French camera benchmarker DxOMark has crowned the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus 5G as it’s new number one camera phone, though as always the result should be taken with a few pinches of fleur de sel.
In its extensive tests, DxOMark in particular praised the Galaxy Note 10 Plus 5G’s selfie camera and video shooting, giving both features a first place distinction among all of the phones it’s tested.
For still photos, Samsung’s 6.8-inch phablet actually ranked second overall behind the Huawei P30 Pro. But because of DxOMark’s final score weighting, which favours all-round performance over specialism, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus 5G has been given the number one spot with a score of 113, one ahead of its Huawei rival.
The 5G-flavoured version of the Galaxy Note 10 Plus certainly has a powerful camera system. Alongside the 26mm main camera are a 13mm ultra-wide camera, a 52mm telephoto lens, plus a Time of Flight sensor to help it estimate depth for the simulated bokeh in Portrait mode.
Related: Best camera phones
Image credit: DxOMark
DxOMark’s results don’t, though, necessarily mean it’s the best camera phone for everyone. The company’s roadmap selection process means it doesn’t benchmark all phones – for example, it hasn’t yet reviewed the Sony Xperia 1, which we found to be one of the best phones around for shooting video.
The final score also isn’t an average of the sub-category scores, but is based on a weighting system that’s based on the most important features for the “human visual system”, which might not correlate with your particular shooting needs.
For example, if you’re mostly interested in taking stills and aren’t bothered by selfie cameras, flash or video, then you’ll find that the Huawei P30 Pro and iPhone XS Max are better phones, according to DxOMark’s scores. Both score better than Samsung’s phone for autofocus and artifacts, while the P30 Pro is still out in front for zoom and low light performance.
So while the Galaxy Note 10 Plus review might have a strong claim for being the best all-rounder for stills and video, it’s best to look at the DxOMark’s sub-scores for a more nuanced picture. And also, of course, look out for our own Note 10 Plus 5G review soon, which will include a look at features like Raw performance and wide-angle shooting that aren’t included in DxOMark’s ratings.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.