If you like shooting images with your inseparable friend – your precious smartphone, then you might be interested in getting one of these 6 smartphones with xenon flash. Don’t know what is a xenon flash? Good, we are here to tell you something about it.
Have you ever been photographed by someone with a flash so strong that left you blind for a couple of seconds? Yes? Then, chances are you have been introduced with a xenon flash. Joking aside, xenon flash is a type of flash that emits very strong, full-spectrum white light. Good thing for the people, who are being directly shot, this flash lasts short (possibly, not to leave any serious damage to people’s eyes).
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How does xenon flash work?
Xenon flash is named after xenon gas that creates the light. If you are into cars, then you probably know about xenon lights – which use the same gas, naturally, and leave other drivers sightless. When this gas (inside a flashtube circuit) is administered with high voltage, the magic happens. A photographer gets much brighter and sharper image, using xenon over regular LED flash. Hence, if you like shooting images in the night clubs or in other places where the lighting is not that good, you might consider buying some smartphone on our list below. And if you are looking for phones with more interesting features and not only photography-related, check these smartphones with wireless charging too.
Why LED flashes dominate the smartphone market still?
Usually, new technologies have some better characteristics than the older ones, which they are trying to substitute, but also often times they have some other features that are not as good as it is expected. In this particular case, “the main problem” with xenon flashes is that they take too much battery power. And, we all know how battery power is important these days. Also, xenon flash adds bulk to your device that you probably don’t want. These two are obviously important issues that have made people switch back to LED flashes, so even though there are many phones with xenon flash, there are far more those that still use the older technology called LED flash.
This is not so surprising, considering that no true photographer is going to use its smartphone to take serious photographs. For real photography, it takes a real high-quality camera, that is what matter the most, besides the photographer, of course. What is interesting, though, but also somewhat expected, is that manufacturers are finding ways to improve cameras in smartphones so much that ultimately you won’t need any kind of flash. Of course, when those cameras become available on the market, chances are they will come with a hefty price, at first. So, not all mortals out here who are seeking for a smartphone with the best camera will be able to afford it until some time passes and the prices drop down like with every other new technology. The question is – until that time comes, for which smartphone should you opt – for the one that has xenon flash or for the one with the standard LED?
Well, it all comes down to for what do you need a strong flash? If you, for example, work in a night club, and you update its Facebook page for every party and event with new images, then taking a smartphone with xenon flash is a good choice for you. If a professional camera is not an option, of course, and you don’t want to be “too professional”. Then, some of the smartphones on our list below should really do the trick. In this case, using it over professional camera also has some advantages, as you can much faster upload your photos to the page you wish, and no matter how bulky the smartphone is, it is definitely smaller than a camera. Hence, smartphones with xenon flashes really do have its uses. But, if you are searching for a smartphone with good camera features for no special reason, you don’t’ have to choose those with xenon flash, as there are a plenty of smartphones with amazing camera specs that have LED flash. And, if you are just beginning to get interested in photography in general, you can take a look at our article on 6 easiest DSLR cameras to use for beginners.
Let’s get down to our main topic, and find out which 6 smartphones support different flash technology. Of course, there are more than 6 smartphones with xenon flash, but instead of listing all of them, we decided to list a few, trying to find the newer ones, and include a few brands. It is interesting that out of the six smartphones on the list below few of them use Windows, few Symbian and few Android operating system. So, there will be smartphones for enthusiasts of different operating systems. We used several portals to find these specially-equipped smartphones like GSM Arena, Phone Arena, and Phonegg, to name a few. Let’s finally flash them out!
6. Nokia 808 PureView
Basic specs
Year of launching: 2012
OS: Nokia Belle OS
Camera: 41 Megapixel, Carl Zeiss optics, Autofocus, Xenon flash
Video: 1080p@30fps, 4x lossless digital zoom
Battery: Removable Li-Ion 1400 mAh battery (BV-4D) (Talk time – up to 6 h 50 min (3G))
We start our list with a smartphone that uses far less popular operating system – Nokia Belle OS, Nokia 808 PureView. As the name of the model denotes it, this phone has a pretty good camera – 41 megapixel. Combined with xenon flash, it is a shot you will not miss. Meaning, you will much easier create sharp, high-quality images. One downside of this Nokia phone is a somewhat slow processor, but if great camera features are the most important thing you are looking for from your smartphone, Nokia 808 PureView might suit your needs.
5. Sony Ericson Satio
Basic specs
Year of launching: 2009
OS: Symbian (Symbian^1), S60 5th Edition
Camera: 12 Megapixels, Autofocus, Xenon flash, Video LED flash
Video: w480p@30fps (via SW update)
Battery: Li – Polymer 950 mAh (Talk time – up to 4.8 h (3G))
Up next on our list of smartphones with xenon flash is Sony Ericson Satio which has a plenty of good features that attract people towards this phone, such as xenon flash, of course, and 256 GB RAM, to name a few. But, what turns away people from this phone are annoying characteristics like not being able to use a regular miscroUSB, but a proprietary USB connector instead, and low pixel density screen. Oh well, no phone is perfect, you just need to pick the right one for yourself.
4. HTC 7 Mozart
Basic specs
Year of launching: 2010
OS: Microsoft Windows Phone 7
Camera: 8 Megapixels, Autofocus, Xenon flash
Video: 720p
Battery – Removable Li-Ion 1300 mAh battery (Talke time -up to 5 h 30 min (3G))
If you just love Windows operating system, maybe this phone is the right fit for you. Besides the expected feature – xenon flash, this phone which ranks 4th on our list of smartphones with xenon flash offers 720p HD video recording, and 8-megapixel camera. It’s the best feature, though, is not camera shooting, but amazing sound quality. If this is as well important to you, then look no more, you’ve found the perfect phone.
3. Motorola Milestone XT720
Basic specs
Year of launching: 2010
OS: Android OS, v2.1 (Eclair)
Camera: 8 Megapixels, Autofocus, Xenon flash
Video: 720p@24fps
Battery – Removable Li-Po 1390 mAh battery (Talke time – up to 9 h (3G))
Third place on our list of smartphones with xenon flash is surely putting a smile on people who are staying faithful to good old Motorola phones. When it was released 6 years ago, it was quite impressive, and currently, among phones that offer xenon flash it still brings praises. Include a 720p HD video recording, and you’ll have a pretty nice Motorola smartphone to take both images and videos.
2. Nokia Lumia 1020
Basic specs
Year of launching: 2013
OS: Microsoft Windows Phone 8, upgradeable to v8.1
Camera: 41 Megapixels, Carl Zeiss optics, OIS, Auto/manual focus, Xenon & LED flash
Video: 1080p@30fps, 4x lossless digital zoom
Battery: Non-removable Li-Ion 2000 mAh battery (BV-5XW) (Talk time – up to 13 h 20 min (3G))
Another phone on our list of smartphones with xenon flash that uses Windows, instead of more popular Android operating system, Nokia Lumia 1020. If you are in love with new Nokia phones, as people, were long, long time ago, and you are also looking a phone that can take bright images in dark settings, maybe you should consider this phone. Of course, good lighting isn’t enough to create a good image, but Nokia Lumia 1020 comes with a 41 megapixels camera that should do the trick.
1. Samsung Galaxy K Zoom
Basic specs
Year of launching: 2014
OS: Android OS, v4.4.2 (KitKat)
Camera: 20.7 megapixels, Auto/manual focus, 10x optical zoom (24-240mm), OIS, Xenon & LED flash
Video: 1080p@60fps
Battery: Removable Li-Ion 2430 mAh battery (Talk time – up to 14 h (3G))
We are finishing our list of 6 smartphones with xenon flash with Samsung Galaxy K Zoom. Samsung, as usual, has something good to offer even when it comes to photography-oriented phones. What makes this phone more special is that it has integrated compact camera with 10x optical zoom. Add to this xenon flash and a 20.7-megapixel camera, and you really have one of the best smartphones for photography among these six on this list.
