68 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 71
Like most smartphone cameras it performs best
under natural daylight; capturing colour depth
and contrast really well.
Night mode is pushed as one of the phone’s
biggest talking points and it’s easy to see why.
Everything is lifted into clear detail and the phone
manages to keep the image sharp – even with
my shaky hands. The shooting time is slightly
longer than normal but it’s worth it for the crisp
outcome of the images.
As there’s no optical or hybrid zoom system at
play details becomes extremely blurred and fuzzy
the more you crop in, though. Of course, zoom isn’t
a primary feature on the A9, but don’t expect that
just because it’s got a high-quality main camera
that its talents apply to all areas of photography.
You can choose to turn on optional modes
like Dazzle Color and HDR but I found the
former overexposes colours quite a lot, giving
some photos a very unnatural look.
You can also choose from a number of pre-
made filters, as well as a separate black-and-white
creative option. Personally, I find these all to be a
bit gimmicky and would just prefer to edit photos
in post-production but that does come down to
user preference.
Meanwhile, the 8Mp camera is the wide-angle
option, with generous room for fitting in what you
may want in bigger scenes. It is easy to see the drop
in quality that this lens has in comparison to that main
sensor, but for big travel-style shots, it’ll certainly
come in handy when needed. You can still use HDR
