Xiaomi Mi Note 10 - Best Camera System in a Smartphone?

Xiaomi Mi Note 10 – Best Camera System in a Smartphone?

Xiaomi recently officially announced the Mi Note 10 and will be the first to carry Samsung’s 108 megapixel sensor. Note also, the Note 10 comes with no less than 5 rear cameras. But, while the phone arrives with high end cameras specs, it also comes at a mid-range price tag.

But does the new camera tech live up to expectations?

“It has moments of sheer excellence for which this might just be the number 1 camera system on a phone right now.” Mrwhosetheboss

Some form of shallow depth of field in one element which usually stands between smartphone cameras and dedicated cameras like DSLRs or mirrorless. But the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 claims to have the biggest camera sensor currently available in a smartphone. Combine this with a wide f/1.69 aperture lens and there’s potential to add some nice smooth shallow depth of field.

The above picture was taken using the Mi Note 10’s regular camera. This still requires getting close to the subject, but the camera seems to create a nicer, softer blurry background. And perhaps more blurry too.

Below is an image again taken with the main camera (without using the artificial portrait mode).

Check out the original higher resolution photo here.

5 Cameras

• Primary: 108MP sensor 1/1.33-inch sensor with f/1.69-aperture lens and OIS
• Short telephoto: 12.19MP 1/2.6-inch sensor with f/2-aperture lens
• Long telephoto: 7.99M 1/3.6-inch sensor with f/2-aperture lens and OIS
• Ultra-wide: 20.11MP 1/2.8-inch sensor with f/2.2-aperture lens
• 2MP Macro camera shoots from 1.5cm distance.

This is all the more impressive since the device will be on the market for less than $600. A good deal cheaper than main brand flagship phones.

One big plus of the Mi Note 10 is its massive 5,260mAh battery. And when paired with the lower-powered Snapdragon 730G processor, this translates to a very long battery life. On the downside, extra processing power might be nice when dealing with 108 megapixel photos. So, when shooting in 108MP, the phone takes longer to save the image and the camera app sometimes freezes.

Top Smartphone Filmmaking Device

While the phone doesn’t match top range phones in all areas, for it’s wide range of cameras and high image detail combined with an affordable price, this might be one to choose for smartphone filmmakers.

We don’t know yet if the phone is compatible with FiLMiC Pro, which is essential for the manual controls filmmakers need. However, we do know previous Xiaomi Mi Note models are compatible, so we might presume this will be too. But will FiLMiC be able to deal with all those lenses. I hope so and look forward to seeing some movies shot with this device.

Eager to learn more?
Join our weekly newsletter featuring inspiring stories, no-budget filmmaking tips and comprehensive equipment reviews to help you turn your film projects into reality!