The dual-camera setup of the newly announced Xiaomi Mi 8 is on par with that of Samsung’s Galaxy S9 Plus, French benchmarking company DxOMark Image Labs said Thursday, citing its in-depth review of the photography experience offered by Xiaomi’s latest Android flagship. The Mi 8 was awarded a score of 99 on the firm’s non-finite scale, with the same rating previously being given to Samsung’s latest high-end lineup. Only the Huawei P20, HTC U12 Plus, and P20 Pro were found to have even greater imaging capabilities than the Mi 8, though the first two aren’t a clear step ahead of Xiaomi’s offering.
The two 12-megapixel cameras have been found to deliver vivid colors and accurate exposure, with the overall dynamic range of the Xiaomi Mi 8 being rated as extremely wide. No white balance issues have been noted with the device that proved to be capable of delivering accurate colors in a broad range of scenarios. Image noise wasn’t found to be an issue, with the autofocusing mechanism of the Android flagship delivering accurate results in a timely manner, being able to take on any other mobile solution that’s currently available on the market. The short telephoto (f/2.4) lens of the Xiaomi Mi 8 can also simulate bokeh in a relatively natural manner, DxOMark concluded. The only major issues with the dual-camera setup of the newly launched handset come in the form of color fringing which can produce purple artifacts in rare, particularly demanding scenarios, as well as infrequent depth inaccuracies observable when shooting in bokeh mode.
The video capabilities of the Xiaomi Mi 8 are in line with what consumers came to expect from ultra-premium Android smartphones, featuring fast autofocus, rich colors, and a good handle on managing noise. Minor exposure inaccuracies and inconsistent frame sharpness are still present but generally shouldn’t trouble anyone but the most demanding consumers. The Xiaomi Mi 8 is being released in China on June 5 and should become available for purchase on a global level shortly after.
