Danielle McCarthy
Technology

This is the best phone camera in the world

Sony's latest smartphone has the best camera, with Samsung in second place and the top iPhone in eighth, according to new tests.

The tests by DxOMark are both highly regarded and exhaustive, giving users an independent assessment of cameras.

Sony has positioned itself as the top camera sensor maker in the world and it also has an extensive range of cameras, so it's no surprise its phones can take great photos and video.

The Z5 was released in New Zealand last week and costs $1200, which puts it in the high-end range alongside flagship phones from other manufacturers. Interestingly, Sony has also put that same camera into the Z5 Compact, which is $200 cheaper.

DxOMark said the Z5 has the fastest autofocus, and praised its performance in low light which earned it a score of 87.

The most recent DxOMark test was done for the latest iPhones, which were described as "solid and compelling". The test noted that despite a new sensor the 6S range wasn't significantly better than the previous models.

The 6S ranked at No. 10 with a score of 82, which is the same score as last year's models.

DxOMark also criticised Apple: "Apple's technology is unable to keep noise at competitive levels." Noise is the presence of colour speckles where there should be none.

Apple is likely to be disappointed at the test as it heavily promotes its phones' photographic capabilities.

Samsung took the No. 2 spot, with its Galaxy S6 Edge scoring 86. The Note 4, which is about a year old, did well too, scoring 83. The Note 5 has not been tested yet.

The No. 3 place was taken by the recently released Google Nexus 6P which is made by Huawei.

It was praised for having the best performance in low light. Also, it has a 12MP camera which shows it's not only the number of megapixels that matter.

The top 10:

1. Sony Xperia Z5 (87)

2. Samsung S6 Edge (86)

3. Google Nexus 6P (84)

4. LG G4 (83)

5. Samsung Note 4 (83)

6. Moto X Style (83)

7. Sony Xperia Z3+ (82)

8. iPhone 6 Plus (82)

9. iPhone 6 (82)

10. iPhone 6S (82)

Are you satisfied with your phone camera?

First appeared on Stuff.co.nz.

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Technology, camera, phone, best, compare