Camera test: iPhone 12 Pro Max vs. Mate 40 Pro vs. Xperia 1 II vs. Galaxy Note20 Ultra

27 November 2020


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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • xtS
  • 10 Dec 2020

Sammy Namegabe , 08 Dec 2020Sony phones still have the best camera, it's just thei... moreYeah

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • I@a
    • 09 Dec 2020

    kiloh3rtz, 07 Dec 2020Can you smell that....can’t tell what it is ...but os smell... moreI don't think so. Are you?

      • S
      • Sammy Namegabe
      • Gv{
      • 08 Dec 2020

      Sony phones still have the best camera, it's just their marketing which is down.

        • C
        • Chucky
        • ib3
        • 08 Dec 2020

        Anonymous, 04 Dec 2020Lol why you need source? The A13 scored around 1400-1500 i... moreNice jokes.

          • C
          • Chucky
          • ib3
          • 08 Dec 2020

          kiloh3rtz, 07 Dec 2020Can you smell that....can’t tell what it is ...but os smell... moreRelax. He is speaking the truth about photography unike someone who just click the capture button.

            • C
            • Canon EOS R5 User
            • HrN
            • 07 Dec 2020

            If you want a real camera, you’ll use Xperia 1 II.

              • N
              • Nickk
              • Hk5
              • 07 Dec 2020

              All are excellent and have their strengths & weakness.
              Subjectively speaking - the Galaxy overall produces the most well balanced & attractive looking photos.

                Huawei is the best

                  Anonymous, 05 Dec 2020It seems the GSMArena Team got all their evaluations wrong.... moreCan you smell that....can’t tell what it is ...but os smells like fanboy....ooo yeah that’s it samsung fanboy flavor....

                    • L
                    • LG
                    • k7i
                    • 07 Dec 2020

                    I am just amazed at how none of the phone reviews never talk about call quality or call reception. Everyone I know has had some sort of call quality issue, but reviewers think all people care about is a photo 🤔

                      • M
                      • ME
                      • ncr
                      • 06 Dec 2020

                      I will take the Sony 1II

                        • O
                        • Oppinion
                        • uNe
                        • 06 Dec 2020

                        Instead of mate and xperia we needed. Mi 10 ultra/zenfone7pro/op8pro.

                        Even p40pro+ is better then the mate. COME ON.

                          I had buy mi10ulta...and then i decide selling my camera sonyy rx100 iv.. like mi10 ultra already above camera digital..

                            someone123, 03 Dec 2020Just my 2c, but the iphone seemed to be doing the best all-... moreagreed... reviews are helpful if read from the beginning to end, as the parameters will be stated...
                            my xperia 1 ii gives me good shots even with default camera... even better with photo pro, but i guess i already grow with my nokia 909 as it gives me "feel at home" camera ui and some shots i take using it are better than the new xperia 1 ii... have not maximized my xperia 1 ii yet, though...

                              • o
                              • oot
                              • nTb
                              • 05 Dec 2020

                              Anonymous, 04 Dec 2020How many times will you utilize the cpu at 100%. If you’re ... morePhones beats all cameras because you have always with you

                                • f
                                • flx
                                • nTb
                                • 05 Dec 2020

                                If you can't play, the instrument don't gonna help,. Learn about photography can make magic even with limited equipment..

                                  Anonymous, 05 Dec 2020It seems the GSMArena Team got all their evaluations wrong.... moregenerally i tend to agree. performed pretty much the same check with my work monitor (benq pd2700u). and my conclusions were, as stated, pretty much the same. yet, in defence of xperia: it does not have a "night mode" per se. unfortunately i cannot perform the test first hand as i do not have access to all 4 devices or the time to procure and test them. though, as stated in a previous commentary, i'm not a fan of the inbuilt night mode as i prefer to process my pics per my preferences.

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • sxs
                                    • 05 Dec 2020

                                    It seems the GSMArena Team got all their evaluations wrong. Viewing from a calibrated 32" 4K UHD monitor, I can actually see the Samsung Note 20 has the best white balance.
                                    Unless one uses an oversaturated, uncalibrated OLED phone screen or monitor to view the photos, I don't see oversaturated colors at all on the Samsung Note 20.

                                    The sodium lights are actually yellowish orange in real life, similar to that captured by the Samsung Note 20, and not pale golden yellow to pale greenish yellow like in the iPhone 12 Pro Max or the Mate 40 Pro. It's actually the Xperia 1 II that rendered the most true-to-life color under sodium vapor lamp followed by the Samsung Note 20. Also, the iPhone 12 Pro tended to overexpose the buildings resulting to a photo nowhere near true to life in terms of luminance. It's like buildings seem glowing yellow/radioactive yellow in the night. That's nowhere near, true-to-life color and luminance, GSMarena team! In fairness though, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is not alone in that respect. The Mate 40 Pro is actually worse with an even more 'glow in the dark' look.

                                    As for low level detail and optimum balance of noise reduction and sharpening, The Xperia 1 II is again the worst followed by the iPhone 12 Pro which tends to have excessive noise reduction coupled with aggressive sharpening. The result of the iPhone 12 Pro's excessive noise reduction and sharpening are the very visible sharpening halos around images (see white halos/borders around the text 'sofiaring' in the sample photos).

                                    Iphones used to be modest in the past in terms of noise reduction and in-camera processing/sharpening while Samsung tended toward overprocessing and oversharpening. I can see there's been a swapping of approach between the two. Iphone 12 Pro Max night photos now have a lot more aggressive noise reduction followed by excessive sharpening resulting in a horrible watercolor mess at 100% crop which used to be characteristic of Samsung flagship phone shots in the past. Samsung which used to have that kind of approach actually looks much better now: controlled noise reduction and just enough sharpening resulting to a better, more pleasing and more natural photo output at night even at 100% crop. I like Samsung's new approach in in-camera processing in the Note 20 Ultra. I can't say the same now with the latest iPhones (iPhone 12 Pro Max) which used to have great in-camera photo processing.

                                    The Mate 4 Pro is a mixed bag. In some scenes, there's too much processing (excessive noise reduction and too much sharpening) but in other scenes, the balance seems just about right. The Xperia 1 II is hands down the worst performer overall in most aspects.

                                    Overall, in terms of LOW LIGHT performance based on GSMArena's sample night photos taken from the main camera, I'd rank the smartphones compared above as follows:

                                    First place/Best: Samsung Note 20 Ultra
                                    Second place/Better: Mate 40 Pro and
                                    (slightly lower than Mate 40 Pro): Iphone 12 Pro Max

                                    Worst performer, though still Good: Xperia 1 II

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                                      • 6ix
                                      • Nue
                                      • 05 Dec 2020

                                      Android Authority, 03 Dec 2020Even if sources and links are presented, you guys refuse to... moreDreamer

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • iJ3
                                        • 04 Dec 2020

                                        Anonymous, 04 Dec 2020Lol why you need source? The A13 scored around 1400-1500 i... moreHow many times will you utilize the cpu at 100%. If you’re going for gaming just buy computer and normal camera, you’ll beat every smartphone...