This year we have decided to have a special post to highlight the advancements in smartphone camera systems that allow the recording of super slow motion video. We have seen after all huge advancement this year especially by Asian companies making their best efforts to exploit the camera module’s strengths without crippling them to sell a newer model. The Chinese have decided to create a camera war between phone builders that one-up each other every few months.
We value image quality just as high as frame rate and when phones claim to be 1080p in high frame rate modes we usually find that the real case if 720p or similar upscaled to full HD 1080 with artifacts and jagged edges that can make you dizzy. But not all phones are created equal and that is where this list of the best of 2019 comes in. If by any chance an even stronger contender comes in before the end of the year we might revise this list but it would be a fluke.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
Rumors surrounding the 2020 release of the OnePlus 8 phone are already heating up with a tentative May release date and a new camera module that can capture 960fps super slow motion at 720p, a clear step up from their previous phones at 480p. The OnePlus 7T can shoot 960fps but it is an interpolated mode from doubling the frames of 480p by 2x and doing the in-betweens in software.
What is interesting is that OnePlus since the OnePlus 6 has allowed for a full minute of playback in super slow motion from their 480p mode and has been one of the go-to phones for dependable slow motion capture that offers the longest recording time still to this day in higher than 240p modes.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
The latest beta version of One UI 2.0 which is the Samsung interface layer on top of Android 10, is featuring an initial selfie mode for the front camera in the Galaxy S10 and Note 10, to match Apple’s Slo-fie feature which debuted on the iPhone 11. The Samsung focused Sammobile.com has already tested the feature and has shown that it is working but with still some performance issues to be ironed out.
For starters, the footage stutters like it is losing some frames from what looks to be a 120fps 720p capture on the front selfie camera. Then there is no real adjustment at the moment of capture allowed on the interface but there are post-recording editing and speed stretching that should allow some level of control. It would be ideal to have access to a full manual feature on this mode, but it seems it is kind of a bolted-on software upgrade feature to allow a better feature for feature comparison with Apple. If that is the case Samsung should also allow all the cameras on the back to shoot slow motion video and not only the standard wide default cam.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
Panasonic not to be outdone by sales rivals is pre-announcing the S1H camera to appease video-centric mirrorless users who want that extra edge. It has a 6k mode which will allow for better stabilization and cropping/punching in on 4k timelines while giving the user bragging rights. It has a 14 stop dynamic range spec which if we look at the sensor it is only on a couple of capture settings the rest is 12 bit.
There is also no mention of higher frame rates besides UHD 4k 60p which we presume will be 180fps 1080p max since this camera shares nearly the same internals as the other Panasonic S1 cameras. We do not expect this camera to have better slow motion video than the regular S1 even with its $4000 price tag. The camera looks to be aimed at the mid-high end of the video market and allow it to record without limits which on the regular S1 is 29min.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
Today the OnePlus 7 Pro was announced after a plethora of leaks over the previous weeks. However, the Slow Motion capabilities were not disclosed in the leaks so we had no rumor to report on that front. Today with the full spec list released we can see that the OnePlus 7 Pro camera has the new Sony IMX 586 mobile sensor which is the same as many other phones recently released included as their main shooter. The 48MP sensor is used to supersample data and allow for better optical crop zoom and noise reduction by averaging neighboring pixels as some of its capabilities.
The problem is that the 48MP sensor is terrible in the rolling shutter department the larger the sensor area is used. We saw that in the Nubia Red Magic 3 and it’s 8k 30p video mode which was unusable at the first sign of movement. That means that 1080 and 720p video modes will have a very severe crop on the sensor and probably much worse low light performance than that found on Last Year’s OnePlus 6 and 6T which allowed for also 720p 480fps for up to 3.75 seconds of recording.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
Sony has released the RX0 Mark II which now includes the ability to record 4k internally as opposed to using an external recorder. Other goodies include a new flippy screen which while tiny, it allows for easy framing and selfie vlogger styles. A new stabilizer is included for reducing shake and it is a definite improvement even when the rolling shutter is a real problem.
Most of the camera is the same as before when it comes to body shape and usability, the higher frame rates are identical as the 2017 RX0 Mark I with essentially the same resolution and time recording. The big improvement comes in the screen and internal 4k recording with stabilization which seems to be directly aimed at vloggers. The sensor is, however, a tad less crowded by pixels at 15.3MP on the Mark II vs 21MP on the Mark 1. That should help in the low light department.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
