Can An Imaging Chip Help OPPO's Find X5 Pro Beat The Galaxy S22 Ultra?
Oppo will soon announce its flagship of 2022, the Find X5 Pro, and ahead of the launch event scheduled for Feb. 24, it has released a few key details of the smartphone, one of which is a game-changing feature that will up the capabilities of the camera. Will this feature give it an edge over Samsung's Galaxy S22 Ultra in terms of camera performance?
As one of the brands owned by BBK Electronics, Oppo is known for its incredible technological innovations in multiple areas such as fast charging and camera. While some of these developments remain a proof of concept, an example is its retractable optical zoom lens technology. Others make it to commercially available products, including those from its sister companies, OnePlus and Realme.
At the 2021 edition of its annual INNO Day event, Oppo announced the MariSilicon X, a custom image processing chip that will help improve the camera performance of its phones. A press release has officially confirmed that the chipset will appear in the Find X5 Pro. OPPO claims the 6nm imaging Neural Processing Unit (NPU) will provide "real-time RAW processing, and up to 20x faster 4K AI performance," among other benefits that may make it a strong contender for the smartphone camera king.
The Galaxy S22 Ultra is the top model of Samsung's new Galaxy S22 lineup, and it boasts some impressive camera features. The phone packs a 40MP front-facing camera and four rear cameras that include a 12MP ultrawide angle camera, a 108MP primary camera, a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, and a second 10MP telephoto camera with 10x optical zoom. While OPPO hasn't officially disclosed the camera specifications, leaked promotional images of the Find X5 Pro have revealed it will have a 32MP selfie camera and three rear cameras made up of a 50MP primary camera, a 13MP telephoto camera, and a 50MP ultrawide angle camera.
Samsung not only packs its phone with high-pixel-count sensors but also software that makes the best use of them. The Galaxy S22 Ultra is an artificial intelligence-enhanced portrait mode that can pick out even a strand of hair from the background thanks to a new AI Stereo Depth Map. There is also 'Nightography,' an improved night mode that is better at taking and recording photos in low-light. The phone also has an Expert RAW App that allows users to shoot 16-bit RAW images using any of the four cameras with lots of controls to tweak the output. OPPO is promising real-time RAW processing on the Find X5 Pro in addition to 4K video recording in night mode, all while saving power, according to its claims of being the most power-efficient NPU. Its partnership with Hasselblad for better color reproduction, especially concerning skin tones, may also give it the upper hand.
However, the Galaxy S22 Ultra should be capable of sharper images thanks to its higher-res 108MP primary camera. It should also fare much better when it comes to zoom as it boasts two telephoto cameras. Nevertheless, a comparison of both devices will still be required to decide which phone is better at capturing images. Asides from the imaging chip, OPPO has also revealed the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor will power the Find X5 Pro, but there will also be a version with a Mediatek Dimenisty 9000 processor. The phone will also have a ceramic back and will be available in white and black.
Source: OPPO, TechInsider|Twitter