Smartphone Camera Test: Huawei P30 Pro, Pixel 3XL, And Galaxy S10 Plus

Smartphones are leaning toward the camera side as producers are now competing to add to their phones feature that can rival real cameras. Currently, three phones are competing for the leading spot, which are the Google Pixel 3XL, the Huawei P30 Pro, and the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus.

General Subject. Champion: Google Pixel 3XL

In this test, the Google Pixel 3XL managed to produce detailed photos with a gradient sky. The S10 Plus’s picture has more light but the colors from the trees altered that of the bottom. What the P30 Pro made ran into a similar problem, the sky’s hue was blown out.

Macro. Champion: Huawei P30 Pro

This test will expose the ability of each smartphone in delivering accurate colors. Huawei P30 Pro is the winner as it managed to produce a creamy aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image and coupled with great details. Samsung is the runner-up because it gets the job done a little bit too much. The background does not look as realistic as that of the P30 Pro either. The Pixel 3XL comes last since it produced a darker image than those of the two other phones.

Multi-Colored Subject. Champion: Huawei P30 Pro

This test focuses on how each phone performs when the subject has a wide range of colors and detailed background. The Galaxy S10 Plus’s over-sharpening disadvantage shows again. The Pixel gains the second place this time with a beautiful warm colored picture. The winner is P30 Pro once again with the edge in the more vibrant dynamic range.

Distant Subject. Champion: Google Pixel 3XL

This test involves taking a picture of a well-lit object from afar. The Pixel 3XL wins this round with a picture richer in colors and sports a better dynamic range. S10 Plus’s photo was a little too bright and that the P30 Pro needs to be sharper to gain the top place.

Close-Up Subject. Champion: Samsung Galaxy S10+

Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus is the champion with no color dominates others. The noise in the background is visible, but this does not affect the overall appearance of the photo. The Pixel 3XL would be a likely candidate for the top spot if it did not overdo the white balance. The P30 Pro produced a better bokeh, but the photo does not have enough softness.

2x Zoom. Champion: Google Pixel 3XL

What we test this time is to see how the three phones perform when we zoom in 2x. Samsung has the edge here because of its 2x telephoto lens, but in reality, the pink color seems to pop up too much. The P30 Pro looks realistic, but some details are highlighted too much.

Macro Again. Winner: Huawei P30 Pro

The Pixel finish last as the colors it represented were inaccurate. Samsung’s phone is the runner-up as it makes the white color look brighter than it is. P30 Pro’s photo looks realistic enough plus it also shows details of the background, which makes it the winner of this round.

Dark Mode. Winner: Huawei P30 Pro

In a darker environment, the S10 Plus still lets some noise shows up. Pixel produced a warm-looking photo, but the champion is the P30 Pro. Its picture is sharp, and the colors were accurate. The details in the background were also preserved.

Landscape. Champion: Huawei P30 Pro

The Pixel 3XL features the most accurate details, but the P30 Pro produces a more aesthetic photo. So the decision of which one is the champion here depends on personal preference.

5x Zoom. Champion: Huawei P30 Pro

The Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus for some reasons leave a yellow cast all over the picture, so it finishes last here. The Pixel’s photo looks better, but the P30 Pro wins by a large margin with enough details and excellent color temperature.

Self-Focused Macro. Champion: Samsung Galaxy S10+

When the phones are left to focus on their own, the Pixel 3XL missed out on a lot of details. The P30 Pro shows vibrant colors, but it lacks sharpness. Samsung fixed the disadvantage of the phone from Huawei plus just enough saturation.

Low Light. Champion: Huawei P30 Pro

In another low light test, Huawei features the best color accuracy and detail preservation. If Samsung did not let a red tint shows on the photo, you would have a hard time deciding which one deserves to be the champion, the Galaxy S10 Plus or the P30 Pro. Pixel 3XL seems to produce a decent picture until you realize that the subject is not that yellow.

Contrasting Subjects. Champion: Huawei P30 Pro

Huawei P30 Pro is the king when it comes to low light, and it shows its dominant position once again. The grass looks sharp enough, the dynamic range is good, and the orange tint is featured in the photo. Samsung did show details, but the noise and grains are visible.

Human. Champion: Samsung Galaxy S10+

When testing with two human subjects, the Pixel 3XL did not blur some spots that should not be too detailed, plus its narrow FOV, costing it’s the winner spot. The Galaxy S10 Plus has both the bokeh and the color looking beautiful, making it the champion in this respect. The P30 Pro needs to produce sharper details if it wants to beat the candidate from Samsung.

Low-Light. Winner: Huawei P30 Pro

At first glance, the three photos look similar in terms of light and details, but if you look closer into what the Pixel 3XL captured, you will notice the details started to fall apart. Huawei gains the top spot here as the P30 Pro represent enough details and good dynamic range.

All of the above smartphones have unparalleled camera performance that can be found on no other phone. So the overall winner depends more on what you cherish on a camera phone as each of the three has its advantages.

The Huawei P30 Pro with excellent night mode and competent editing app is the winner for most users. If you usually take pictures of two or more people, the Pixel P30 Pro is a sure winner. The Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus seems to give you the middle ground at almost anything.