Nokia 7.2 is one of the latest Nokia Android smartphones and perhaps with one of the best cameras yet. The phone has just been launched in India and we had posted our hands-on video coverage of Nokia 7.2.
Now time for our detailed Nokia 7.2 rear and front cameras review. In this article, we will review the Nokia 7.2 cameras and will also compare the rear and front cameras against the Nokia 8.1 cameras to assess how it fares in terms of imaging and video recording quality.
HMD has not only plonked a relatively large sensor of 1/2” on Nokia 7.2 but has also used pixel-binning to deliver smaller final images condensed from the 48MP sensor. For your information here are the Nokia 8.1 rear and front camera specs,
- Rear Triple camera with a large 1/2” sensor with 48MP resolution.
- Pixel-binning is combined with image fusion and stacking
- HDR shots combine up to 6 photos
- Dedicated Night mode can combine up to 20 images on a tripod (10 if handheld)
- The second camera is an 8MP ultra-wide-angle shooter (118°)
- The third camera is a 5MP depth sensor enables some ZEISS-branded effects, namely three bokeh styles – Modern, Swirl and Smooth
- Selfie Camera: The 20MP selfie camera can also utilize 4-in-1 pixel binning to enhance image quality.
Nokia 7.2 vs Nokia 8.1 Daylight Imaging comparison:
In crop comparison set below, Nokia 7.2 100% image crop is on the top followed by Nokia 8.1 100% image crop. Click here for the full-size images if you want to compare yourself. These images are without auto-scene detection to assess the camera capabilities in the Photo mode.
One can clearly notice Nokia 7.2 image employs more sharpening than the Nokia 8.1 image, though both cameras capture accurate colors. Nokia 7.2 image seems to capture more details, though some of the fine details are sacrificed because of the amount of sharpening it uses.
In crop comparison set below Nokia 7.2, 100% crop is on the top followed by Nokia 8.1 crop. Click here for the full-size images if you want to compare yourself. The sharpening again is evident in the Nokia 7.2 sample. Color capturing however is truer in Nokia 7.2 sample as compared to the Nokia 8.1 sample that gets the flower color wrong.
Nokia 7.2 vs Nokia 8.1 Bokeh imaging comparison:
Nokia 7.2 bokeh sample is on the left in the Bokeh comparison set below. Again here Nokia 7.2 sample has a better White Balance while Nokia 8.1 sample has a bit yellow tinge. Both cameras capture very good Bokeh images.
Nokia 7.2 vs Nokia 8.1 color capturing comparison:
Nokia 7.2 sample is on the top followed by Nokia 8.1 sample. Here we would like to highlight the fact that Nokia 7.2 was able to capture and re-create the true colors of the flower while Nokia 8.1 camera erred.
Nokia 7.2 vs Nokia 8.1 HDR comparison:
Nokia 7.2 camera sample is the first followed by the Nokia 8.1 camera sample. One can clearly notice the better HDR capabilities of the Nokia 7.2 camera. The overall exposure is better in the Nokia 7.2 sample, clouds look much better, though it again uses more sharpening.
Nokia 7.2 vs Nokia 8.1 low-light without Flash:
In comparison sets below Nokia 8.1 image is on the right. Click here for the full-size images if you want to compare yourself. These images were captured in very low-light conditions. Here one can notice that Nokia 7.2 camera not only captures more light but also gets the white balance correct.
Nokia 7.2 low-light vs Night mode:
This image was captured by Nokia 7.2 in almost dark conditions in normal photo mode with scene-detection on.
Night Mode: This is how the same scene looks like when captured in Night Mode
Nokia 7.2 normal vs wide-angle mode:
This image was captured by Nokia 7.2 in the normal photo mode with scene-detection on.
The same scene looks like this when captured in the wide-angle mode. One can easily notice how the scene interpretation varies in the wide-angle mode as compared to the normal photo mode.
Nokia 7.2 vs Nokia 8.1 video recording & stabilization test:
For both daylight and low-light comparisons, video samples from Nokia 8.1 and Nokia 7.2 cameras have been used.
If you check the daylight video comparison, both cameras perform well in terms of detail capture, contrast, and exposure. Even without OIS, Nokia 7.2 camera is as good as Nokia 8.1 camera in terms of stabilization. Though white balance-wise Nokia 7.2 still keeps it more neutral as compared to Nokia 8.1 that makes it a bit pale.
In terms of low-light video comparison, Nokia 7.2 seems to capture more light and even the stabilization seems better on Nokia 7.2, which is surprising as Nokia 8.1 has both OIS and EIS. HMD has not mentioned OIS on Nokia 7.2. White Balance again seems truer on Nokia 7.2.
Nokia 7.2 Wide-angle video & Ozo Audio recording sample:
What Nokia 7.2 rings extra in video recording is the wide-angle mode that allows one to capture 118% wider video. Check a sample of wide-angle video recording with Ozo Audio recording.
Nokia 7.2 vs 8.1 Selfie camera (Photo mode):
Nokia 7.2 selfie camera sample is followed by the Nokia 8.1 selfie camera sample. Both have been captured in the Photo mode. Here one can again notice more sharpening used by Nokia 7.2 camera in image processing. Though in terms of white balance it is better than Nokia 8.1 camera.
Nokia 7.2 vs 8.1 Selfie camera (Bokeh/Portrait mode):
Nokia 7.2 selfie camera sample is followed by the Nokia 8.1 selfie camera sample. Both have been captured in the Bokeh/Portrait mode.
Click here for the full-size images if you want to check yourself.
Comparison Conclusion & Final camera review:
Nokia 7.2 rear camera with its bigger sensor and pixel-binning impressed us with capturing detailed images that also capture accurate colors in all cases. While all Nokia smartphones are known for capturing natural colors in some cases Nokia 8.1 camera got the color wrong but Nokia 7.2 camera shined by capturing true colors. Also, Nokia 7.2 images keep exposure and White Balance correct and better than Nokia 8.1 Camera.
But what we really didn’t like is the amount of sharpening the Nokia 7.2 camera uses. In fact, with so much resolved details offered by the big sensor, there is no need to employ such a high amount of sharpening and kill fine details. This is so un-Nokia way of handling image processing.
Nokia 7.2 camera captures more light in low-light and again keeps White Balance better. Night Mode certainly brings difference over normal low-light capture but it again has lots of areas for improvements. It can be tweaked for even more light or/and better details capture.
The selfie camera on Nokia 7.2 works very well and in most of the case captures very good selfies, though it again sharpens the faces. But it is as if you won’t need to manually beautify your selfies before sharing so we didn’t mind it.
If we have to choose we will certainly love to go for Nokia 7.2 cameras over Nokia 8.1 cameras because it captures more details, keeps color truer and in more cases, keeps White Balance better and finally is better in low-light capture. Though there is a burning need to address the over-sharpening issue as this camera certainly doesn’t need it.
