There are loads of notable Google Pixel camera features, so we decided to rank them from best to worst. What’s at the bottom of the list?
Google’s Pixel phones have stood out for their camera prowess since the very beginning. Fast-forward to 2023 and the Pixel 8 phones still offer a fantastic camera experience.
Not every Pixel camera feature is a winner, though; some are simply better than others. With that in mind, we thought it would be a good idea to rank Google’s Pixel camera features from worst to best.
Before we start the list, it’s worth noting that we skipped the portrait, slow-motion, and timelapse modes as these are staples on virtually all smartphones today. We also skipped the PhotoSphere option after Google ditched it this year.1. HDR+
Was there ever any doubt that Google’s take on HDR photography wouldn’t be highly ranked? HDR+ debuted back in 2013 on the Nexus 5, and it’s been a staple on Google phones ever since. In fact, HDR+ has been used by default for photos ever since 2016’s Pixel phones.
The mode originally worked by snapping a burst of short exposures and combining these frames into one HDR image. This also resulted in reduced blur and noise, helping to deliver an even better picture. Today’s HDR+ on modern Pixels works by capturing several short exposures plus a long exposure frame to further cut down on noise.
Either way, HDR+ and associated multi-frame processing techniques now serve as foundational technologies for the best camera phones. In fact, even the Pixel’s Night Sight mode is accomplished using HDR+.2. Super Res Zoom
Google wasn’t the first smartphone brand to play around with hybrid zoom technology, which sees advanced image processing used for zoomed-in shots in lieu of a telephoto camera. But its Super Res Zoom feature was one of the first solutions capable of producing good results.
Super Res Zoom debuted on 2018’s Pixel 3 and combined super-resolution technology, multi-frame processing, and the natural shaking of your hands to deliver decent 2x and 3x shots. Best of all, this was all accomplished via a single rear camera.
The feature is still used today on the Pixel 8 series and older devices. In fact, Google uses this tech to capture 2x shots cropped from the main camera as well as 10x shots cropped from the 5x periscope camera. And you know what, these shots hold up okay compared to phones with dedicated 2x and 10x cameras.3. Night Sight
Night modes had been available on smartphones in some capacity for years, dating back to the early 2010s at the very least. But the truth is that almost all of these modes were pretty crap. Enter 2018, when Google and HUAWEI launched new-generation night modes that showed the rest of the industry what was truly possible with low-light photography.
