Xiaomi unveils the first smartphone with a 108 megapixel camera

nanoguy

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In brief: Xiaomi's latest smartphone may not be much to look at, but smartphone photography amateurs will surely appreciate its camera array, which includes a 108 megapixel sensor. The phone is powered by a modest chipset, but the large battery should allow you to shoot plenty of pictures and video before you need to recharge and the price is nothing to scoff at.

While companies like Apple seem to be content with 12 megapixel image sensors in their newest smartphones, Xiaomi wants to reignite the megapixel wars. This isn't completely unexpected, as Sony and Samsung have been working hard to bring higher resolution sensors to the market.

Recently, Xiaomi announced its Mi CC9 Pro smartphone in China. Don't let the naming fool you, the device has a penta-camera system on the back, including a 108 megapixel, Isocell Bright HMX sensor that was co-developed with Samsung. There's also a 20 megapixel ultra-wide shooter, a 12 megapixel telephoto for portrait shots, a 5 megapixel one with 5x optical zoom, and a 2 megapixel macro shooter for close-ups.

While some people will want to take 108 megapixel shots so they can crop them, by default the phone will produce supersampled 27 megapixel images. That's because the new sensor will produce some noise even when taking pictures in well-lit environments. The CC9 Pro also has a "night mode" that combines multiple shots to reduce noise, and can shoot slow motion video in up to 960 fps.

Camera features aside, the CC9 Pro features a generic design that houses a 6.5 inch AMOLED display powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 730G platform, which is a mid-range chipset normally intended for mainstream mobile gaming. It's worth noting that Xiaomi has included a 5,260 mAh battery that should offer impressive battery life when coupled with a less power-hungry chipset.

The CC9 Pro is mainly intended for the Chinese market, where it will start at $400 for 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.

Xiaomi will also offer a "Premium Edition" CC9 Pro for $500 that has 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. This will also be available in Europe as the "Mi Note 10," starting at €550 ($608) and going up to €650 ($720) for the Premium Edition. The company said that it will extend availability to other regions in the coming months.

Samsung's Galaxy S11 is being rumored to come with the new 108 megapixel sensor when it arrives around the February timeframe, as is Xiaomi's more ambitious Mi Mix Alpha that will land in December with a wrap-around screen and a price tag to match.

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Zoowie! Sounds sweet ...... and at the HIGH end for under a grand is pretty darn impressive. Sounds like Apple and Samsung better wake up and smell the coffee, but QUICK!
 
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Zoowie! Sounds sweet ...... and at the HIGH end for under a grand is pretty darn impressive. Sounds like Apple and Samsung better wake up and smell the coffee, but QUICK!

Until you read a review.

From the article:
Recently, Xiaomi announced its Mi CC9 Pro smartphone in China. Don't let the naming fool you, the device has a penta-camera system on the back, including a 108 megapixel, Isocell Bright HMX sensor that was co-developed with Samsung.

And from Samsung website:
Samsung’s partnership with Xiaomi brings innovation to mobile cameras with new ISOCELL Bright HMX

Samsung Electronics, a world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today introduced 108 megapixel (Mp) Samsung ISOCELL Bright HMX, the first mobile image sensor in the industry to go beyond 100 million pixels. With the latest addition, Samsung will expand its 0.8μm image sensor offerings from its recently announced ultra-high 64Mp to 108Mp, a resolution equivalent to that of a high-end DSLR camera. Samsung ISOCELL Bright HMX is a one-of-a-kind mobile image sensor and is the result of close collaboration between Xiaomi Corp. and Samsung.
 
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Zoowie! Sounds sweet ...... and at the HIGH end for under a grand is pretty darn impressive. Sounds like Apple and Samsung better wake up and smell the coffee, but QUICK!
This doesn't compete with the S10 or iPhone 11 as it uses a midrange CPU/GPU solution, not a top end chip. Hence the lower price.
 
Another great Xiaomi phone not designed for use in the US. Beware of these. Check the bands first if considering one. OnePlus makes a North American variant which is why I go with them. No Xiaomi phones seem to be designed for NA.
 
Amazing that it supersamples 27mp and still can't touch the Lumia 1040/1020 at 40mp. It's been five years and nobody has done it better to this day. Pathetic.

But at this price it does look like a great deal, really!
 
Zoowie! Sounds sweet ...... and at the HIGH end for under a grand is pretty darn impressive. Sounds like Apple and Samsung better wake up and smell the coffee, but QUICK!
This phone is nowhere near the Apple or Samsung flagships, specially the warranty and support which is the most crucial nowadays.

Amazing that it supersamples 27mp and still can't touch the Lumia 1040/1020 at 40mp. It's been five years and nobody has done it better to this day. Pathetic. But at this price it does look like a great deal, really!
1020 was a great phone, but bulky and heavy. Finally they left the 'slimmer the best' and going for bigger battery and better camera and for the customer's money, like hell.
 
Anyone serious about photography and videos will buy stand-alones. This is one feature I don't consider when buying a phone.

Here's some newsflash for you..best smartphone video cameras actually ARE BETTER than anything "standalone" you can buy for the comparable price.


..and the gap has only gotten bigger since
 
Here's some newsflash for you..best smartphone video cameras actually ARE BETTER than anything "standalone" you can buy for the comparable price.


..and the gap has only gotten bigger since
Well in this example, the Canon was performing better than the iPhone X. There's no argument that phone cameras are very good and can perform amazingly well. But you won't get all the features including lenses add-ons and audio for the professionally driven. For most phone users, it's an added benefit and not a primary one.
 
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