Galaxy A80: Here’s how Samsung’s new phone is different from other rotating camera phones

Samsung Galaxy A80 isn’t the first phone to offer rotating camera but it’s much superior to phones with such camera mechanism launched in the past. Here’s how Samsung Galaxy A80’s rotating camera works.

By: KUL BHUSHAN
| Updated on: Apr 11 2019, 15:39 IST
Galaxy A80 will launch in India soon with prices under Rs 50,000
Galaxy A80 will launch in India soon with prices under Rs 50,000 (Samsung)

Samsung on Wednesday launched Galaxy A80 with rotating camera module. Galaxy A80 is also the company's first ever phone with a motorised slider-rotating hybrid setup. But Samsung isn't the only company to experiment with a phone with a rotating shooter.

Back in 2014, Oppo claimed the crown of the world's first smartphone with rotating cameras. It launched Oppo N1 with a slider mechanism on the top panel which could be used as selfie camera as well as rear camera. The phone tried to cater to then growing demands of selfie cameras being as good as rear cameras.

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While the specifications of Oppo N1 now are dated, here's how the rotating camera worked. Unlike the motorised and automatic popping selfie cameras launched recently, Oppo N1 needed to be manually rotated. The module will hang in the top panel with space left out for easy rotation. The rear of module featured 13-megapixel sensor with 206-degree rotation capability.

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Oppo N1 is said to be the world's first phone with rotating camera
Oppo N1 is said to be the world's first phone with rotating camera (Oppo )
image caption
Oppo N1 is said to be the world's first phone with rotating camera (Oppo )

One year later iBall launched a 5,999 smartphone 'Andi Avonte 5' with an 8-megapixel rotating camera. The smartphone also needed to be manually rotated to take selfies or used as primary camera. A quick search on Alibaba.com shows a number of phones with rotating cameras from different Chinese manufacturers. Celkon C350 Rotate is another low-cost smartphone with rotating camera setup.

image caption
Andi Avonte 5 is still listed on company's website with price tag of 6,1999 (iBall)

Samsung's Galaxy A80 seems to be a more advanced version of the rotating camera phones that were launched a few years ago. First, it doesn't have a singular sensor but three - 8-megapixel ultra wide camera, 48-megapixel main camera, and 3D depth camera.

 

The camera mechanism also draws inspiration from the likes of Honor Magic 2 with slider cameras. When you're taking a photo from the rear camera, the panel stays at its position. But when you launch the selfie camera (from the camera app), the panel slides up and camera quickly rotates towards the front. The flip to the front is quite fast as seen in demo and hands-on videos. The slider pop-up is similar to Vivo Nex's slider mechanism.

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First Published Date: 11 Apr, 15:36 IST
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