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FAKE dual camera setup on Xiaomi Mi A1? [Not Really]

Greetings my dear Mi A1 brethren! Today I am the bearer of bad news for you guys. From unreleased source codes to headphone hissing. This problem is the final nail in Xiaomi's coffin for me. I will never ever buy another Xiaomi device again.
I have reason to believe that the "dual" camera setup on the Xiaomi is FAKE! Let me show you. Follow these steps:
1) Open up the camera app.
2) Cover ONE of the two camera lenses at the back with your finger.
2) Zoom in to 2x mode (or greater).
Did you notice something? THE CAMERA LENSES DO NOT SWITCH! The main point of the Mi A1's dual camera setup is that one lens is wide angle and the other is telephoto (as mentioned on their website). When you zoom in, the app should automatically switch cameras.
Another test is that the dual camera setup should provide a background blur (bokeh effect) on objects that are up close to the camera. Cover a lens with one of your fingers and you'll see that either the camera gets blocked by the finger or the blur effect still remains (regardless of the fact that TWO cameras are needed for a proper bokeh effect)!
Both these tests prove that one of the Xiaomi Mi A1 cameras is a dummy. Has Xiaomi lied to us again? Why would Google let them do this?
Or is it that I don't understand how dual cameras work? Someone please enlighten me. I feel I've wasted 250$ of my hard earned cash on a scam
EDIT: Nevermind! I just found out it does work. But only in manual mode or portrait mode. Strange that the app does not switch to telephoto mode automatically. Perhaps in a future update.

Have you tried manual mode

MayanKKaushik said:
Have you tried manual mode
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Yes, I did. I've edited the OP. I feel like a goof for not trying that first

No its real!
Try that in outdoor lighting conditions.
In natural lighting cover the zoom lens, and then hit the 2x zoom.
You will notice that the zoom lens is functional in good lighting conditions, not in bad light conditions.
Same with the portrait mode, thats why it is recommended to use 2x optical zoom and portrait mode in outdoor lighting conditions.

The camera decides if it should use digital zoom or telephoto lens depending on light conditions. Telephoto zoom only works with a lot of light(like portrait). If there is not enough light, digital zoom from wide angle lens is better. This even happens on iphone 7plus/8plus camera set up(if there is not enough light they just use digital zoom). However, I think that maybe it switches to wide angle digital zoom sometimes in good light conditions.

I can understand that you were concerned but please test things thoroughly before posting (or maybe Google it out). Actually the telephoto camera have a narrower aperture then the main camera. So it captures less light then the primary camera. When who cover the telephoto camera to see if it is working or not, then hit x2, it detects that there is low light (since you are covering the lens) & hence uses the primary camera. Okay, so this is how you should have tested. First go to a very will lit environment, then select 2x zoom, and then try covering the telephone camera. You will get the proper results. Hope this helps.

It's the same in Oneplus 5, for example!
Telephoto works properly only in good light situation

RayDnafsa said:
Yes, I did. I've edited the OP. I feel like a goof for not trying that first
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should already have done that before starting a thread like this.
2017 dumbass award goes to you. smart alec.

erimin5 said:
should already have done that before starting a thread like this.
2017 dumbass award goes to you. smart alec.
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If you want to know before clicking a photo which lens is used for 2x zoom just look at the animation when you use the zoom button. If theirs an animation of zooming then it's digital zoom & if it is directly switching to 2x or 1x then it is actually switching between the lenses. And it won't change with a future update too as the OP hopes. Works the same way even on iPhones. It OK to have questions but you went too far calling it a scam, fake & never buying from Xiaomi again.

jazzthe#1 said:
No its real!
Try that in outdoor lighting conditions.
In natural lighting cover the zoom lens, and then hit the 2x zoom.
You will notice that the zoom lens is functional in good lighting conditions, not in bad light conditions.
Same with the portrait mode, thats why it is recommended to use 2x optical zoom and portrait mode in outdoor lighting conditions.
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But please help me, now my stock camera app there is no portrait and 2x mode , they're disappear after i've flash it to RR custom rom, but when i back to stock rom through miflash, the camera is still facing the same problems

Mix 3 MIUI Camera Portrait mode issue

Hi all i am posting this issue to know whether others are facing this or not. Switching to portrait mode zooms the image making it difficult to get portrait from normal distance. Faced it with mix 2s as well. none of the other devices have this issue including poco f1, op6t, redmi note 5 pro. on my mix 2s, when i tried gcam, it was clicking much better pictures, especially in portrait mode. seems portrit mode uses the telephoto to click the image instead of using the main camera.

This is normal, telephoto is used for portrait shots. I recommend moving away from your subject when taking photos as portraits taken with a wide angle lens will distort your subject.

hmm.. waiting for gcam mod now. portrait as of now sucks.. the implementation is too poor.. wondering how the dxomark points were achieved.

billamin said:
hmm.. waiting for gcam mod now. portrait as of now sucks.. the implementation is too poor.. wondering how the dxomark points were achieved.
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Actually you can use the mi8 version
Works great

billamin said:
hmm.. waiting for gcam mod now. portrait as of now sucks.. the implementation is too poor.. wondering how the dxomark points were achieved.
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How stupid are you? That's the standard implementation(Not meaning it's necessarily better, although longer focal lengths are preferred for portraits.), the manufacturers not using a second camera with a longer equivalent focal length are the contrarians.

NickTheSickDick said:
How stupid are you? That's the standard implementation(Not meaning it's necessarily better, although longer focal lengths are preferred for portraits.), the manufacturers not using a second camera with a longer equivalent focal length are the contrarians.
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if i have raised this issue, i have some background to it. pls keep shaming to yourself. just like you said that this implementation might not be better, we can have an option to choose which camera to use for portraits. stupidity is turning blind eye to a genuine issue when it can be easily fixed.

billamin said:
if i have raised this issue, i have some background to it. pls keep shaming to yourself. just like you said that this implementation might not be better, we can have an option to choose which camera to use for portraits. stupidity is turning blind eye to a genuine issue when it can be easily fixed.
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Actual mental impairment, right here.

rowihel2012 said:
Actually you can use the mi8 version
Works great
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thanks this helps a lot.

Best Camera for RNote 7

I've found a lot of topics but none discuss in fact wich is the best camera app for Redmi Note 7 (Global Version).
I love the camera lens, but the stock camera app not so much... Wich one you thing is the best camera app ever for Redmi Note 7 Pro?
Paid, Ported, Free,...

I'm also very interested in this.
I've never installed a different camera app to a phone before, but the default app doesn't seem very good, and if there's better to be had I want it.
I constantly hear praise for Gcam, but it sounds like there's many different ports of it and no real clear answer on which one works the best.

Bumping this question, and ignoring the fact that the OP is talking about lavender and not violet, but are there any good Camera apps for the RN7P yet?
I've got the China RN7P and i've flashed crDroid onto it, but now that i'm looking into it, i'm having trouble finding a good working cam.
All of the Gcam ports i've tried have failed to recognize the 48MP rear camera, and completely hides the "Gcam settings" option so I can't even re-balance the terrible saturation.
I've also tried crDroid's default camera and Open Camera from the play store, both of which also didn't let the rear camera go above 12MP, and the pictures they took didn't stand up to what even the 12MP Gcams took (minus ruined saturation).
So is there anyway to get Gcam with 48MP and functional settings working on a custom rom, or is there any third party camera app that can recognise the 48MP on a custom rom and get close to Gcam's quality?
and if no to both of those, any idea how long it might take for a working 48MP camera to be working on a custom rom'd RN7P?

Sanarise said:
Bumping this question, and ignoring the fact that the OP is talking about lavender and not violet, but are there any good Camera apps for the RN7P yet?
I've got the China RN7P and i've flashed crDroid onto it, but now that i'm looking into it, i'm having trouble finding a good working cam.
All of the Gcam ports i've tried have failed to recognize the 48MP rear camera, and completely hides the "Gcam settings" option so I can't even re-balance the terrible saturation.
I've also tried crDroid's default camera and Open Camera from the play store, both of which also didn't let the rear camera go above 12MP, and the pictures they took didn't stand up to what even the 12MP Gcams took (minus ruined saturation).
So is there anyway to get Gcam with 48MP and functional settings working on a custom rom, or is there any third party camera app that can recognise the 48MP on a custom rom and get close to Gcam's quality?
and if no to both of those, any idea how long it might take for a working 48MP camera to be working on a custom rom'd RN7P?
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Try Portrait mode on gcam. It takes 48MP photos by default.

AbhiAbhiBisht said:
Try Portrait mode on gcam. It takes 48MP photos by default.
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Excuse the messy living room pictures, and the fact that they're rotated despite being upright on my pc
but there's no difference at all, even in the properties of the images.
Pretty much same image quality, exact same resolution, and the settings still only says 12MP without an option for 48MP.
The first image is from 'camera' and the second image is from 'portrait' (which for some reason always takes pictures in burst mode).
Also I don't really know what level of quality I should be getting from the RN7P's camera, but I get the feeling they shouldn't be this visibly blurred and noisy.

Sanarise said:
Excuse the messy living room pictures, and the fact that they're rotated despite being upright on my pc
but there's no difference at all, even in the properties of the images.
Pretty much same image quality, exact same resolution, and the settings still only says 12MP without an option for 48MP.
The first image is from 'camera' and the second image is from 'portrait' (which for some reason always takes pictures in burst mode).
Also I don't really know what level of quality I should be getting from the RN7P's camera, but I get the feeling they shouldn't be this visibly blurred and noisy.
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Are using the Chinese version of the Redmi Note 7 or the note 7 pro?

Harshdeeptomar said:
Are using the Chinese version of the Redmi Note 7 or the note 7 pro?
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I own the Chinese Redmi Note 7 Pro (Violet)
Back when I was on MIUI 10, the MIUI camera app did recognize the 48MP camera, so it does have it.
Unless I somehow got sent the Indian version instead, in which case, i'd be pretty upset because it also has worse bands for my country too.

Sanarise said:
I own the Chinese Redmi Note 7 Pro (Violet)
Back when I was on MIUI 10, the MIUI camera app did recognize the 48MP camera, so it does have it.
Unless I somehow got sent the Indian version instead, in which case, i'd be pretty upset because it also has worse bands for my country too.
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48MP Work in Pro Mode of Stock Camera.
Xiaomi Not Give 48MP Option in Normal Mode

RupeshRN said:
48MP Work in Pro Mode of Stock Camera.
Xiaomi Not Give 48MP Option in Normal Mode
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I know, but I'm not on MIUI 10 as I flashed a custom rom, so I don't have access to MIUI's Stock Camera

Try gcam of xtreme. He is developing it for mi 9 which has the same sensor.

Try this MIUI camera port for custom ROMs
https://forum.xda-developers.com/redmi-note-7-pro/themes/anxcamera-modded-t3927012

Vishal P said:
Try gcam of xtreme. He is developing it for mi 9 which has the same sensor.
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I tried both the xtreme and fu24 versions of gcam posted here in the Mi 9 forums, but both of them still only let me go up to 12MP in the settings.
The xtreme version took identical pictures in both 'camera' and 'portrait' mode just like the other gcams I've tried, and the fu24 version refused to even take a picture in 'portrait' mode.

Use Gcam 6.1 And Click Photo in Portrait Mode after Select Photo without Blur in Gallery.
Portrait Mode Support 48MP.

TheMrBinary said:
Try this MIUI camera port for custom ROMs
https://forum.xda-developers.com/redmi-note-7-pro/themes/anxcamera-modded-t3927012
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Thanks, it seems to work great!
It's a bit hard to tell if pro mode is actually taking 48MP pics with the current bug that puts out small resolution images, but hopefully that should be fixed soon.

Sanarise said:
I own the Chinese Redmi Note 7 Pro (Violet)
Back when I was on MIUI 10, the MIUI camera app did recognize the 48MP camera, so it does have it.
Unless I somehow got sent the Indian version instead, in which case, i'd be pretty upset because it also has worse bands for my country too.
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Click to collapse
Hey can you try the Gcam 6.1.021 Note7pro
I can't post the download link because I'm a New member sorry. ?
You have to use portrait mode to get full 48MP photos.
Also to get the best possible results increase the saturation to 1.6 in settings and in Gcam settings enable HDR+ for portrait mode and disable Zoom in portrait mode to avoid the crop that Gcam has on it's photos.

Harshdeeptomar said:
Hey can you try the Gcam 6.1.021 Note7pro
I can't post the download link because I'm a New member sorry.
You have to use portrait mode to get full 48MP photos.
Also to get the best possible results increase the saturation to 1.6 in settings and in Gcam settings enable HDR+ for portrait mode and disable Zoom in portrait mode to avoid the crop that Gcam has on it's photos.
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I appreciate you trying to help, but I've tried 3 different ports of Gcam 6.1.021 and one port of Gcam 6.2.something
Even in portrait mode, the pictures it takes aren't 48MP, I've even posted examples in this thread.
No matter which port I used, what settings I changed or what mode I used, all the pictures came out the same.
12MP, and a resolution of 4000x3000

Sanarise said:
I appreciate you trying to help, but I've tried 3 different ports of Gcam 6.1.021 and one port of Gcam 6.2.something
Even in portrait mode, the pictures it takes aren't 48MP, I've even posted examples in this thread.
No matter which port I used, what settings I changed or what mode I used, all the pictures came out the same.
12MP, and a resolution of 4000x3000
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Just a thought here because I might be wrong but could gcam only be finding 12mp because of the pixel binning? Essentially, from what I've read and seen the sensor combines 4x 12mp to create the 48mp. I'm running the rn7 myself and see no difference between 12mp and 48mp in pro mode apart from being able to zoom slightly more on the higher mp shot.

Jbobz24 said:
Just a thought here because I might be wrong but could gcam only be finding 12mp because of the pixel binning? Essentially, from what I've read and seen the sensor combines 4x 12mp to create the 48mp. I'm running the rn7 myself and see no difference between 12mp and 48mp in pro mode apart from being able to zoom slightly more on the higher mp shot.
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Actually, the main camera sensor is a real Sony IMX586 48MP. The reason you don't see any difference between 12MP and 48MP is because both the photos are coming from a same sensor. It's just that the former one is pixel binned to decrease photo size and capture more light.

I believe True 48 MP mode can only be accessed using proper camera libs. Otherwise you can only get the 12 MP Mode
---------- Post added at 09:36 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:34 AM ----------
Jbobz24 said:
Just a thought here because I might be wrong but could gcam only be finding 12mp because of the pixel binning? Essentially, from what I've read and seen the sensor combines 4x 12mp to create the 48mp. I'm running the rn7 myself and see no difference between 12mp and 48mp in pro mode apart from being able to zoom slightly more on the higher mp shot.
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Take a pic in night with both the modes in RN7 PRO with Sony IMX586. You'll see the difference. Not sure about samsung sensor.

Please, what is the best settings for my GCAM for best photography

Ultra-wide angle camera color science is off?

Apart from the frustrating fact that you can't record video and that the ultra-wide lens isn't very wide, the colors and seem to be extremely off in the comparisons I've seen to the point that I don't know if it's solvable through a software update. Maybe fixing the distortion and the super low saturation through software will somewhat save it, I don't know. Heck, even Mi 9 has a clearly superior ultra-wide WITH recording. What do you think? Does anyone that has the phone have a different experience? I want to buy this phone, but at this point in my country it's about the same price as a S10+ (Exynos) and I'm struggling to make a decision.
I wish GCam mods come early to save this mess.

NightmareAndroid said:
Apart from the frustrating fact that you can't record video and that the ultra-wide lens isn't very wide, the colors and seem to be extremely off in the comparisons I've seen to the point that I don't know if it's solvable through a software update. Maybe fixing the distortion and the super low saturation through software will somewhat save it, I don't know. Heck, even Mi 9 has a clearly superior ultra-wide WITH recording. What do you think? Does anyone that has the phone have a different experience? I want to buy this phone, but at this point in my country it's about the same price as a S10+ (Exynos) and I'm struggling to make a decision.
I wish GCam mods come early to save this mess.
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I cannot answer specifically to the 7 Pro, but I can tell you that the colour science is off on my now-sold Galaxy S10 Plus Exynos version. Switching between the main lens and the wide angle lens in the same exact lighting and spot yields different colour reproduction. It might be down to the actual lens used in junction with the software, but I can safety say that this problem isn't exclusive to the 7 Pro if anything.
Also, don't buy the Exynos version of the S10. It has garbage battery life, and has different camera lenses to the SD version that have shown to be inferior to the SD version.

There is a setting in the camera called "Ultra Wide Lens Correction." I wonder if testers are switching this setting to see if this is the issue. I just got mine, but it's night time right now so I will need some time to test (but I only have the LG G7 ThinQ to compare to.)

AhsanU said:
I cannot answer specifically to the 7 Pro, but I can tell you that the colour science is off on my now-sold Galaxy S10 Plus Exynos version. Switching between the main lens and the wide angle lens in the same exact lighting and spot yields different colour reproduction. It might be down to the actual lens used in junction with the software, but I can safety say that this problem isn't exclusive to the 7 Pro if anything.
Also, don't buy the Exynos version of the S10. It has garbage battery life, and has different camera lenses to the SD version that have shown to be inferior to the SD version.
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Yes, but at least every other wide angle camera in the market gives decent results. 7 Pro's results are very undersaturated, very soft and sometimes seem like out of focus.
I know about the S10+. If it was a Snapdragon version I would have already bought it.

matistight said:
There is a setting in the camera called "Ultra Wide Lens Correction." I wonder if testers are switching this setting to see if this is the issue. I just got mine, but it's night time right now so I will need some time to test (but I only have the LG G7 ThinQ to compare to.)
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Great! Post some samples when you can. I'm not that worried about the lens correction, I don't mind the distortion. My problem is mainly the saturation and softness of detail. If you can, post original results + "corrected" versions using Snapseed/Photoshop to check if some post-processing saves the day at least. Thank you in advance!

NightmareAndroid said:
Yes, but at least every other wide angle camera in the market gives decent results. 7 Pro's results are very undersaturated, very soft and sometimes seem like out of focus.
I know about the S10+. If it was a Snapdragon version I would have already bought it.
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Beauty of OnePlus and this wonderful community is the fact that there'll be GCam for it very soon, and we'll undoubtedly be able to take amazing shots through GCam using the wide angle lens.

AhsanU said:
Beauty of OnePlus and this wonderful community is the fact that there'll be GCam for it very soon, and we'll undoubtedly be able to take amazing shots through GCam using the wide angle lens.
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That's what I hope!

AhsanU said:
Beauty of OnePlus and this wonderful community is the fact that there'll be GCam for it very soon, and we'll undoubtedly be able to take amazing shots through GCam using the wide angle lens.
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It really depends. It might not be fixable with gcam.
The main camera uses a pretty good sensor. But it is a different sensor for the wide angle lens. So the quality of the wide angle shots will heavily depend on the quality of the sensor they use for their wide angle lens. It might be a weak sensor, we don't know right now. Huawei uses 4 Sony sensors for example, their wide angle pictures are pretty good. And yes, the best hardware is useless without a good software. But the best software also can't fix a bad sensor.
Not saying that it is a bad sensor, it's just that we don't know by now. We might have to wait for a teardown and some talented devs to see what is inside and if it is fixable.
I can only link you the specs from dxomark:
Primary: 48Mp Sony IMX586 sensor (12Mp output size), 26mm-equivalent lens with f/1.6 aperture and OIS
Ultra-wide: 16Mp sensor, 17mm-equivalent lens with f/2.2 aperture
Telephoto: 8Mp sensor, 78mm-equivalent lens with f/2.4 aperture and OIS

macro mode on mate 30 pro

i like to take close up shot alot. i think there is no dedicated super macro mode or switch to ai macro mode. some youtubers comfirmed that. is this a software thing or hardware limitation ?

ssregitoss said:
i like to take close up shot alot. i think there is no dedicated super macro mode or switch to ai macro mode. some youtubers comfirmed that. is this a software thing or hardware limitation ?
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the larger sensor means a larger lens and more complications for the wide angle lens, so it should be a hardware limitation due to the new sensor

I don't see any macro mode on my M30P, sadly it was present on my M20P
I hop an update will bring it back

youtuber123 said:
I don't see any macro mode on my M30P, sadly it was present on my M20P
I hop an update will bring it back
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Don't think so. The lens structure is different and it is design with video in mind hence u don't have the extreme zoom and micro mode of the p30 series and the previous mate series