Blurred photos from shaky hands are a thing of the past.
With the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, some of their features are making a huge difference in terms of accessibility. Namely the fact that they’re using both optical image stabilization (OIS) and electronic image stabilization (EIS) while taking photos or videos. For people like me who live with benign tremors in their hands, this makes a huge impact.
We’re going to break down why.
OIS and EIS mean no more shaky videos
Try imagining this: You go to take a selfie, but your hands are shaking so badly that every shot comes out hopelessly blurred. How about trying to take video of your niece’s dance recital, except that the shaking makes it nearly painful to try and watch. For plenty of people all over the world, including me, that’s just life.
OIS and EIS working together makes a huge difference.
Or it was anyway until Google delivered OIS and EIS for all the photos and videos you want to take with that glorious new camera. Without getting too technical, the way it works out is this: OIS allows a lens to compensate for small movements, while EIS compensates by using the Gyrometer inside your phone to note motion. Working together, they make a huge difference.
Tremors in your hands are aggravating, but depending on the degree, it doesn’t make taking photos impossible. What it does do is make it much harder than it needs to be, and in a world where so much of our lives play out online in photos, you want to be able to grab a snapshot without having to set up a tripod to pull that off.
Having OIS and EIS, rather than one or the other, means that snagging a photo or video is no longer an intensive project at all. More to the point, folks suffering from Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, or in my case benign tremors, no longer have to worry about taking 25 photos just to get one that turns out.
How well does it work?
I get the chance regularly to check out the best new phones when they hit the market, and prior to getting my Pixel 2, I was using a Samsung Galaxy Note 8. While the camera there was fantastic, I’ve got well over 100 shots that were blurred when I was standing still because of how bad my hands were shaking. Any attempt to take a photo required two hands, and it wasn’t because of the large Infinity display.
I don’t need to worry if I’m having a good or bad day because the camera on the Pixel 2 does its job fantastically.
In order to get a clear picture, I’d need to stand still, concentrate, and use both hands to try and stabilize the phone. Even then, I wound up with more photos ruined by blur than I got clear shots. Then I picked up my Pixel 2. While the smaller form factor does make it sit better in my hand, I’ve only got a handful of blurred photos, and most of them are of my dog who is incapable of sitting still.
I don’t need to worry if I’m having a good day where my tremors are nearly invisible or a bad one when I can barely write, because in either case, the camera on the Pixel 2 does its job fantastically. I can easily snap a photo and be done with it, as opposed to the days of taking a photo over and over when it was ruined due to blur.
Are you a fan?
It’s clear that Google put a lot of thought into the camera of their Pixel 2, and it translates magnificently into user experience. Whether you’ve never had issues with hands that shake, or you live with it every day, you can rest assured that the photos you take will be bold, brilliant, and most importantly, in focus. Have you been using the camera? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YK63cXyJ2Q?modestbranding=0&html5=1&rel=0&autoplay=0&wmode=opaque&loop=0&controls=1&autohide=0&showinfo=0&theme=dark&color=red&enablejsapi=1]
- Pixel 2 FAQ: Everything you need to know!
- Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL review: The new standard
- Google Pixel 2 specs
- Google Pixel 2 vs. Pixel 2 XL: What’s the difference?
- Join our Pixel 2 forums
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