There’s something unassuming about the Vivo V50 when first looking at it, yet its camera performance should be a wake-up call to others. The company still sees this phone as unique for its Aura Light in portrait photos but the more significant improvements come from everywhere else.
This week on The PetaPixel Podcast, Chris Niccolls, Jordan Drake, and I are joined by PetaPixel's mobile and computing contributing writer Ted Kritsonis to talk about the very good smartphone camera systems that North Americans might not know about or have outright disregarded.
Google announced its latest affordable A-series smartphone, the Google Pixel 9a. The new phone promises many of the same features as Google's standard 9-series smartphones and an upgraded main camera.
Expanding on our efforts we started last year, we're again taking a look at the best smartphones for photography available in 2025. We have four phones to look at this time: the Apple iPhone 16 Pro, Google Pixel 9 Pro, Samsung S25 Ultra, and a newcomer in the OnePlus 13. I intend to provide some education on what situations some of these phones might excel in versus the other so you can select which is best suited for you.
Tusk and ShiftCam teamed up to create the Cinema Series: the world's first commercial-grade mobile lens and filter system.
The Retro DMF Photography Kit from Fotogear is a multi-part case that not only looks the part of a vintage camera but also adds control dials and a shutter that make it function like one, too.
The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is designed and engineered to be the best in the business for mobile photographers, though tighter competition and a key drawback may make it harder to stake that claim.
Nothing, known for its aesthetically-stripped-down smartphones announced the Nothing Phone 3a and Nothing Phone 3a Pro, successors to 2023's Nothing Phone 2.
Realme unveiled a surprise concept phone dubbed “Ultra” at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona as part of a broader interchangeable lens system that would come bundled with two lenses influenced by Leica’s M-mount.
Shure announced the MoveMic 88+ wireless stereo microphone, a first-of-its-kind mobile audio capture solution that connects with mobile devices and has four selectable polar patterns.
Just before Mobile World Congress 2025 opens up in Barcelona, Xiaomi presented a concept it’s calling the “Modular Optical System”, which is basically an external lens that can attach to one of its phones.
Xiaomi unveiled its 15 Series smartphones with the Xiaomi 15 and 15 Ultra on the eve of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, championing them as “the ultimate professional imagery flagship” mobile photography and video devices.
Photographer and app developer Drew Mylrea released Range Camera, a new iPhone camera app that promises more natural-looking photos and streamlined RAW image editing.
Earlier this month, United Kingdom security officials reportedly issued a secret order to Apple to require the company to create backdoor access to users' encrypted iCloud data. In response, Apple has removed its most secure end-to-end encryption from iCloud in the United Kingdom.
Chinese smartphone maker Oppo announced the Find N5, the world's thinnest foldable smartphone. However, as is often the case with Chinese phones, American consumers are out of luck.
DJI announced the RS 4 Mini, its latest gimbal for smartphones and cameras. This new gimbal promises professional-level stabilization in a small and budget-friendly package.
After months of rumors, Apple's newest "affordable" iPhone model has arrived. It's not the iPhone SE 4 people expected, but instead the iPhone 16e, unifying growing Apple's iPhone family.
DJI announced the Osmo Mobile 7 and Osmo Mobile 7P, a phone gimbal with the company's seventh-generation three-axis stabilization system as well as intelligent tracking via ActiveTrack 7.0.
Insta360's Flow 2 Pro, announced in January, enables the best tracking with an iPhone gimbal that PetaPixel has tested, but it was limited to iPhones only. That changes today with the optional AI Tracker add-on.
PetaPixel's Chris Niccolls and Jordan Drake aren't the norm: one of them presents while the other one operates the camera. Modern content creators typically work alone, and that includes me. That means the same number of tasks that are enough of a burden for two full-time jobs is somehow supposed to be crammed into one person.
Last month, Samsung launched the Galaxy S25 series of devices. During the keynote presentation in San Jose, it revealed that it was bolstering its AI disclosure over the S24 series by integrating C2PA content authenticity. It did, but only on AI images and that feels incomplete and backward.
The Planck SSD is the world's smallest SSD with a smartphone-first design. First previewed at CES in January, the Planck SSD is now on Kickstarter. It offers up to 2TB in capacity, speeds up to 10Gbps, and promises uninterrupted Apple ProRes 4K recording at up to 120p frame rates on the latest iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max.
In Mount Kaputar National Park in New South Wales, Australia, an extinct volcano is home to unique wildlife, including an incredible pink slug.
"The Colours of China" by travel filmmaker Denis Barbas showcases the vivo X200 Pro’s capabilities as a professional tool for filmmakers and travel photographers.
Dbrand announced a new Apple Vision Pro protective skin called Aperture which it admits is probably "the ugliest thing" it has ever made.
The Honor Magic 7 Pro has the potential to revolutionize mobile photography, but its image sensors and software computation may be holding it back.
There is yet another interesting smartphone that Americans cannot purchase, at least through the usual channels. This time, it's the Asus Zenfone 12 Ultra, a tweaked ROG phone.
Last June, Leica announced Leica Lux, an iPhone camera app with a Leica-inspired user interface, carefully crafted Leica lens simulations, and unique Leica Looks photo styles. Today, Leica unveiled the Leica Lux Grip, a magnetic camera grip for iPhone that gives photographers Leica-inspired physical controls for their mobile photography.
Digital camera sales reached a nadir a few years ago but recent trends have proven there's still life in the old dog yet.
A new app called Unpro Camera says it strips away all of the processing typically applied by an iPhone to produce unprocessed-looking photos that the developer says look "astonishingly natural."
