Database Users

The Moto G camera: noise reduction is the key

Here are some details I uncovered in regards to the camera of Moto G:
Camera specification:
- 5mpxl
- f/2.4
- 4mm focal length.
Most definitely a small sensor, (< 1/3.2' ), likely 1/4'. Also very likely won't have BSI for better low light performance.
Meanwhile there's no good teardown (yet) to find out the make of the camera module, by going through the spec sheets of many other phones, the sensor is likely to be same one you find in Lumia 625.
Most of you will probably agree that Moto G doesn't take good photos. Meanwhile the optic is the best it should be well capable of better.
Issue at the moment is that there's TOO MUCH noise reduction, which can cause a very 'water-paint' feel to the pictures, and destroying any form of sharpness.
From my test with stock and many other camera apps (Lenovo, focal, a better cam, etc etc), while they help with the compression, focus, white-balance and metering etc. and can help the quality of the photos. They don't fix the sharpness/noise reduction issue with the camera. It seems like it's been hard-coded into the software for the camera.
Are there anyone out there who will be able to fix this?

The Motorola camera app was updated today, has this improved the noise reduction?
Nuthin' but a 'Moto G' thang

cption said:
Are there anyone out there who will be able to fix this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google seems to be working on a completely overhauled Hardware Abstraction Layer for the cameras that will allow apps to tap more directly into the camera pipelines. They'll be able, for instance, to get RAW captures and and do their own custom demoisacing/debayering and the whole post- pipeline. That would probably fix any heavy-handed processing done by any of the OEMs.

AluKed said:
Google seems to be working on a completely overhauled Hardware Abstraction Layer for the cameras that will allow apps to tap more directly into the camera pipelines. They'll be able, for instance, to get RAW captures and and do their own custom demoisacing/debayering and the whole post- pipeline. That would probably fix any heavy-handed processing done by any of the OEMs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
RAW just gives an uncompressed image, there's no real guarantee that no processing takes place..
I'm going to report my findings on the new moto camera update. From the look of it it's just a routine, general update that shouldn't make much difference.

bien irleeno
cption said:
RAW just gives an uncompressed image, there's no real guarantee that no processing takes place..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really. RAW is much more than an uncompressed image, it's as close to the raw, unprocessed sensor output as possible. No demosaicing, no tone mapping/gamma, no conversion from (typically) 12 bits per pixel to 8 bits, no processing and no lossy compression. If any of this is done, then it isn't RAW.

For you which camera app is the best ?

el-marino said:
For you which camera app is the best ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
camera awesome is amazing and vignette its very good try with this app's u can get a better pic from stock cam

I think the original Android app takes better photos
The only problem with this app is the HDR
I installed the original app 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4, none of them has the HDR
Any way to solve this?

I've just installed snap camera, I have to say it is streets ahead of stock moto cam.
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

I wasn't able to post before/after comparison with the stock camera app as it updated itself. So far I'm not seeing any different image wise between the update.
I've done some comparison shots in between the cameras, and added in my Ativ S (GS3 WP8 alter-ego) as a bonus.
Snap Camera focus very well, and I was able to take good shots with my shaky hands. However, the blurring issue is very apparent with all camera apps..
N.B. The Focal photo was slightly blurred due to my shaky hands, sorry!

Just to clear it, you're talking about this paid app ?
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.marginz.snap&hl=en

SlashGear have posted an article on the Camera software update released by Motorola.
This update does a tiny bit to improve all areas of shooting with manual controls, and shows sign that Motorola isn’t going to let this device fall by the wayside at all, whatsoever.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
[SlashGear]

lost101 said:
SlashGear have posted an article on the Camera software update released by Motorola.
[SlashGear]
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Click to collapse
I dunno Slashgear articles seems iffy...
Moto G ALREADY had the Exposure/Focal Ring tbh, seems they didnt notice or use it in their original review. This exposure/focus ring is the basis of their camera comparison it seems.

I did not find options to manual focus and exposure.

Psychoferno said:
I did not find options to manual focus and exposure.
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Click to collapse
It's just the ring that you can drag around the screen to choose the point of focus and exposure. I'm sure that we (at least I did!) had this from the beginning on Moto G (maybe the X didn't and that's where the stories are coming from?) and the recent update was basically bug fixes for us.

Yes, the G Moto already had this function. Thanks for the clarification.

Kameo said:
Just to clear it, you're talking about this paid app ?
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.marginz.snap&hl=en
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Click to collapse
Yes, I just used the trial for the comparison.
Note that XDA compresses the image so it's very hard to tell from the photos I posted.
But the Moto-G is absolutely no match for the camera on my Ativ-S/GS3. Not sure if it will fair better if the noise reduction issues been fixed.
But Snap Camera seem to do the best job out of the apps I've tried, for my shaky hand of course. Not compared the HDR mode yet but stock camera do that quite well.

any comparison between s3?^

t-bon3 said:
The Motorola camera app was updated today, has this improved the noise reduction?
Nuthin' but a 'Moto G' thang
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Camera apps rarely make any significant difference in quality, unless they start passing different parameters/settings to the camera HAL.
Usually, if you see major changes in camera performance, it's HAL changes, which require a system firmware update.

Entropy512 said:
Usually, if you see major changes in camera performance, it's HAL changes, which require a system firmware update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm guessing that we'll get the Camera HAL v3 with Kit Kat 4.5. I mean, that's the kind of feature that would justify a version bump. Hopefully the hardware will be compliant enough that it won't have to run in the Limited Semantics mode.

[FACT] [Moto G 2014] [LG Nexus 5][Camera Sensor] [Camera 2.0 API]

The camera sensor 'Sony IMX179' used in the Moto G 2014 is the same as in LG Nexus 5.
As Nexus 5 has Snapdragon 800 and IMX179 sensor enclosed in a special rig it has Optical Image Stabilization. (OIS).
IMX179 is capable of shooting 1080p videos at 30fps & Snapdragon 400 (MSM8226) used in Moto G 2014 is fully capable of processing FHD 1080p video and has FHD encoder support.
Specifications
Type : Active Pixel CMOS
Pixel Size : 1.4 µm
Type : 1/3.2”
Effective Pixels : 8.08MP
Max FPS : 30
Aperture : f/2.0
Focal Length : 27mm
Also Google introduced 1 new API Lollipop onwards for Camera called Camera 2.0 API (android.hardware.camera2) that enables the device fully utilize the hardware and software & a complete manual control on the post-processing features of the image. Nexus 6 and Nexus 5 have Camera 2.0 API implemented in their stock ROMs.
The features that can be controlled using Camera 2.0 API to give far more superior quality images as compared to auto-mode.
Exposure time
ISO Sensitivity
Frame duration
Lens focus distance
Flash trigger
Color correction matrix
JPEG metadata
Tonemap curve
Crop region
AE / AF / AWB mode
AE / AWB lock
AF trigger
Precapture AE trigger
Metering regions
Exposure compensation
Target FPS range
Capture intent
Video stabilization
Motorola too was lazy to upgrade the phone software to enable FHD video recording and introduce Camera 2.0 API. It seems Camera 2.0 needs hardware support as well, will have to confirm it from reliable sources.
I have mailed Motorola of this issue, but still its has been 1 week 3 weeks, still no reply from them.
Hope this information is useful.

sharkymyn said:
The camera sensor used in the Moto G 2014 is the same as in LG Nexus 5. It's the Sony IMX179 1/3.2” CMOS with 1.4 µm pixels. 8 MP f/2.0, 27mm-effective lens. As the Nexus 5 has Snapdragon 800 so it is able to support OIS feature.
Snapdragon 400 used in Moto G has FHD 1080p encoder supported, but Motorola was lazy to upgrade the phone software to enable full HD video recording.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, this is interesting to know. Can you please confirm how did you come by this information, did you take apart your Moto G 2014, do you know if all variants of Moto G 2014 use the same camera? Can we update phone software - e.g. by using custom Sony Binaries/drivers in the custom built CM12?

anterus said:
Thank you, this is interesting to know. Can you please confirm how did you come by this information, did you take apart your Moto G 2014, do you know if all variants of Moto G 2014 use the same camera? Can we update phone software - e.g. by using custom Sony Binaries/drivers in the custom built CM12?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Source : http://www.techspot.com/review/888-motorola-moto-g-2014/page1.html :fingers-crossed:
IMO, All the variants of Moto G 2014 use the same IMX179. And you cannot update the phone software by using Sony's Binaries, they are device specific.
Meanwhile I have mailed Motorola about the same, I am now waiting for their reply

So i wonder what motorola is going to say about this

Just because the sensor is the same doesn't mean the camera module is. In fact, the G has different lenses than the N5 (different aperture sizes, too).
Also, I doubt Motorola was "too lazy" to enable 1080p recording. It's far more likely that this was a deliberate decision to prevent the G from cannibalizing their sales of higher-end models too much.

Interesting so does that mean that a dev could implement 1080p recording?

code65536 said:
Just because the sensor is the same doesn't mean the camera module is. In fact, the G has different lenses than the N5 (different aperture sizes, too).
Also, I doubt Motorola was "too lazy" to enable 1080p recording. It's far more likely that this was a deliberate decision to prevent the G from cannibalizing their sales of higher-end models too much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's just apperture and lens. That doesn't change the fact they share the same camera module. IMX is the same for all phones.

guillaumedsde said:
Interesting so does that mean that a dev could implement 1080p recording?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Technically yes.

guillaumedsde said:
Interesting so does that mean that a dev could implement 1080p recording?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
aditya.upadhyaya said:
Technically yes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even Camera API v2.

I use the attached file to change the profiles of video resolution support.
Use the one from N5, it enable the option 1080p recording, but if i try to record a video it does not, it start and end in one second. when I check the 1 second recorded video is only 720p :silly:, I tested Moto camera, and google camera same result.
The name of the file is only ''media_profiles.xml'' i rename to know... to flash i flash with original name ''media_profiles.xml'' and put it on system/etc...
Of course that would not be so easy.
But is a start... enjoying the thread :good:

baybutcher27 said:
I use the attached file to change the profiles of video resolution support.
Use the one from N5, it enable the option 1080p recording, but if i try to record a video it does not, it start and end in one second. when I check the 1 second recorded video is only 720p :silly:, I tested Moto camera, and google camera same result.
The name of the file is only ''media_profiles.xml'' i rename to know... to flash i flash with original name ''media_profiles.xml'' and put it on system/etc...
Of course that would not be so easy.
But is a start... enjoying the thread :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The drivers doesn't know what "1080p" means so it sticks with 720p.

sky0165 said:
The drivers doesn't know what "1080p" means so it sticks with 720p.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That gave me a brilliant plan. This is the right way of thinking. If possible, can someone use camera.msm8226.so (system/lib/hw/) from a 1080p enabled MSM 8226 chipset and try the same? A couple of Chinese phones and a Sony Xperia phone (don't know in which) has this.
Warning - this could screw the phone up. Backup and reflashing ROM will be necessary.
---------- Post added at 04:41 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:53 AM ----------
baybutcher27 said:
I use the attached file to change the profiles of video resolution support.
Use the one from N5, it enable the option 1080p recording, but if i try to record a video it does not, it start and end in one second. when I check the 1 second recorded video is only 720p :silly:, I tested Moto camera, and google camera same result.
The name of the file is only ''media_profiles.xml'' i rename to know... to flash i flash with original name ''media_profiles.xml'' and put it on system/etc...
Of course that would not be so easy.
But is a start... enjoying the thread :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
media_profiles.xml is a file that lets the OS know what types of encoders and decoders are present, & also usable for the device. By using one from Nexus 5, its letting the our OS know that 1080p HD is available, but when you open the camera, it doesn't have the library driver files to do so., & thus my post above. By getting driver file, it should technically have the capability to record, but if its also kernel related, the kernel also needs to be patched in accordance. But in the mean time, let's take this step by step.
Also, i dont think Motorola's gonna answer.

aditya.upadhyaya said:
That gave me a brilliant plan. This is the right way of thinking. If possible, can someone use camera.msm8226.so (system/lib/hw/) from a 1080p enabled MSM 8226 chipset and try the same? A couple of Chinese phones and a Sony Xperia phone (don't know in which) has this.
Warning - this could screw the phone up. Backup and reflashing ROM will be necessary.
---------- Post added at 04:41 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:53 AM ----------
media_profiles.xml is a file that lets the OS know what types of encoders and decoders are present, & also usable for the device. By using one from Nexus 5, its letting the our OS know that 1080p HD is available, but when you open the camera, it doesn't have the library driver files to do so., & thus my post above. By getting driver file, it should technically have the capability to record, but if its also kernel related, the kernel also needs to be patched in accordance. But in the mean time, let's take this step by step.
Also, i dont think Motorola's gonna answer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe this task is a little more deeper than just replacing files. I think we would need a proper kernel, since it's the bridge between hardware and software to make the current system "speak" with the new files. Because if system request something that was declared differently or wasn't declared with the replaced drivers/libs camera would stop working.
I think lib/hw is the real module blobs, vendor/hw it's the Camera HAL.

sky0165 said:
I believe this task is a little more deeper than just replacing files. I think we would need a proper kernel, since it's the bridge between hardware and software to make the current system "speak" with the new files. Because if system request something that was declared differently or wasn't declared with the replaced drivers/libs camera would stop working.
I think lib/hw is the real module blobs, vendor/hw it's the Camera HAL.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, that's a decent explanation.
With that, we require Camera HAL of a Lollipop based MSM8226 chipset, preferably by Motorola. But, Moto G & G2 are d only known Lollipop Snapdragon 400 phones.
Can someone send me the .so file for lib/hw/ ? And if possible send me d HAL file of any MSM8226 phone? I want to test it anyways. No harm in doing that, right?

aditya.upadhyaya said:
Okay, that's a decent explanation.
With that, we require Camera HAL of a Lollipop based MSM8226 chipset, preferably by Motorola. But, Moto G & G2 are d only known Lollipop Snapdragon 400 phones.
Can someone send me the .so file for lib/hw/ ? And if possible send me d HAL file of any MSM8226 phone? I want to test it anyways. No harm in doing that, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think it's like that.
I think first we need N5 camera blobs and probably some reverse-engineering to make the files "fit" on G. These blobs are what makes the module turn on, focus, etc. Here, we're speaking on Hardware level.
The last thing is Software level, which is HAL. APP requests to HAL that requests to CAMERA.
Don't know if this is right.

sky0165 said:
I don't think it's like that.
I think first we need N5 camera blobs and probably some reverse-engineering to make the files "fit" on G. These blobs are what makes the module turn on, focus, etc. Here, we're speaking on Hardware level.
The last thing is Software level, which is HAL. APP requests to HAL that requests to CAMERA.
Don't know if this is right.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm... Yeah. That's also there.

Okay guys so here is the update
I mailed the Motorola regarding this issue on 13th March, 2015, They assured that the mail will be replied within 24 hours.
Today is 17th March, 2014. Its been 3 days, still no reply from their side.

May be a bad news for some!!
I read a news article from GSMArena where it stated that even Samsung didn't implement all features of Camera API 2.0 in their Samsung S6 and S6 Edge. Considering it is a recent flagship and has more than enough oomph and still not given the benefits of Lollipop API's i seriously doubt Moto will do anything for Moto G. Moto X 2014 might have a chance and Moto X 2015 will have it more or less. Unless Moto releases resources for implementing Camera API or someone comes with a open driver solution or some dev creates a hack to enable the settings by Xposed i seriously doubt this will ever happen. My post may feel negative but its the reality as far as i think. Anyway lets hope:crying:
---------- Post added at 12:57 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:28 AM ----------
Tried contacting Motorola Support through the help app. Seems they don't have any information about this. So i have created a petition on https://www.change.org/p/motorola-k...r-moto-g-x-both-generations?just_created=true If anyone is interested kindly take part all we can do is ask Motorola for it.

To be honest, if we can do it, not a big problem insert it into CM and done =)
By the way, is there a way to modify drivers and make the software take movies at 60FPS (Since the Slow Mode is at 60FPS, but divided by 4 that gets 15FPS)

raju sesharaj said:
I read a news article from GSMArena where it stated that even Samsung didn't implement all features of Camera API 2.0 in their Samsung S6 and S6 Edge. Considering it is a recent flagship and has more than enough oomph and still not given the benefits of Lollipop API's i seriously doubt Moto will do anything for Moto G. Moto X 2014 might have a chance and Moto X 2015 will have it more or less. Unless Moto releases resources for implementing Camera API or someone comes with a open driver solution or some dev creates a hack to enable the settings by Xposed i seriously doubt this will ever happen. My post may feel negative but its the reality as far as i think. Anyway lets hope:crying:
---------- Post added at 12:57 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:28 AM ----------
Tried contacting Motorola Support through the help app. Seems they don't have any information about this. So i have created a petition on https://www.change.org/p/motorola-k...r-moto-g-x-both-generations?just_created=true If anyone is interested kindly take part all we can do is ask Motorola for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, S6 is still to be launched. I believe the software they're running isn't 100% finished and polished, just like M9. Wait April 10, probably they'll add it on day 1 or some weeks later.

Workaround to increase Camera Photo quality

I am aware that our Mix uses a 1/3.06" 16MP Omnivision Sensor with a Pixel size of the measly 1um. But the Huawei Mate 9 has a similar sized sensor (1/2.9" 12MP sensor with a pixel size of approx. 1.25um.) and shoots really great pics. Obviously Huawei may have used a latest generation Sony sensor with Leica's optics which will blow the Omnivision away. Even the cheapest Sony sensor would outperform an Omnivision any day.
My question is, will shooting images at a lower resolution like 12MP on the Mix give us better results? I'm not expecting Mate 9 like results as the phone's camera was never a priority when I bought this device. But would this help reduce noise or give us better results compared to shooting at 16MP? I am noticing lower noise when shooting at 13MP on Open camera compared to shooting at 16MP.
Does shooting at a lower resolution increase the Pixel size from 1um? Or is it strictly something to do with the sensor? Does the sensor behave the same either way and are we just getting cropped images when shooting at lower resolutions?
I've read in a few places that the sensor is fully utilized regardless but shooting at lower resolutions can reduce noise. If I can at least get half decent 12MP images compared to noisy unreliable 16MP ones, I wouldn't mind shooting at lower resolutions. Of course I am not expecting ground breaking image quality.
Some older Sony phones like the Xperia Z2 used to have a default mode which clicked images at 8MP even though the effective sensor resolution was 21MP. Sony claimed that the lower resolution gave batter images especially lesser noise. I am referring to something like this.
Hope someone can explain this.

@satishp did a search on dpreview.com
https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/2995010
The 2nd reply sums it up pretty well.
The answer to your question is no, reducing the resolution will not increase your image quality. The sensor always takes full-resolution image. Reducing resolution is a post-processing function and is no different than reducing resolution on the computer. Note that there are a few cameras with special low-resolution modes that are supposed to improve either the image or performance in certain ways. But when you have these modes you know it because they’re selling features of the camera.
There is now a significant amount of information available publically demonstrating that image quality depends on sensor size and sensor efficiency only. The number of pixels doesn’t matter. When printed at the same print size, images from the same sized sensor exhibit the same amount of noise regardless of resolution.

Thorin78 said:
@satishp did a search on dpreview.com
https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/2995010
The 2nd reply sums it up pretty well.
The answer to your question is no, reducing the resolution will not increase your image quality. The sensor always takes full-resolution image. Reducing resolution is a post-processing function and is no different than reducing resolution on the computer. Note that there are a few cameras with special low-resolution modes that are supposed to improve either the image or performance in certain ways. But when you have these modes you know it because they’re selling features of the camera.
There is now a significant amount of information available publically demonstrating that image quality depends on sensor size and sensor efficiency only. The number of pixels doesn’t matter. When printed at the same print size, images from the same sized sensor exhibit the same amount of noise regardless of resolution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for clearing this! So it may have been placebo that the images shot at 12MP seemed to be less noisy to me. Lol!
I use Open Camera which seems to produce brighter images compared to the stock camera. I'm sure these 3rd party apps aren't magically making the sensor capture more light compared to the stock app. I've noticed that these apps automatically crank up the display brightness to max as soon as they are launched. There may also be some real-time processing involved which makes the images appear brighter and slightly better compared to the stock app.
I am considering getting the Sony Alpha QX1 (with inter-changeable lenses) or the older QX100 which would make the Mix perfect! These lens style cameras attach to the phone and transfer images directly to the phone via NFC pairing. Just wondering whether the mix is too wide for the bracket on the lenses. The QX1 has the same APS-C sensor utilized on some of Sony's Alpha range and the QX100 has the 1" BSI sensor used on the RX100II. Only downside is that none of them can do 4K video.
Thanks again! Cheers!

satishp said:
I am considering getting the Sony Alpha QX1 (with inter-changeable lenses) or the older QX100 which would make the Mix perfect! These lens style cameras attach to the phone and transfer images directly to the phone via NFC pairing. Just wondering whether the mix is too wide for the bracket on the lenses. The QX1 has the same APS-C sensor utilized on some of Sony's Alpha range and the QX100 has the 1" BSI sensor used on the RX100II. Only downside is that none of them can do 4K video.
Thanks again! Cheers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will need this - https://www.amazon.com/SPA-TA1-Tabl...UTF8&qid=1483946210&sr=8-2&keywords=qx+tablet
The smallest one should work perfectly with the phone. I had the QX-100 and it didn't fit the note 4 out of the box.

emann56 said:
You will need this - https://www.amazon.com/SPA-TA1-Tabl...UTF8&qid=1483946210&sr=8-2&keywords=qx+tablet
The smallest one should work perfectly with the phone. I had the QX-100 and it didn't fit the note 4 out of the box.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seems to be quite expensive just for an attachment. If it didn't fit the Note 4, it most definitely won't fit the Mix. So I guess that attachment is a must and when you add the price of the QX1's body + Lens + the attachment, it doesn't seem to be worth it. Ofcourse, the images would blow away even the best of mobile cameras.
Only if it was priced right!

I have the QX-30, the tablet mount is a must unless you plan on not attaching it to the phone. It makes the overall portability not so great, you're probably better off just getting a full blown dedicated camera but the QX-1 might be good, just make sure to buy one of the lenses otherwise you can't do anything, the SELP1650 might be decent I think.
Also if you're thinking of getting the swiveling rotation mount, don't bother, it's not compatible with the tablet mount.

For those who haven't tried RAW capture yet, stock camera works perfectly fine after activating the camera2 api. Just thought I should mention that since it's not such an uncommon issue.

Camera
benziii said:
For those who haven't tried RAW capture yet, stock camera works perfectly fine after activating the camera2 api. Just thought I should mention that since it's not such an uncommon issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you do that. please give us instructions on how to.

jaime4272 said:
How do you do that. please give us instructions on how to.
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Click to collapse
Add the line "persist.camera.HAL3.enabled=1" at the end of your build.prop, then reboot. It goes without saying you either need a build.prop editor or like me, just use the text editor that comes with Root explorer for example. Next get a camera app that supports RAW, like Open camera or Manual camera.
[Edit] Remember to mount as read/write when you are in system folder, or your changes won't stick. Our build.prop has two empty lines at the bottom, so if you have added something at an earlier time, make sure you have one empty line at the end.

benziii said:
For those who haven't tried RAW capture yet, stock camera works perfectly fine after activating the camera2 api. Just thought I should mention that since it's not such an uncommon issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only for my understanding
Does it only activate RAW mode or does it increase the picture quality for ordinary mode too?

vergilbt said:
Only for my understanding
Does it only activate RAW mode or does it increase the picture quality for ordinary mode too?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is more to it than just RAW. Read up on camera2 features and what an api is. But to answer your question, no, it does not increase quality.

Apps that support raw
benziii said:
There is more to it than just RAW. Read up on camera2 features and what an api is. But to answer your question, no, it does not increase quality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I downloaded camera FV-5 which support raw the option said that this phone does not support RAW, any idea?

jaime4272 said:
I downloaded camera FV-5 which support raw the option said that this phone does not support RAW, any idea?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even though I know FV-5 has been praised for years, I've never bought it. I'm not a big snapper so I've often been content with manual modes on the stock cameras. But since I have recently gotten RAW capture going, I've contemplated loosely on paying for either Manual camera or Camera FV-5. All I've tried on the Mix so far, is Manual camera's compatibility app (which checks out), and taken some RAW pics with Open camera.
I'm going to check out some more apps soon.
Considering it is required for RAW capture, I reckon you have a paid version? I quickly tried the free one, and see only one instance of compatibility (under general photo settings). But there is nothing there. Do you get the message when you change picture output?

There is an option on the paid version but it's grayed out because of incompatibility, but there is

you don't improve the noise performance by taking a smaller resolution, you do that by downsizing from a large image.
I think the best method is to use a good manual setting, shoot in raw and then edit in post processing.
however I think the images aren't that reliable

I cannot Open the dng file
---------- Post added at 05:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:18 AM ----------
Snapseed and Lightroom cannot parse the dng File ....Amy Help?

gorillalaci said:
I cannot Open the dng file
---------- Post added at 05:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:18 AM ----------
Snapseed and Lightroom cannot parse the dng File ....Amy Help?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On my desktop I use UFRaw and Gimp / Photoshop. But I haven't gotten any mobile apps to open my RAW images either. Weird.

I know this is a few months old, but I think this app needs to be better known:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=troop.com.freedcam
Yes, it works with DNGs and can handle our Mix Camera sensor. And yes, it's 100% FREE.
Also, it comes from a XDA dev, so even more kudos for him!!

codymamak said:
I know this is a few months old, but I think this app needs to be better known:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=troop.com.freedcam
Yes, it works with DNGs and can handle our Mix Camera sensor. And yes, it's 100% FREE.
Also, it comes from a XDA dev, so even more kudos for him!!
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Installed it, but crashing when try to tap to focus.. Autofocus doesnt work it self

I have it working, but I'm using the LOS 14.1 build 20.5.17 from here on XDA, not MIUI. Sorry but I didn't test stock ROM before flashing.
Also, you can contact the dev at this thread here at XDA: https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/camera-freedcam-4-0-3-t3115548
Maybe he can help out.

Question about IMX 398 and further optimizations/OIS

Hello all,
Now that there are so many great devs supporting our device there is a question that i would like to ask.
Is there any possibility to optimize and add OIS through custom roms in the near future?
If i am not wrong the quality on OP3,GP is better(even with google camera) due to their software during the img processing. It would be splendid to have the camera improved even by a small margin.
I also want to clarify that i am not circle jerking about the camera, i am humbly asking if such software upgrade would be possible.
Thanks!

Ois is hardware dependant. Yes, op3 has same sensor, but with ois implemented. You cant have it by some software tweaks

But there is EIS, so electronik stabilization. Maybe this helps?

Thanks for the responses. I havent really make any research regarding mobile phone sensors so i could only guess.
If OIS is out of question due to being hardware dependent, then what about the image processing?
As far as i have seen its mostly software dependent so do you think that we could get better quality ?(i.e better night shots)

manuelbvb said:
But there is EIS, so electronik stabilization. Maybe this helps?
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Cant see EIS on the stock came( i meant an enabler)

Yes it is not activ, bit maybe the devs could integrate it. It should be possible because no extra Hardware is needed.

You need sources and blobs and stuff. Its not that simple, wouldnt bet on it happening. Only realistic way is if leeco themselfes push update with improved quality

Incogn said:
You need sources and blobs and stuff. Its not that simple, wouldnt bet on it happening. Only realistic way is if leeco themselfes push update with improved quality
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That sounds good, but i usw lineage OS and therefore the leeco updates are useless?

Google Camera HDR+ function can be activated on Mate 9's?

Recently seen that for the latest 8** series Snapdragon SOC driven devices the HDR+ function on Google Camera was made functional on most of devices. The results in comparison to their original camera seems day and night from all points of view especially in low-light situations. As we now this seems to be Achilles heel for the Mate 9 and maybe the biggest reason that most of us lookup for other devices.
As I am no expert, I wonder if this function can be made functional on Kirin chipsets!? I want to take this opportunity to pull the alarm for the developers' and for the skillful members of this forum.
If successful most likely most of us won't look that soon for the planned new launches like: Note 8, V30, maybe even the next Mate.

You can do it yourself you know. Just shoot several raw images and combine them into one in post. Not as quick as HDR+ but it works!

Swan Princess said:
You can do it yourself you know. Just shoot several raw images and combine them into one in post. Not as quick as HDR+ but it works!
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That thing already know, but regardless of how hard you try (any app or setup) you cannot achieve results that good. Plus google camera's exposure is much better. Please check this thing yourself if you don't believe me.

does google camera even work on mate 9?

galaxy16 said:
does google camera even work on mate 9?
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Yes. But not the most recent ones. The ones for 7.0 work.

True HDR uses three different images that you then assemble in a photo editing suite of your choice. The 'HDR' function in any phone is not a true HDR and just a computer algorithm that blends three exposures. Since the Mate 9 shoots raw, most will just do it the 'real' way Would be neat to see this function in the Mate 9 for us lazy folks(yes I am lazy and yes I am a professional photographer)

Ok, so no interest in this direction, nobody keen on improving the camera.

Not what I was saying at all. If we can improve the camera and keep all the functions built into it by Huawei, I would be first in line to sign up. Hell, I bought this phone specifically because of the camera. It is a wonderful performer that I have not even begun to stretch to the limits yet, but I have only had the phone for 3 days or so. I look forward to an improved camera, but only without the loss of functionality

Here we go: Unofficial Google Camera port updated with RAW support and HDR+ customization

kermex said:
Here we go: Unofficial Google Camera port updated with RAW support and HDR+ customization
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Man, won't even open. That's ok, I figured it wouldn't. Would cool if we could merge some code with our stock camera app. I like it better than Google's personally

benjmiester said:
Man, won't even open. That's ok, I figured it wouldn't. Would cool if we could merge some code with our stock camera app. I like it better than Google's personally
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It working fine on my Mate 9.

kermex said:
It working fine on my Mate 9.
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Really? Interesting. Did you do anything specific or just install and go? I'm in FromFuture B198, rooted obviously. Maybe it's not happy with that. I'll try restarting at least.

benjmiester said:
Really? Interesting. Did you do anything specific or just install and go? I'm in FromFuture B198, rooted obviously. Maybe it's not happy with that. I'll try restarting at least.
Click to expand...
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No, I didn't do anything special. But pay attention: there are two different APKs. One of them is for Qualcomm CPUs. Download the one in the first link. This one.

Hey guys, I've tried the other one I think and crashed the camera driver had to reboot! Lemmie try this one! Thanks kermex
Edit: Nope! I open once, then can't open again :/ Oh well... Another curious thing is that it only detects the 12MB RGB Sensor... These sensores have so much potential, hope Huawei will get into the Camera Software deeper...

So now it works, change hw level to legacy.

Comparing histograms using 2 pictures, one is stock HDR and the other is using the Google Camera HDR+, I can conclude that HDR+ isn't working, can't see any improvements regarding dynamic range. What do you guys think?

mad.nexus said:
So now it works, change hw level to legacy.
Click to expand...
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The only thing I changed was the option to save as RAW. Nothing else.

will test it with several set-ups to see if any improvement comes from the HDR+ function.

mad.nexus said:
Comparing histograms using 2 pictures, one is stock HDR and the other is using the Google Camera HDR+, I can conclude that HDR+ isn't working, can't see any improvements regarding dynamic range. What do you guys think?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if there isnt a "nike" mark above the HDR+ icon, the function is not working
i tried using different settings, but not work for me, stay an "A" above HDR+

Looserke said:
if there isnt a "nike" mark above the HDR+ icon, the function is not working
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Click to collapse
Soooo... How did you activate it then?