DT Tech: This Valentine's day explore your love for photography with the best smartphone cameras you can buy

CHENNAI: Passionate about photography? This Valentine’s week we’re putting the spotlight on the best mobile shooters. We’ve seen a flurry of flagship smartphone launches over the past few months that have elevated the mobile photography experience with a blend of hardware upgrades and AI-driven tools. Whether you’re looking to explore your ‘love’ for photography or seeking more attention on the ‘gram’, our list is a great starting point:

OnePlus 13: OnePlus has levelled up its camera game with its 2025 flagship. While the brand’s partnership with Swedish camera major Hasselblad began with the OnePlus 9 Pro, it seems to have truly arrived at the party with the 13. The rear cam combines three 50MP lenses including a periscope telephoto lens. The 13 doesn’t just shoot sharp portraits but also makes significant improvements over previous OnePlus flagships in lowlight, videos and ultra-wide images. The camera also benefits from AI tweaks like AI Detail Boost, one of the standout features in Oxygen OS 15.0 (based on Android 15), the newest version of OnePlus’ Custom UI. (Rs 69,999)

Vivo X200: debuted alongside the Vivo X200 Pro in December 2024. This is one of our favourite smartphone cams around the Rs 65K mark and comes with quite a few features that you will find on the pricier Pro version. The X200 is a showcase for the brand’s camera prowess and its partnership with Zeiss. It features a triple rear cam that includes a periscope telephoto lens (that allows you to shoot up to 3X on optical zoom). The Zeiss partnership gives the X200 a clear edge with portrait images. You get heaps of shooting modes and scenarios that include street photo mode and a telephoto nightscape option that should please serious camera buffs. (Rs 65,999 onwards)

OPPO Find X8 Pro: OPPO’s Find X7 Ultra was one of the finest smartphone cams that we tested in 2024; that device didn’t launch in India. The X8 Pro that arrived in India in late 2024 is the follow up. This mobile shooter comes with a quad camera set up that get a boost from OPPO’s HyperTone Image Engine that the brand co-developed with Hasselblad. OPPO tells us that this ensures the original ambience is preserved. AI comes to the fore in the zoom photography department, enhancing details (even distant text) when you shoot in 20x mode or beyond (Rs 99,999)

Apple iPhone 16 Pro: the newest iPhone comes with some key camera upgrades that also benefit from Apple’s all-new A18 chip and Apple Intelligence, Apple’s new AI suite. One of the cool additions to the 16 series is the all-new Camera Control button that gives you greater control when you shoot images and videos. This year’s Pro devices come with a triple rear cam that includes a 48MP Fusion cam, an improved 48MP ultrawide lens and a 12MP telephoto shooter. You also get four new studio-quality microphones for improved audio capture (with Spatial Audio capture) adding to the iPhone’s reputation as the best mobile shooter for videos.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: while the 2025 Ultra might have been an iterative upgrade over its predecessor, it’s still one of the best smartphone cams out there. One of the key changes is the improved, 50MP ultra-wide lens. But most of all, the Ultra is probably the camera to beat in zoom photography. Aside from the 200MP primary lens, the device combines a 10MP telephoto (with 3x optical zoom) and a 50MP telephoto with (5X optical zoom) for terrific results especially when you’re shooting wildlife.