The firmware wasn’t ready at the time of launch and that’s why photos weren’t as good as the DxOMark score suggested.
What you need to know
- DxOMark score was based on advanced firmware that was not included in the phone at launch.
- The 9.5.7 update should bring the camera more in line with the original DxOMark score.
- OnePlus is taking user feedback and has a new camera testing lab working on improving the camera software even further.
The OnePlus 7 Pro is one of our favorite phones of the year, and for good reason. It has a fantastic display, high-end specs, great software, and a triple camera setup on the back.
Let’s talk about that triple camera setup, though. While the whole phone screams “flagship killer”, the one area it came up short at launch was the camera performance, despite a very positive DxOMark score. At the moment, the OnePlus 7 Pro is ranked 4th on DxOMark’s site for smartphone cameras.
So, what’s up with the discrepancy between the high score and disappointing results in real life? It turns out, after a recent trip to OnePlus headquarters, Android Authority learned that DxOMark was using a unit with a newer version of software than what the retail units were released with.
During the behind the scenes tour with the camera team, it was revealed that the software on the OnePlus 7 Pro that DxOMark used for its evaluation is actually the basis for the 9.5.7 firmware update which greatly improved the photo performance.
Why didn’t the phone launch with this software to begin with? It turns out the camera testing lab didn’t become operational until a couple of months ago, and it simply didn’t have enough time to get the firmware finished by the retail launch date.
The rest of Android Authority’s tour showed off a very promising photo testing lab using robot arms, mannequin heads, and an array of lighting to test a variety of shooting situations with pinpoint accuracy in a short amount of time. Hopefully, this will all add up to more updates in the future with even further leaps in photo quality for the OnePlus 7 Pro.
In a way, you could look at this as false advertising, and it’s also another reason why you shouldn’t base your buying decisions on a DxOMark score alone. You should always let your own eyes be the judge when it comes to camera quality.
Picture quality is often subjective, and even OnePlus admitted this, saying that is why photos have become more saturated and punchy instead of neutral. It’s all about giving the majority of users what they want.
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