Motorola vs Pixel camera

sinextitan

ever since having discovered the project, I've been quite eager to make the switch but due to the current Pixel exclusivity, I am unable. Google does not officially sell the devices where I live and hence the Motorola announcement was a boon.

one of the reasons I adore Pixels and would like to have one is the cameras. Pixel cameras are often regarded as the best or 2nd best in smartphone photography. even the "a" series' primary shooter can outclass competing flagships. Google's blend of software and hardware optimizations sm how nail the picture.

Motorola on the other hand. not quite well regarded in the camera department. I have used a few recent releases from them, albeit low end devices, and their cameras are not v good. I understand that supported Moto devices are still a yr away and GOS' main priority is privacy and security. but I'd still love to see more emphasis be put into making the camera experience a lot better.

de0u

sinextitan Especially for the first device, the model of the user community should be that the GrapheneOS team will have some influence over hardware/firmware security features, and that's all. Further information: https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/27687-new-manufacturer-theories-and-predictions/89

Johnnyloans

sinextitan Pixel cameras are often regarded as the best or 2nd best in smartphone photography. even the "a" series' primary shooter can outclass competing flagships.

Welcome!
Pixels used to be much better with the camera.

The pixel 10 pro and 10 pro XL is currently ranked 11th

2 Motorola phones hold 9th and 10th place.

The pixel 10a holds 76th place.
Source: https://www.dxomark.com/smartphones/

My opinion and plan:
My P6 will be end of life soon, I will get a 8a until the Motorola signature comes out. (The RAZR will probably be supported too but it's all speculation)

The Motorola phones will be on the pricier side (9th or 10th best camera & a very expensive CPU/GPU to get the security features)

The Motorola will be about 2x more powerful while having comparable or even better battery life like the galaxies do. Google software has been going downhill in my opinion so I will test out the new Motorola.

sinextitan

Johnnyloans I also saw the dxomark standings but as it was new to me I didn't know if it could be trusted. my perception of Pixel cameras were mostly from reviews by photographers on YouTube or PetaPixel/DPReview. besides I stopped following the Pixel 10s after they launched cuz other than the Indigo color of the base 10, shit is boring.

AE16

And tbh, lenses are not that different in quality anymore; It is the sw that weights the most now.
So the quality of a pixel camera, without the GCamera software is not that amazing

sinextitan

AE16 if I were to or am to get a Pixel I will be using GCam. kind of a redirect but on the FAQ it's stated there isn't much of an img quality difference but I haven't really seen sufficient credible information on it. does there exist a quality disparity or just a feature one?

Johnnyloans

I think GOS can get all of the features outside of AI alterations like add me into this photo or whatever it's called.

Might have to download models like for zoom-in AI enhance. Some AI models won't work from what I've read.

My phone has these packages installed:

com.google.android.apps.camera.services
com.google.pixel.camera.services
com.android.cameraextensions
com.google.android.GoogleCamera

I don't have a stockOS pixel to compare with though.

Buffering

Pretty sure it is Google's software (rather than hardware) that makes Google photos industry leading.

sinextitan

Buffering it most certainly is. the best smartphone camera hardware is either the S26 Ultra or whatever th Sony named their latest flagship. but imo they still lack behind Pixels and that is due to software. theoretically better cameras yes and perhaps in manual too but in point and shoot Google.