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Samsung Galaxy S7's camera could be a low-light champion

Samsung has given its new flagship phone's camera a few key tweaks to help it perform in low-light situations. We take a look at what's new.

Andrew Lanxon Editor At Large, Lead Photographer, Europe
Andrew is CNET's go-to guy for product coverage and lead photographer for Europe. When not testing the latest phones, he can normally be found with his camera in hand, behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food. Sometimes all at once.
Expertise Smartphones, Photography, iOS, Android, gaming, outdoor pursuits Credentials
  • Shortlisted for British Photography Awards 2022, Commended in Landscape Photographer of the Year 2022
Andrew Lanxon
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The new Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge may be different sized, but they pack the exact same camera tech -- and it's that we're taking a closer look at here.

The most important thing about the camera to note is that the resolution has dropped from 16 to 12 megapixels. But don't despair! That change is for a good reason. The pixels on the sensor are physically larger than before, allowing them to capture much more light.

Up close with the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge's camera (pictures)

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The aperture of the lens is wider too -- up to f/1.7, rather than f/1.9 on the S6 -- which allows more light to get into the camera. With both a wider aperture and a more sensitive sensor, the S7 and S7 Edge should be formidable low-light shooters.

Watch this: A deep dive on the Samsung Galaxy S7 camera

The cameras also feature much faster autofocusing, as well as the usual wide range of scene modes. Along with a panorama function, you'll find high dynamic range (HDR) modes, time-lapse functions, a range of filters and effects, and a pro mode that gives you manual control over settings.

You can switch between those in the camera app, which looks mostly unchanged from the one we saw on the Galaxy S6. Video can be captured in 4K resolution, and there's a slow-motion option too.