The Honor 6X is the latest smartphone launched by Honor which is also one of the cheapest dual-camera smartphones in the market right now, starting at a very attractive price of Rs. 12,999. Under this price-point, the camera centric smartphone receives competition from the likes of other smartphones like the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 and the Coolpad Cool 1.
The Honor 6X dual-rear camera setup uses a 12MP primary camera with a Sony IMX386, which is aided by a secondary 2MP camera. The secondary camera is used to add details such as depth of field and contrast data. Depth of field allows you to create bokeh images and change the focus of images after they have been taken. Besides this, you also get Phase Detection Autofocus for faster focusing speeds. The dual-camera system also helps take better images in low-light conditions as the two sensors let in twice the amount of light as compared to a single sensor. Another thing that helps take good pictures in low light conditions is the 1.25 micrometer pixel size.
Let’s see how well the Honor 6X’s dual-camera setup really is at taking photographs.
When it comes to details and sharpness, the Honor 6X is very impressive in producing finer details and intricate textures. This means that images taken by the phone can retain more information. The device is also quite good in producing sharper details in brightly as well as dimly lit frames. In comparison, the images taken by the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 lack sharpness in subjects with intricate details, and the fine outlines of smaller elements in frames looking soft. While it renders appreciable details in dimly lit frames, sharpness is compromised.
The Honor 6X produces pretty decent colours in terms of depth and dynamic range. There is a good range of details in colour along with well-maintained contrast and vibrancy. The colours and saturation levels are quite true to the source. Bold colours retain their tone well, without looking too sharp. The Honor 6X also very good at maintaining good contrast levels along with colours, while managing to control traces of oversaturation. This lack of oversaturation also lets the device offer better post-processing of photos.
When it comes to controlling noise in an images, the Honor 6X features quite good noise reduction algorithms. This means that the images taken by the device produces ‘cleaner’ images which is especially helpful when taking photographs in low light conditions. In comparison, the Coolpad Cool 1 produces pixel noise even in daylight, while low light images are heavily compromised.
The Redmi Note 4’s white balance algorithms are one of the strongest features of the smartphone. However, the Honor 6X is very good at adjusting white balance by automatically calibrating the color temperatures. The smartphone is clever enough to detect scenes well, and reproduce the lighting and ambience in the pictures it takes. The saturation levels of the images are consistently warmer across most colours.
Besides all this, there is also a ‘Pro Mode’ that gives you manual control over the camera. This allows you to control the exposure, white balance, shutter speed, and more. This lets you fine-tune each image based on specific scenarios and preferences. There are also inbuilt modes within the phone’s camera app that are tailored for certain types of images. Light Painting mode lets you take long exposure shot of light trails and so forth. There are also other modes like time-lapse, slo-mo and more.
For selfies, you get an 8MP camera that features a wide-angle lens. The lens helps you to take group selfies, without the need to squeeze in together with all your friends.
As you can see, the Honor 6X offers one of the most balanced smartphones cameras for its price. While the Redmi Note 4 comes close, the Honor 6X brings better sharpness, lesser image noise and little oversaturation. Add to this other features like the Pro Mode, the efficient yet powerful SoC and a commendable battery life and you have a good camera-centric smartphone at your disposal.
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