It’s been a few years since we’ve seen a Nokia smartphone with ZEISS technology for the camera… but it looks like that’s about to change.

HMD has announced it’s partnered with ZEISS to work together on upcoming Nokia-branded phones, possibly including a dual-camera model that will launch later this year.

It’s not clear exactly what the new partnership will mean in practical terms, but the Nokia Lumia 1020 earned a reputation for taking some fantastic shots, and it eliminated the need for an optical zoom by snapping 41MP photos that allowed you to crop a photo and still end up with a high-resolution image. Unfortunately the handset ran the relatively unpopular Windows Phone operating system, making it arguably a better camera than a smartphone.

HMD isn’t the same company that made past phones with ZEISS optics, but the new company that’s acquired the rights to use the Nokia name on smartphones is headed by former Nokia executives… and it looks like this new partnership is a sign that the company is bringing more than just a classic name to its upcoming devices.

The only current Nokia branded phone available for purchase in the US is the Nokia 6, a mid-range device which is up for pre-order at Amazon for $180 and up, and which should begin shipping in a few days. But the company also unveiled a few other models earlier this year, and it looks like we can expect additional phones later in 2017.

via NokiaPowerUser

 

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7 replies on “HMD will use ZEISS optics in future Nokia phones”

  1. Seems like just a marketing ploy.
    Even the iPhone and Pixel are one of the best cameraphones of today, and it does so without any special Leica, Carl Zeiss, Nikon, Canon approvals.

    The performance of the product is what matters at the end of the day, and Nokia will have to prove themselves regardless of branding.

      1. A win for Nokia phones from a Nokia Fan Page?
        Obvious bias is obvious.

        https://www.dxomark.com/Mobiles/Nokia-Lumia-1020-overview-Has-the-best-got-better

        While I agree DxOMark seems to be more biased/less professional these days than they were before, they had little incentive in being biased against the Lumia 1020 here. Sure you can say they were shills for Google and their Pixel phone, but then you have the HTC U11 which is a head-shoulder above the Pixel. This is what they found, feel free to judge them as you see fit.

        PS Let’s not forget that people want 7mm smartphones these days, whilst 9mm may be acceptable, no-one really wants a phone that’s 13mm’s thick even if its just an oversized lens.

        1. you cant measure pureview pixels via test like dxomark. in pureview there is oversampling and end product is like 5mp image, dxomark they test full 38mp image.

          nokia 808 was 14mm, 18 month later lumia 1020 come out with just 10.4mm thickness. By today standards probably they can fit equivalent sensor in 8 or 9mm body.

          even though he is Nokia fan, steve is not biased. you can read his review and see for yourself.

          1. Umm, 10.4mm is the thinness of the phone… the camera bump is a whopping 14.5mm’s in size.

            If you read the article you posted, and read it correctly, you would notice that the Pixel actually took better photos than the other phones in almost every single shot.
            Go on, check it out, I’ll wait.
            Steve is comparing the cropped areas of photos, which is kind of deceiving, because very few people actually use a camera like that, let alone a phone’s camera.
            The HDR+ that is tweaked on the Pixel isn’t faultless but you shouldn’t snicker at it: that’s the future. The Pixel has greater detail, better colour accuracy and dynamic range… these are the important stuff for people. And here, everything matters: sensor size, lens quality, processor speed, software rendering…

            If you want the best cropped/long-distance shots, then the sensor size is king.
            The Lumia 1020’s massive 1/1.5″ sensor helped it back in 2013, but technological progress waits for no-one. Sony’s Exmor team are doing fantastic things these days… you really can drop your point ‘n shoot cameras and go with a flagship phone instead. But you cannot replace a DSLR for a cameraphone (and probably not ever). For daily shots, the Pixel will consistently come out with the overall better photo, let’s be honest about it.

            PS I don’t like the Pixel phones, I’ve used many phones, I think a lot of Android fanboys underrate the iPhone, and my choice of a phone depends Scientifically on how good it is rather than what logo it has.

  2. I really hope they will include functionality that interests photographers, rather than simply borrowing a name.

    Make a dual-camera phone with one lens being wide angle, and the other being a 50mm lens. A 50mm is considered a “normal lens”. No phones have been daring enough to offer a lens near that.

    Most dual camera phones have 2 wide angle lenses, and I find it rather useless.

    1. dont expect much from this year, probably 2018 or 2019 you will see true monster camera from Nokia, first pureview technology was 5 year in making before first release.

      out of topic
      what do you think of this mod? wii u with intel core m5 stick?
      https://youtu.be/m8gCLKxpeJw

      i do remember you said it is impossible

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