The first half of 2018 will soon come to an end and most of the top smartphone manufacturers have already unveiled their big guns for this period. With us, we have three important flagships from the top Chinese manufacturers: the OnePlus 6, Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S, and the Huawei P20 Pro. These are some of the best Chinese phones that money can buy in 2018. So, we decided to pit these three phones together to see how would they perform in a camera test. The results of the comparison isn’t really surprising, but there were some interesting differences in how OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro took pictures in different situations. While each of them have their own set of advantages over the other, here, the playing field is level. It’s just about how the camera performs in everyday situation.
So, let’s look at how OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro performs in different lighting conditions.
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Outdoor Scene
Throughout this comparison, get this one thing clear: Huawei P20 Pro has an astounding camera. The difference is quite evident and almost in every case, the P20 Pro has an edge over the other two cameras. But in many cases, the difference isn’t very significant, and that’s where things get interesting. The P20 Pro is a $1000+ flagship. The other two models are nearly half the price of the P20 Pro. So if they come close to what we get on the P20 Pro, I’d say both the manufacturers have done a fine job. Let’s find out.
[envira-gallery id=”193060″]In this photograph of the garden, the P20 Pro clearly wins. The photo from the Huawei model might be a bit too saturated, but in general, the sample looks much better than the ones from the other two phones. What’s really great about the P20 Pro is that its samples have literally zero noise, even at night. You’ll see the difference in the later images but here, check out the shadows — no noise. Basically, the P20 Pro’s sample has better details as well as saturation, which makes it the best. Picking the second best is harder given that the OnePlus 6 has better details but lacks the punch in terms of colors. The Mi Mix 2S is slightly better in terms of colors, so the image looks better too, but in terms of the amount of details captured, its the worst of the lot. So, I leave it up to you to pick the second best sample. I personally would go with Mi Mix 2S for its warmer colors making the overall sample look better.
Which sample would you pick?
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Daylight Object Closeup
[envira-gallery id=”193069″]The sample results in this case were a bit surprising. All three managed to do well capturing enough details and colors in the samples, so it was hard to pick out an easy winner. Personally, I would pick the OnePlus 6 because it has slightly better details as compared to the other two. The saturation was also apt, making the overall image look good. However, P20 Pro, unsurprisingly has managed to capture a great sample as well. You can see how the shadows in the image is much more prominent on the P20 Pro’s sample as compared to the other two models. The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S wasn’t a slouch either in this case, so I would say its quite close in this case. My pick, OP6, then P20 Pro (it loses out the first place just because the colors were a bit off from real life), and then the Mi Mix 2S (no real complaints with its sample but I feel the other two were better).
What’s your pick?
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Portrait Mode
[envira-gallery id=”193078″]Huawei’s billions of dollars in R&D (nearly $14 billion in 2017!) has been spent very well. The company is class apart when it comes to edge detection and quality of portraits. The Huawei P20 Pro manages to retain the texture of the net that’s seen towards the edges of the hat on the beautiful lady. So, the phone really knows what to blur and what not to blur in its portraits, which makes it pretty smart. OnePlus 6 did try to get this right, and did a decent job, but not nearly as good as the P20 Pro. The Mi Mix 2S on the other hand just blurred out the sides, without noticing the texture of the hat.
In terms of details, the Oneplus 6 did really well. You can see the pendant on the neck is clear in the OnePlus 6 sample. Mi Mix 2S loses out in this department. But when it comes to the amount of background blur, the Mi Mix 2S really shines, which helps its sample pop out. The P20 Pro’s bokeh effect is also pretty good. However, for some reason, I was not satisfied with OnePlus 6’s blur in the background. It was not just this sample, we tried to take multiple samples from the OP6 of this beautiful lady in portrait mode, but the results in terms of blur weren’t as good as the other two samples.
Overall, I would pick the P20 Pro. I would give the second and third place to Mi Mix 2S (better colors and bokeh effect) and OP6 (colors lack punch and less bokeh effect) respectively.
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Low Light Tea Pot
[envira-gallery id=”193081″]When the lighting goes down, it become easier to place the three samples according to quality. The P20 Pro definitely has better colors and details, which isn’t surprising given that you pay a premium for the phone. Among the other two, the OnePlus 6 is better in the above mentioned two departments. Also, the colors on the Mi Mix 2S look washed out, so overall I’d pick P20 Pro as best, then OP6, and finally the Mix 2S.
What would you pick?
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Low Light Minion Closeup
[envira-gallery id=”193084″]In this case, the OP6 sample look better overall, considering the colors, details, and focus. The P20 Pro did well too, but the colors were a bit darker than what I would have personally wanted. The Mi Mix 2S’ sample is actually pretty good as well, but for some reason, the phone didn’t focus on the minion right in front of it. Instead, the focus is on the M&M sticker on the left. If not for this focus issue, I would have picked Mix 2S as the best. Overall, I’d pick OP6, then Mix 2S, and then P20 Pro.
What’s your pick?
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Low Light – Book Shelf
[envira-gallery id=”193087″]Despite P20 Pro’s sample looking like it’s been squeezed out of colors, it’s still better than the other two. The sample looks cleaner, with good amount of details, and brightness. It’s clear that the phone’s low light mode does wonders in real life. The fact that there’s practically no noise makes it really stand out. The Mi Mix 2S is the second brightest sample of the lot, and could have made it better than the OP6. However, there’s one big issue with the Mi Mix 2s in low light — NOISE. I’m really disappointed to see so much noise in the low light samples and sometimes it makes the photo completely unusable. Just zoom into the sample from the Mix 2S and you’ll know what I’m talking about. Overall, the P20 Pro is the clear winner, followed by the OP6.
OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro Camera: Night Photography – Parking Lot
[envira-gallery id=”193089″]Again, the P20 Pro manages to limit noise in the entire sample. OnePlus 6 does pretty well too, but you’d see the grainy pixels in the dark areas. The Mix 2S is the worst. Noise everywhere and very little details, making the image literally unusable. It’s worth noting that the OnePlus 6 manages to keep up with the P20 Pro to a certain extent despite the super dark scene, so good job OnePlus!
What’s your pick?
Overall, in this OnePlus 6 vs Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 Pro camera comparison, the Huawei P20 Pro is the definite winner. I would pick the OnePlus 6 as the next best flagship in terms of camera performance, especially due to its low light performance. Personally, I feel the Mix 2S could have done much better, especially in low light situations. But in real life photos, I would personally pick it as the worst of the lot.
What do you think about the camera performance of the three flagships in this comparison?
You can download all the original samples from here.
