Smartphone cameras are improving in almost every way, and one of the major stumbling blocks of the shooter in your pocket may soon be fixed with Oppo's brand new tech.
Oppo has just revealed a phone camera that can zoom into an image five times without any loss of quality.
It sounds a little too good to be true, so we headed down to try it out while at Mobile World Congress 2017. The good news is, it works.
Oppo hasn’t included this tech in a new smartphone release yet. Instead it’s just being displayed on prototype devices that are restricted to only the camera. There's no option of shooting video on these phones, but you can zoom in either one or five times.
The phone pictured in this article will not be released by Oppo, but the tech should soon appear in phone releases from the company.
Lossless zoom has been possible in phone cameras before - the Nokia Lumia 1020 could do 3x zoom back in 2013 - but this is the first time it has been pushed up to 5x zoom.
That means you can zoom in that little bit further and get a great shot. Practically this can be very useful when you're far from your subject - and when using the Oppo tech there was no noticeable loss of quality when zooming.
It’s genuinely breathtaking when you compare these shots to other smartphone cameras on the market.
For example, we tried the same shot with the newly launched Huawei P10 and there was a very clear noticeable loss in quality when trying 5x zoom.
We weren’t allowed to take photos from the Oppo device, but you can see shots of how the image looked in the gallery just above.
The Oppo tech uses a periscope-style structure to beat the competition when it comes to lossless zoom. This diverts light through a prism and into a telephoto lens that’s set at a 90-degree angle to a rear-facing wide-angle lens.
That light shift is how Oppo has been able to achieve lossless zoom without sacrificing the thinness of a phone.
Bear in mind, the photos taken on this demo are very well lit. The Oppo booth was set up to showcase this tech in the best case scenario. This won't work as well when trying to take darker or night time shots.
The company has been working on this tech for over a year now and it includes over 50 different modules working together to allow for this level of lossless zoom.
Oppo hasn't shared any more details on what those modules are, but we know the sensor is only 5.7mm thick, so will be able to fit into the back of a phone without creating a huge camera bump.
Because zooming in is likely to make your images quite blurry, Oppo has also spent a lot of time working on stabilization for photography. Here it's supposedly 40% better than on previous Oppo phones, but we didn’t think the stabilization was particularly good when using it on the floor.
If there's a slight shake in your hand you'll end up with a blurry image, and that's a bit of a shame. That said, if you shake when zooming on any other phone camera you'll end up with the same problem anyway.
This is part of what Oppo will need to work on further if it plans to bring this lossless zoom tech to the market anytime soon.
Considering some flagship manufacturers are currently focusing on upping the size of camera sensors and not working on areas such as stabilization and zoom, this is a big step towards a great new feature in our smartphone cameras.
This technology is exclusive to Oppo at the moment, but a similar tech could be applied by other companies to their smartphone snappers in the future, or Oppo may even license the idea out to other firms to use in their phones.
Improving such a vital feature of camera technology on smartphones just means we’re another step closer to being able to see phone photography compete with fully fledged cameras.
Whether the next Oppo phone will be capable of that task remains to be seen, but the new 5x lossless zoom tech may be one of the biggest highlights of whatever flagship phone Oppo releases next.
MWC (Mobile World Congress) is the world's largest exhibition for the mobile industry, stuffed full of the newest phones, tablets, wearables and more. TechRadar is reporting live from Barcelona all week to bring you the very latest from the show floor. Head to our dedicated MWC 2017 hub to see all the new releases, along with TechRadar's world-class analysis and buying advice about your next phone.
This year's Mobile World Congress may have wrapped up on a high note for Windows 10 convertibles, with the powerful new Lenovo Yoga 720 and 520.
The post These new Lenovo Yoga 720 and 520 convertibles are pricey, but with good reason appeared first on Pocketnow.
According to the GSM Association, the organizer of the Mobile World Congress, last year's best smartphone was the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.
The post Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge follows S6 Edge in taking top Glomo Awards honors appeared first on Pocketnow.
Speaking at an Ericsson event at MWC 2017, T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray said that the carrier will have to work on converting every last call onto VoLTE.
The post Expect an LTE-only T-Mobile by 2019 if the carrier can peel legacy clingers appeared first on Pocketnow.
The LG G6 doesn’t have the older Snapdragon 821 chipset because Samsung has an exclusive deal with Qualcomm to be the first to put a Snapdragon 835.
Developing...
On its own, the Moto Z is but a thin, well-designed flagship smartphone. But with Moto Mods, it has become something more than just that. These optional modules bring new, forward-thinking features to an aging device to keep it interesting as time goes on.
And although it’s a brilliant concept and executed way better than LG’s Friends campaign could dream of, there’s a bit of a problem. And it started to show itself with the Moto G5.
The leaks leading up to the unveiling showed that it has a removable battery, which got me thinking: “Motorola should bring mods to the low-end.”
Currently, the company is only serving these extra features to customers who have a considerable amount of expendable income. But as the idea behind modules is to enrich and empower people with the freedom of choice, the Moto G5 seemed to be the perfect place to expand.
But, as you know, that didn’t happen, so I sat down with Dan Dery, the vice president of Lenovo’s mobile business group to discuss why the company didn’t make the move.
“You’re telling me I have not, yet I haven’t said no to it,” Dery retorted.
“You haven’t seen anything so far, but I can give you a reason as to why it’s not coming now. Mods have to promise to be backward compatible for two years and obviously, there are limitations as to how low we can go and how sustainable that can be.”
So, is the Moto G5 too “low” in terms of performance, as Dery stated? While it definitely isn’t as powerful as the Moto Z (or even close, for that matter) it isn’t a pushover. It feels that, at this stage, Moto’s budget line would be a perfect fit for mods. But, his answer indicates that there’s more to the story.
“The last thing we want to do, and this is what I always keep in mind, I don’t want to end up with a fragmented ecosystem. That would be the worst. If we start being more complicated than that, we’ll kill the whole thing.”
It seems as if Moto still has mods on the mind for its affordable, highly acclaimed lineup in the future, though that day hasn’t come yet. And honestly, it feels like a bit of a missed opportunity to steal the show at MWC 2017.
But those disappointed have to appreciate that Moto isn’t forcing it. If anything, this year’s Moto G seems to be the phone that is tying its budget and premium devices together.
Maybe after another year, possibly at MWC 2018 or before, we’ll see Moto’s full suite of ambitious feature-expanding mods working on a phone that won’t cost you as much as the Moto Z.
MWC (Mobile World Congress) is the world's largest exhibition for the mobile industry, stuffed full of the newest phones, tablets, wearables and more. TechRadar is reporting live from Barcelona all week to bring you the very latest from the show floor. Head to our dedicated MWC 2017 hub to see all the new releases, along with TechRadar's world-class analysis and buying advice about your next phone.
China's TCL is looking to further ramp up its smartphone-producing efforts this year, with own-brand, BlackBerry and... Palm hardware?!
The post TCL has own-brand phones, at least two more BlackBerries, and maybe even Palm stuff on the way appeared first on Pocketnow.
There's a software lord in China and there's hope for iterative point updates. Unfortunately, it came with a big MiFavor UI update, too.
The post ZTE Axon 7 updated to Android 7.1 in China appeared first on Pocketnow.
It's no big secret that Apple probably has a curved OLED iPhone 8 in the pipeline, but what if its Lightning port will go away to make room for USB Type-C?
The post Curved OLED iPhone 8 rumors rehashed yet again, new USB-C gossip calls for Lightning exclusion appeared first on Pocketnow.
The iPhone 8 may be dropping Apple's Lightning port for USB-C according to a recent report from the Wall Street Journal.
The report states that the next iPhone will feature a “USB-C port for the power cord and other peripheral devices instead of the company’s original Lightning connector.”
Though this would be a surprising move from Apple considering it’s never been shy about the fact that its devices and peripherals have their own connection standards, it does have precedence as the company recently adopted USB-C on its MacBook line.
That said, the report doesn’t explicitly state that the USB-C port will be on the handset itself. It could mean that Apple is actually planning to change the connector on its power adapters.
This would mean that rather than charging cables and plugs with USB A to Lightning connectors, we could see USB C to Lightning, making it possible for new Mac owners to connect their iPhones more easily while retaining the Lightning port on the phone.
This would make USB-C connection optional and it would certainly be less alienating to those already heavily invested in Apple’s Lightning-heavy ecosystem.
The report also states that there will be three new iPhones this year, with two being updates to the last generation called iPhone 7S and 7S Plus, and one being a premium model that’s rumored to be a 10th anniversary iPhone 8.
According to the Wall Street Journal’s sources, the iPhone 8 will drop the traditional home button and replace it with a touch-enabled function area which we imagine would behave something like the Touch Bar on the latest Macbooks.
One of the three new devices will also feature a curved edge-to-edge OLED display similar to those seen on Samsung’s Galaxy Edge smartphones, while the other iPhone models will retain the standard LCD displays.
We've heard several of these rumors already which adds weight to the Wall Street Journal's report. If they prove to be true, we wouldn't be surprised if the iPhone 8 proves to be Apple's most expensive phone yet as we've also heard reported.
A refreshed HP Pro x2 has been unveiled at MWC 2017, and made available stateside for $979 and up with Windows 10, optional keyboard and Wacom Pen.
The post HP Pro x2 612 G2 convertible tablet targets mobile professionals with robust design appeared first on Pocketnow.
The MWC 2017-unveiled Meizu Super mCharge smartphone fast-charging solution may soon put Quick Charge 3.0 or VOOC to absolute shame.
The post Meizu Super mCharge tech will fill up a 3,000 mAh battery in 20 minutes… someday appeared first on Pocketnow.
The Fairphone 2 takes an eco-friendly approach to phone design by using conflict-free materials and employing a modular design to make repairs easier, but now the company is looking to expand its products to more than just phones.
This means you one day may be able to buy a Fairlaptop or Fairwatch from the company, one that will be made with conflict free materials.
Fairphone CEO Bas van Abel confirmed at MWC 2017 that Fairphone is looking to diversify its product line up, but it has no specific plans for either a Fairtablet or Fairheadphones.
Abel said, “Making phones is so complicated, adding more products makes it pretty difficult. On the other hand, from a commercial point of view it's very risky to have just one product.
“We don’t have plans to make Fairpads or Fairheadphones at the moment, but we’re looking into creating a portfolio of products.
“It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to make all kinds of different products, but it could mean we make the decision to do so.”
Fairphone is all about creating tech products from sustainable sources and making devices that last longer and can be repaired easily.
Sustainability is set to become a far bigger issue for the gadget-buying public as resources to create our gadgets become harder to mine or produce, as well as a general rise in interest from consumers who don't want to harm the environment just to own a device that lets them read their emails more swiftly.
Companies like Fairphone won't suddenly become Apple rivals with this stance, but they're showing the direction that could be taken and highlighting key messages that smartphone buyers need to be aware of.
It's unlikely we're going to see new Fair products ready to buy in the near future, but the fact Fairphone is looking to diversify does point toward a future where you can kit yourself out with guilt-free tech.
MWC (Mobile World Congress) is the world's largest exhibition for the mobile industry, stuffed full of the newest phones, tablets, wearables and more. TechRadar is reporting live from Barcelona all week to bring you the very latest from the show floor. Head to our dedicated MWC 2017 hub to see all the new releases, along with TechRadar's world-class analysis and buying advice about your next phone.
The Fairphone 2 takes an eco-friendly approach to phone design by using conflict-free materials and employing a modular design to make repairs easier, but now the company is looking to expand its products to more than just phones.
This means you one day may be able to buy a Fairlaptop or Fairwatch from the company, one that will be made with conflict free materials.
Fairphone CEO Bas van Abel confirmed at MWC 2017 that Fairphone is looking to diversify its product line up, but it has no specific plans for either a Fairtablet or Fairheadphones.
Abel said, “Making phones is so complicated, adding more products makes it pretty difficult. On the other hand, from a commercial point of view it's very risky to have just one product.
“We don’t have plans to make Fairpads or Fairheadphones at the moment, but we’re looking into creating a portfolio of products.
“It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to make all kinds of different products, but it could mean we make the decision to do so.”
Fairphone is all about creating tech products from sustainable sources and making devices that last longer and can be repaired easily.
Sustainability is set to become a far bigger issue for the gadget-buying public as resources to create our gadgets become harder to mine or produce, as well as a general rise in interest from consumers who don't want to harm the environment just to own a device that lets them read their emails more swiftly.
Companies like Fairphone won't suddenly become Apple rivals with this stance, but they're showing the direction that could be taken and highlighting key messages that smartphone buyers need to be aware of.
It's unlikely we're going to see new Fair products ready to buy in the near future, but the fact Fairphone is looking to diversify does point toward a future where you can kit yourself out with guilt-free tech.
MWC (Mobile World Congress) is the world's largest exhibition for the mobile industry, stuffed full of the newest phones, tablets, wearables and more. TechRadar is reporting live from Barcelona all week to bring you the very latest from the show floor. Head to our dedicated MWC 2017 hub to see all the new releases, along with TechRadar's world-class analysis and buying advice about your next phone.