We put the top mid-range Android camera phones into a camera battle. Which between Sony Xperia M5 with 4K video and the 21MP sensor, Sony Xperia C5 Ultra, Samsung Galaxy A8, and Asus Zenfone Selfie will stand out as the best mid-range camera for the year 2015-2016?
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We used automatic mode in all phones when shooting in daylight, the night with flash, low light, and full HD 1080p video recording. The selfie shots from the front-camera have smoothening or beautification turned-on but on an average level.
| Camera Specs (in-depth) | Sony Xperia M5 | Sony Xperia C5 Ultra | Asus Zenfone Selfie | Samsung Galaxy A8 |
| Main Sensor | 21MP f/2.2 | 13MP f/2.0 | 13MP f/2.0 | 16MP f/1.9 |
| Video | up to 4K UHD video @30fps | up to 1080p FHD @30fps | up to 1080p FHD @30fps | up to 1080p FHD @30fps |
| Front facing | 13MP f/2.0 | 13MP f/2.2 | 13MP f/2.2 | 8MP f/1.9 |
| Flash | LED flash | Both cameras | Both cameras | LED flash |
| Extra features or sensors | Phase detection | N/A | laser focus | N/A |
Now looking side-by-side, M5 has the finest detail preservation and somewhat most pleasing white balance. Xperia C5 is on par with M5 in color reproduction. Zenfone Selfie is doing good in sharpness. The Galaxy A8 managed to produce bright shots but loses some saturation.
HDR (high dynamic range) control on other phones was automatically detected when shooting under bright sunlight with blinding background except for the Galaxy A8.
In night shooting, both Xperia M5 and C5 showed bright low light images. There is, however, some bluish tint appearing on the sides of the shots of two Xperia in extremely low light scenarios. Zenfone has very pleasing night shots too though details get a little blurry. The Galaxy A8 has the worst automatic mode, but images remain sharp.
The video comparison showed that the Xperia M5 has one of the fastest focusing speed. Both colors on Xperia C5 Ultra and Asus Zenfone Selfie appear pleasing in the eyes. There is a bit of warmer white balance on Selfie. The Galaxy A8 has sharp video quality but the color is bland and lacks saturation.
Watch the video below.
All selfie snappers are equipped with 13MP front-camera sensors except for the Galaxy A8 with 5MP. Looking at the side-by-side selfie shots, the Xperia C5 has clear and sharp shot similar to Zenfone Selfie. The color on Selfie is warmer and a little bit vivid than the rest. The blandest shot was from Galaxy A8, the tone became pale. Coming close with A8 is the Xperia M5.
The battle produced a close fight between Sony Xperia M5, Xperia C5 Ultra, Asus Zenfone Selfie, and the Samsung Galaxy A8. Overall, we think the Xperia M5 is the most capable shooter followed by Xperia C5 Ultra (night video was exposed) and Asus Zenfone Selfie with decent night shooting too. We put the Galaxy A8 on the last position due to its mediocre automatic mode performance.
For selfie shooting, the Xperia C5 Ultra and Asus Zenfone Selfie have both the best image quality and color reproduction.
Basing from this battle, which do you think is the best shooter? Let’s know in the comments.
More reviews and comparisons!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Vcb3ste5c]
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MC says:
Hi! Pleeeease help me decide 🙁 Torn between two lovers.. Charot! Haha. Sony C5 or Asus Zenfone Selfie? Front cam wise and price aside. Haha. Looking forward to your reply! Maraming salamat! ?
Jade Jardinico says:
I think price difference is between 2k-5k dpending on where you will be getting the C5.
I think for battery, design, display – C5. The big advantage of Zenfone Selfie is the price range and its reliable camera, tho the camera of C5 is slightly better basing in our comparisons. 😉
MC says:
Thankyouu! ? C5 na talaga. Haha. Do you still have/ are you using the phone right now? If yes what were the issues that u’ve faced, if there’s any. Sorry madaming tanong. Haha. You’re the only one with this review eh. Hahaha. ?
Jade Jardinico says:
using mi5 at the moment. used c5 ultra for 3 mos or so. issues, no more big problems after the software update. There are time that viewing the images shot from C5 on its screen is not that appealing while it look better on big screens if transferred or viewed 😉
I liked the C5 very much when it was launched and I got the hands-on.
MC says:
Thankyou again! ? You’ve been very helpful. More power!?
Kamlesh Salunke says:
overall performance of m5 is best