Many of our readers are particularly interested in the quality of their cameras when choosing a new smartphone. Since it is difficult to choose the best one without a real comparison of the same photos taken by several smartphones, we decided to bring you a comparison of flag models I live iQOO 9 Pro, Xiaomi 11 Pro a Xiaomi 12 Pro.
During testing, we placed all three smartphones on one stand so that we could take the same shots at the same time using three smartphones. In the next photo fight, you will find out which of them did best.
Camera technical specifications
Each of the three tested smartphones has three main cameras, the specifications of which you can see below. Data on sensor models and their sizes are from an unofficial source:
I live iQOO 9 Pro | Xiaomi 11 Pro | Xiaomi 12 Pro | |
---|---|---|---|
Main camera | 50 MPx Samsung GN5 | 50 MPx Samsung GN2 | 50 MPx Sony IMX707 |
sensor size 1 / 1.57 | sensor size 1 / 1.12 | sensor size 1 / 1.28 | |
aperture f / 1.75 | aperture f / 1.95 | aperture f / 1.9 | |
gimbal stabilization | OIS | OIS | |
Ultra-wide camera | 50 MPx Samsung S5KJN1 | 13 MPx Omnivision OV13B10 | 50 MPx Samsung S5KJN1 |
sensor size 1 / 2.76 | sensor size 1 / 3.06 | sensor size 1 / 2.76 | |
aperture f / 2.27 | f / 2.4 | f / 2.2 | |
viewing angle 150 ° | viewing angle 115 ° | viewing angle 123 ° | |
Telephoto / portrait / macro | 16 MPx Samsung S5K3P9 | 8 MPx Omnivision OV08A10 | 50 MPx Samsung S5KJN1 |
sensor size 1 / 3.1 | sensor size 1 / 4.4 | sensor size 1 / 2.76 | |
aperture f / 2.23 | aperture unknown | aperture f / 1.9 | |
2.5x zoom | 5x zoom | 2x zoom | |
OIS | OIS | without OIS | |
selfie | 16 MPx | 20 MPx | 32 Mpx |
Based on the parameters, we would expect it to be a duel between Vivo iQOO 9 Pro and Xiaomi 12 Pro, but let's take a look at the photos that will tell us more.
Main camera
The main cameras of all three tested models have a resolution of 50 MPx, but they are different sensors. The Vivo iQOO 9 Pro and Xiaomi 11 Pro have reached for sensors from Samsung, while the Xiaomi 12 Pro has a sensor from Sony. As usual, the main one is usually the best of the cameras, but let's compare them directly.
Let's start outdoors during a good light. Under such conditions, almost all smartphones take good pictures, but there are always some differences. The first difference that you will notice almost immediately in most photos is the relatively different color rendering.
Images from the iQOO 9 Pro offer cooler colors and higher contrast, while the Xiaomi 11 Pro and 12 Pro stretch in warmer shades. The most natural color rendering in this case is about Xiaomi 12 Pro, although there is sometimes too much yellow.
Dynamitechnical scope and overall evaluation
The difference in dy is also interestingnamito what extent. While the shadowy part of the path in the left part of the photo has a too strong tinge of blue on the iQOO 9 Pro, the bushes in the right part are best seen. In the case of smartphones from Xiaomi, they disappear and almost merge into black.
Also note the places directly lit by the sun, such as a small church or buildings in the background on the right. These are beautifully rendered in a photo from iQOO 9 Pro, while in Xiaomi's photos, these places are overexposed and burns are created.
We like the photo from iQOO 9 Pro the most, which shows the most details and offers higher contrast. Too bad the shadow, which has a strong blue tinge. The ideal shot would be a combination of iQOO 9 Pro and Xiaomi 12 Pro.
You can see the same properties in other photos. In general, photos from the main iQOO 9 Pro sensor are brighter, have more vivid colors, higher contrast and offer more detail. Photos from Xiaomi 11 Pro are darker and the colors have a touch of yellow. With the Xiaomi 12 Pro, less lit areas are probably the darkest and produce the most underexposed images. However, they are often very similar to the ones we took with the Xiaomi 11 Pro.
Comparison of ultra-wide angle cameras
Among the widescreen cameras, the iQOO 9 Pro and Xiaomi 12 Pro models have a slight top in terms of parameters, which have up to 50 MPx ultra-wide sensors, while last year's flagship Xiaomi 11 Pro has only a 13 MPx sensor. However, the big difference in resolution did not significantly affect the quality of the photos.
The shots are carried in a similar vein as with the main sensors. iQOO 9 Pro has an attractive color design with a higher contrast and very good colornamitechnical scope. In terms of color, it matches the Xiaomi 12 Pro more towards cooler tones, while the Xiaomi 11 Pro offers warmer colors.
In the case of directly lit objects, burns are again created during shots from Xiaomi smartphones, where, in addition, the Xiaomi 12 Pro did not cope very well with the side sun, which can be seen on the trees in the right part, which are somehow too bright.
After zooming in at 100%, you can see that the camera application in iQOO 9 Pro applies the most pronounced post-process, which gives the images higher contrast, but causes a special distortion of sharpness. Zoomed images no longer look as attractive as they seem at first glance.
The Xiaomi 12 Pro has the worst deal with the backlight, in the photos of which we most often saw an unwanted glow from the light or direct sunlight. In such cases, the photos are too bright with dull colors.
How to cope in the interior
The interior often brings adverse lighting conditions that smartphones have to deal with. Whether it is a lack of light or strong light from spotlights or banners, it is always a challenge that is a stumbling block, especially with cheaper smartphones. Let's see how the tested flagships handle.
Shopping malls are usually well lit, so it is not a very demanding discipline. In good lighting conditions, the differences are quite difficult to find, as the photos are very similar. Only the Xiaomi 12 Pro, whose photo is brighter, differs significantly.
You can see bigger differences with wide-angle lenses, where we see the most detail and higher contrast about the iQOO 9 Pro, but the sharpness is not the best. The details of the Xiaomi 11 Pro are slightly lost, but the output is solid. The latest smartphone, the Xiaomi 12 Pro, is very similar to the iQOO smartphone, although with worse sharpness, especially at the edges of the photo.
In the underground garage, where there is a lack of light and exclusively artificial lighting, the colors in the photo from iQOO 9 Pro are completely out of reality with distinctly warm and oversaturated tones. The closest to reality in this case is the Xiaomi 11 Pro, but the photo from the Xiaomi 12 Pro is also quite decent, although with more pronounced colors and more overexposed places.
Using the ultra-wide angle camera, the iQOO 9 Pro significantly improves its reputation, while the Xiaomi 11 Pro keeps its level and the Xiaomi 12 Pro falls to the bottom, as it least suppresses the strong glow from the lighting.
Night mode
A separate night mode is perhaps a matter of course for all smartphones. Its purpose is to brighten the photo and highlight details while maintaining good quality. However, due to various post-processes, night photographs often escape reality and bring a very unnatural result. Let's take a look at some photos captured using night mode.
Of the main cameras, we least like the output of the Xiaomi 11 Pro. The photo is too bright with a touch of green, but otherwise it is not bad at all. The outputs from iQOO 9 Pro and Xiaomi 12 Pro are very similar, but the photo from Xiaomi's smartphone is a bit darker, which causes some details of the objects to disappear.
In dimly lit places, the dark shadows in the photos from Xiaomi 12 Pro are more pronounced, where, for example, in the next series of photographs, the roof of the palace completely disappears in the dark. Photos from Xiaomi 11 Pro and iQOO are more beautiful to look at, although a little less sharp.
Ultra-wide cameras are weaker even at night. The photo from iQOO 9 Pro has warmer colors, but visible noise and weaker sharpness. This is even worse for the Xiaomi 11 Pro and, conversely, best for the Xiaomi 12 Pro, which, however, creates glow from street lighting.
Comparison of telephoto lenses
The telephoto lenses of our three tested smartphones offer different zooms. The iQOO 9 Pro has a 2.5x optical zoom, the Xiaomi 11 Pro has up to a 5x zoom and the Xiaomi 12 Pro has a standard, 2x zoom.
For an adequate comparison, we shot at the same zoom that all 3 smartphones support, which is 2x. The differences are not profound, but certain differences can be seen at first glance. They mainly concern the different color design, the most natural of which is probably presented by the Xiaomi 11 Pro. iQOO 9 Pro has the best dynamirange, which can be seen especially in the shadows, and the Xiaomi 12 Pro has the highest resolution, up to 50 MPx, but the overall output is not impressive.
Finally, let's take a closer look at the 5x zoom that Xiaomi 11 Pro is the only one to offer. The photo is very decent, sharp and the colors are as natural as possible.
Video quality and stabilization
All three smartphones can shoot in 8K resolution, but only at 24 fps and without optical stabilization. We therefore decided to show a video shot at 4K 60 fps, which is fully stabilized by optical stabilization.
It works very well in all cases. In terms of video quality, we see similar differences as when shooting with the main lens. IQOO 9 Pro videos are more contrasting, while Xiaomi smartphones have less contrasting images with less saturated colors.
Final evaluation: Comparison of cameras
Cameras are a very sensitive topic, especially for more expensive flagship models. We can clearly say that the main cameras are the best for all three models tested. Ultra-wide cameras already make some trade-offs, but probably the weakest is the new Xiaomi 12 Pro, which often can't handle a stronger light source.
If we had to choose one photo-smartphone, the choice would be quite difficult. In most cases, the iQOO 9 Pro takes the most visually appealing photos with vivid colors, good dynamirange, but sometimes such shots are unnatural. So we leave the choice of the best to you, the readers.