saturation to 1.2,
This gives in general contrast/white balance/saturation similar to the stock camera without the occassional comic look of the vivid mode. It's a bit in between Zeiss Natural Colors and Vivid.
CCT WB Correction and WB color space fix I ticked too - but could not notice much difference.
The google camera is much sharper, has better focus I feel, and especially if the light situation is difficult - it will produce much better pictures. With a caveat - the stock camera AI is better at making light sources/the sun smaller instead of overblowing them.
I kinda feel all that Zeiss T* coating seems like a bit of rubbish when you compare with gcam and with gcam it looks just like any other smartphone on light sources. Vivo in that field simply upped the AI (however maybe with the problem that the whole rest of the picture is worse). Clearly I feel Vivo camera is not that great at all. It's just the hardware that is good and of course as we don't have the perfect setup for gcam - Vivo camera is more consistent.
Bugs/shortcoming on the gcam:
1. No macro mode/no auto macro. The manual focus for me did not work. The minimum focus distance on the stock camera vs the gcam is about half.
2. The 2x portrait camera is kinda useless on the gcam. Because I cannot see one ounce of a difference by taking pictures in normal or portrait mode on the 2x lens.
3. Should have much more scene modes
4. Not strong on beauty effects. Basically there aren't any vs a vast selection on Vivo stock camera - however if you want those just rarely - use the vivo editor to increase eye size, smoothen skintones, change face shape and whatever. However say you often photograph your girlfriend who want's to look "beautiful" - especially Asian girlfriends - it's so much more convenient to find a setting that works good on the Vivo cam and just use it everytime. Well clearly here we get into the woohaa supermodel on picture vs average girl in real life terrain which is just so common in Asia.
5. I haven't really tried portraits yet - but I think portraits may be better on the Vivo camera in general.
6. If you use HDR instead of HDR enhanced - the sharpness is about the same as on the Vivo camera - however the spead is also the same and you have better fine tuning for pictures.
Overall right now (if I manage to get the camera running again) I feel like gcam is better for landscape, zoomed pictures, and night photos. The stock camera is better for everything else and switches lenses much faster - but severly lacks on color balance. Compared to gcam it's laughable to just have Zeiss and Vivid mode - and both aren't good at all.
When I say night pictures I mean pictures that look good. Not pictures that have detail in every shadow. Though actaully the gcam is only a little bit worse here vs the stock camera while making much more harmonic/beautiful/realistic pictures. Vivo night mode - sorry to say so, sucks for pictures. It's great as a night view machine (can be improved a bit by focussing on the lightest part of the picture at night).
Oh yeah - gcam night view is miles ahead on detail and sharpness vs vivo night mode when we take out the often/mostly too strong HDR of the vivo cam.
Besides the problems of crashing, slow lens switching, macro mode which all will be likely hard to fix - I feel the gcam has way more potential if we had a really good config/setup. and could replace the stock cam for everything but portrait right now.
Okay got it running again. I think it happened because the two versions influenced each other. If one Version is crashing it may somehow take the other one down too.
If there is a crash report, it makes it easier have a look at it in chrome and sometimes it has something useful. It said something about lense and then I disabled all lenses and re enabled one by one (starting with the 3.9) and somehow that fixed it .
bsg actually has a super macro mode - on bigkaka it's missing. If you mess up BSG, you need to do a full reset. Just changing the function that you set to break the app back - usually does not help. That's really strange.
I think easiest is to use stock camera and if your not happy then gcam. Because stock camera is faster and has better modes. For Landscape could default to bigkaka. At night it depends - it seems to be really a lottery which one takes better shots - and each setting is wildly different. Photos against sunlight - the stock camera seems to fail consistently. So that is a case for bigkaka.
We would need a proper auto white balance and color profile for bigkaka - then it could outclass the default camera quite easily. Missing this it's a bit hit or miss. That is if you need the better sharpness - go for bigkaka and HDR enhanced or night view.
How do you make BigKaka app work? It keeps crashing when I open it, I can go directly to settings, but if I open the camera normally, it crashes.
The BSG version works.
Start with a single Lens like 3.9x for debugging only. You may need to set interface as pixel 2 xl, and stream as sdk28. Then add other lenses, 1,3,4,,5,6 afterwards.
I think for bigkaka only snapcam and aweme version works. Try snapcam first. BSG for me also default version works. But yeah as soon as you set something wrong BSG needs full reset.
extremecarver said:
Start with a single Lens like 3.9x for debugging only. You may need to set interface as pixel 2 xl, and stream as sdk28. Then add other lenses, 1,3,4,,5,6 afterwards.
I think for bigkaka only snapcam and aweme version works. Try snapcam first. BSG for me also default version works. But yeah as soon as you set something wrong BSG needs full reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, every package works perfectly. When you set something wrong in bsg you can access the settings with an "activity launcher" from Playstore. You can easily skip the viewfinder and jump directly into the settings. Change back what caused the crash and you are good to go.
On bigkaka you can do a long click and get right into settings without activity launcher. And yes on bigkaka restoring what caused the crash seems to work mostly. Not always but I think that is due to some instabilities. Some settings will launch if you ijstantly after opening click into the camera field, without it will crash.
Only on BSG you need activity launcher and for some settings restoring them doesn't help. Only way to get BSG working again then is to use activity launcher into settings and full reset (somehow there is something different from uninstall/reinstall vs reset - though I haven't found out what. Maybe some files are written outside of the app folder and therefore require reset via full reset menu point).
I guess this is somehow hardware related and the lenses remember what position was used or similar and with instable settings it can lead to crashes ...
I'm not even sure we can create a colour model that works universally. I guess the stock cams have quite a few models depending on the AI settings and what they detect regarding white balance. We would need a separate model of white balance for each kind of light type (except if having identical sensors to a Pixel model)
I also miss manual white balance on the gcams...
With manual I mean photographing a white sheet and then the camera adjust the white balance for getting the white sheet perfectly white. That's what you do on any kind of professional camera, especially in film when you want your actors to look the same skin tone no matter the lighting.
Oh yeah - and supposedly our cam features camera2 Level 3+ access - but if you set that on BSG it crashes. Only level 3 works sadly.
extremecarver said:
Oh yeah - and supposedly our cam features camera2 Level 3+ access - but if you set that on BSG it crashes. Only level 3 works sadly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have tried bsg once only. I prefer Shamim or LMC.
Could you please post screenshots of how you set up the lenses on LMC and shanmin? Both crash on me (got LMC to open with 2 lenses, then tried to add more now cannot even get into settings again even though I reset data and uninstalled/reinstalled).
On Shanmin I didn't even find the lens selection section (are you using 8.7 beta v3?)
Edit: found the bug on not being able to get into settings. First need or let it start and crash once...
extremecarver said:
Could you please post screenshots of how you set up the lenses on LMC and shanmin? Both crash on me (got LMC to open with 2 lenses, then tried to add more now cannot even get into settings again even though I reset data and uninstalled/reinstalled).
On Shanmin I didn't even find the lens selection section (are you using 8.7 beta v3?)
Edit: found the bug on not being able to get into settings. First need or let it start and crash once...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using the latest 8.4 version of Shamim right now because I have made a lib some months back which doesn't work in newer gcam versions.
Thanks, well I figured it out don't activate id5. But the preview in LMC in the dark is unusable. Too dark to focus except on main lens. Have to see a bit right now it's the worst but I haven't set up anything yet besides the order of the cameras. Right now at night it's really not useful yet.
By now I got them all running on default settings, but well I have to say details wise at night clear win for bigkaka, then stock camera in night mode , then auto night mode, then quite a bit worse LMC/Shanmin..
I'm not sure anymore which gcam mod had Pxl in its name - that one was quite good too quality wise - but I think it wasn't as stable. In general bigkaka seems to be quite unstable if you mess around in the settings. LMC/Shanmin accept much more settings - but the quality at night (didn't test during the day) is just horrible in comparison to AGC and stock. At first the stabilization doesn't seem to work in night mode - meaning lots of blur, second in HDR+ mode they are as good as the stock cam in normal mode - but bigkaka blows them out of the water so to say.
How much is this difference - actually quite a lot. While bigkaka in night mode will look sharp on a 4k screen in full size - it's hdr+ mode and the stock camera night mode are about sharp enough for 0.75 of the size. The normal mode on the vivo stock cam and the HDR simple mode are about the same at 0.5 the size - wile LMC and Shanmin can only fill 0.4 of the screen while still looking sharp enough.
bigkaka the big problem is auto white balance - not sure about LMC/Shanmin here. They seem quite similar but I haven't tested in many locations yet.
I didn't get Shanmin 8.7 to run, maybe that one is much sharper. It seems to be quite different from the 8.4 version. The strange thing is - settings that crash one mod, will run fine in another . Sometimes it will only crash after stopping the app and restarting - or similar. It's really frustrating if the app crashes to find out what causes it.
I miss a high resolution mode on bigkaka - it doesn't seem to exist. However the high resolution mode in LMC is pretty strange too - it takes pictures at half the sensor resolution (instead of default 1/4). Clearly this will only matter under very good light. Roomlight 10MP is plenty big, at night well 5MP would likely easily cut it.
I will not play with RAW before I get the jpg somehow better than stock. I still don't understand why bigkaka is soo much sharper vs the other gcam mods.
If bigkaka would not be so unreliable on colors it would be the clearly best choice.
So let's make things more interesting for our device.
Vivo already makes an excellent job controling the lights so whenever theres artificial lights or HDR scenes involved it's the best to use Stock.
But it lacks on textures and details sometimes.
That's why we've been working on GCam to make our experience even better.
----------------
GCam for Vivo Phones - Tech in Bermudas
This whole GCam for Vivo Smartphones section was created by the Tech in Bermudas community. If you have better suggestions feel free to use the comment section or any of our Social Medias like Telegram. If you come just to ask which port is the best for your device you will be restricted from...
techinbermudas.com
Download and Install the APK
Move the XML's to Internal Storage/LMC 8.4/
Long press the GCam icon > Take Video
Load the XML by double clicking near the shutter button area.
Option 2 follows other path
Internal Storage/SGCAM/LIB
Internal Storage/SGCAM/XML
Place the files there and load the XML like above.
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We also created a Google Photos Album for users to share their Vivo Pics (Stock or Not)
Vivo X90 Pro Plus [PHOTOGRAPHY]
310 new items added to shared album
photos.app.goo.gl
I really prefer AGC gcam (except for sunsets or zoom lens in low light where AGC fails often).

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