The smartphone with the best camera in 2026 is the OPPO Find X9 Ultra priced at 100 thousand rubles. And I’ve already talked about this market leader. But most people don’t choose between the best and the second best — they choose between reasonable and affordable. Today I’m comparing two POCO phones with a price difference of 35,500 rubles — and seeing how much that difference is felt specifically in the camera.
Compared the cameras of two popular POCO smartphones
How Much Does a Smartphone with a Good Camera Cost
The POCO M8 5G smartphone costs 13,500 rubles. The POCO F8 Ultra smartphone costs 49,000 rubles. The difference of 35,500 rubles is almost three POCO M8 5G units in your pocket.
It’s important to understand the question correctly. The expensive smartphone is better, and that’s obvious. The question is different: how much is this difference felt specifically in the camera, and is it worth the money for your usage scenario. That’s exactly what we’ll analyze.
Camera Specifications of POCO M8 5G and POCO F8 Ultra — What’s the Difference
Looking for differences in specifications
Let’s compare the phone camera specifications for each model in numbers:
| Camera | POCO M8 5G | POCO F8 Ultra |
|---|---|---|
| Main | 50 MP, f/1.8, 1/2.88″ | 50 MP, f/1.7, 1/1.31″, OIS |
| Telephoto | None | 50 MP, f/3.0, 5x periscope, OIS |
| Ultra-wide | None | 50 MP, f/2.4, 102° |
| Video | 1080p@30fps | 8K@30fps, 4K@60fps |
| Processor | Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 | Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 |
Let me break down the key differences in plain language:
- Sensor size. The POCO M8 5G camera uses a 1/2.88-inch sensor — this is a very small matrix. The POCO F8 Ultra camera uses a 1/1.31-inch sensor, almost three times larger in area. A larger sensor captures more light, which directly affects the quality of night shots and low-light photography.
- Optical stabilization. The F8 Ultra has OIS on both the main module and the telephoto. The M8 5G has none at all, so shots while moving or in the dark will be blurrier.
- Telephoto. In short: the 5x periscope telephoto on the F8 Ultra means true optical zoom without quality loss. The POCO M8 5G, when trying to zoom in on a subject, simply crops the image — digital zoom that degrades quality.
- Video. Here the gap is fundamental. The POCO M8 5G is limited to 1080p at 30 frames per second — that’s a 2018-level capability. The POCO F8 Ultra shoots 4K@60fps and even 8K@30fps. The difference is determined not only by the cameras but also by processor power: the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is simply physically capable of processing video streams of that quality, while the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 is not.
Sample Photos from Expensive and Cheap Smartphones
Daytime shooting. The phone camera differences in bright lighting are minimal. Both smartphones deliver 50 MP on the main module, both handle standard subjects normally — people, landscapes, food. Detail is comparable. Colors on the F8 Ultra are slightly richer thanks to smarter processing by the flagship processor, but for social media posting, the difference is unnoticeable to most people.
Daytime photo from POCO M8 5G camera. Image: gsmarena.com
Daytime photo from POCO F8 Ultra camera. Image: gsmarena.com
Night shooting. Here the expensive phone’s camera pulls ahead confidently. On the POCO M8 5G, night shots are noisy, details are lost, and without a tripod there’s a risk of blur due to the absence of OIS. The POCO F8 Ultra holds the image more stable and pulls out details in shadows significantly better.
