Spec sheets are cute but they won’t tell you if a phone camera is actually good when you’re not in a lab. So we cut through the hype, sifted through critic reviews, lab rankings and multi-publication shootouts to get a clear picture of what really delivers. Low light, portraits, video, ultra-wide landscapes and absurd zoom shots were all weighed against colour accuracy, dynamic range and reliability. The result? A no-bull shortlist of the cameras that actually stand out where it counts.
The best shooters across photos, video and Zoom; ranked for how they perform when it matters.
Huawei Pura 80 Ultra
Price: (Approx ₹1.18 lakh)
Huawei keeps dominating lab tests for a reason. The Pura 80 Ultra pairs a 1-inch 50MP main sensor with variable aperture, a 40MP ultra-wide and a 50MP 3.5x telephoto. Add Huawei’s XMAGE colour science and insane low-light chops and you’ve got unmatched image consistency. Its 200x digital zoom is mostly for bragging rights but the optical zoom and detail retention are best in class.
Oppo Find X8 Ultra
Price: (Approx ₹76,000)
Oppo’s 50MP quad-camera setup includes a 1-inch Sony LYT-900 main, 50MP ultra-wide and dual 50MP telephoto lenses at 3x and 6x. The result? Sharp, contrasty photos with natural bokeh and portraits that feel DSLR-lite. Critics highlight its periscope zoom as one of the cleanest you can get on a phone right now, and its Hasselblad-tuned colour profile is punchy without being cartoonish.
Vivo X200 Ultra
Price: (Approx ₹75,500)
Vivo keeps doing what it does best: insane zoom and consistent colour across all lenses. The X200 Ultra packs a 50MP main, 50MP ultra-wide and a 200MP periscope telephoto that nails detail at long range. Its Zeiss partnership delivers natural colour and excellent skin tones, plus it has one of the best stabilisation systems for video.
Apple iPhone 16 Pro / Pro Max
Price: Starts from ₹1.19 lakh
Apple doesn’t chase megapixels; it just makes video look cinematic without trying. Both models use a 48MP main with sensor-shift OIS, 12MP ultra-wide and a 12MP 5x telephoto (exclusive to the Pro Max). The real magic is in its ProRes video, Dolby Vision HDR and natural colour rendering. If you make Reels, YouTube videos or films on your phone, this is still the most seamless ecosystem for creators.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
Price: ₹1.29 lakh
Samsung’s camera style is unmistakable: vibrant colours, heavy computational processing and ridiculous zoom flexibility. The S25 Ultra has a 200MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, 50MP 3x and 50MP 5x telephoto combo. It’s not as natural-looking as others on this list but if you want detail, flexibility and a proven all-rounder for both stills and video, this is it.
Google Pixel 9 Pro / Pro XL
Price: Starts from ₹99,999
If you want to press a button and get a great shot, Pixel is still the safest bet. Both phones use a 50MP main, 48MP ultra-wide and 48MP 5x telephoto with Google’s unmatched computational photography. HDR+ and skin-tone mapping are still the best in the game, and critics consistently praise its low-light Night Sight mode.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra
Price: ₹1.09 lakh
Xiaomi builds phones for people who treat photography like a hobby. The 15 Ultra has a 1-inch 50MP main sensor with a variable aperture, dual 50MP telephotos (3.2x and 5x) and a 50MP ultra-wide. It supports full manual controls, 10-bit RAW and Leica colour tuning for those who actually want to tweak their shots instead of letting algorithms do the work.
