Samsung wasn’t the first company to popularize the concept of a periscope telephoto lens on a smartphone, but its incredible marketing prowess has redefined what we expect from the best smartphone cameras.
Since the Galaxy S20 Ultra, the term “Ultra” has been used to describe the best smartphone cameras a company has to offer. With the popularity of Samsung’s Ultra lineup, it was inevitable that rival phone makers would also launch competing offerings.
Two weeks ago, Oppo unveiled the Find X8 Ultra, one of the best smartphone cameras currently available. It features five cameras — one more than the Galaxy S25 Ultra — and is designed to capture great photos at eight different focal lengths.
How does it compare to Samsung’s current zoom flagship, and which should you buy right now? I tested both cameras during my time in China for the launch of the Find X8 Ultra, and here’s what I found.
Oppo Find X8 Ultra vs Galaxy Z Fold 6 camera specs
First, let’s take a look at how each of these smartphone cameras compares on paper.
| Oppo Find X8 Ultra | Galaxy S25 Ultra | |
| Main Camera | 50MP, 1-inch sensor, f/1.6 aperture, OIS, 1.6µm | 200MP, 1/1.3-inch sensor, f/1.7 aperture, OIS, 0.6µm |
| Ultrawide Camera | 50MP, 120° field of view, 0.64µm, f/2.0 | 50MP, 120° field of view, 0.7µm, f/1.9 |
| Telephoto Camera 1 | 50MP, 3x optical zoom, 10cm — ∞ macro mode, OIS, 1.0µm, f/2.1 | 10MP, 3x optical zoom, 1.12µm, OIS, f/2.4 |
| Telephoto Camera 2 | 50MP, 6x optical zoom, OIS, 0.8µm, f/3.1 | 50MP, 5x optical zoom, OIS, 0.7µm, f/3.4 |
| Selfie Camera | 32MP, f/2.4, 0.8µm | 12MP |
| Other | 2MP True Chroma sensor | – |
Each company has taken different approaches to its cameras. Samsung has opted for a large 200MP primary camera and two telephoto lenses that offer 3x and 5x optical zoom, but with a fairly low overall resolution.
Meanwhile, Oppo has opted for parity across all its lenses, with the Find X8 Ultra sporting four cameras with the same resolution. The 50MP main sensor features a 1-inch sensor type and is paired with two 50MP cameras, offering 3x and 6x optical zoom. The fifth camera is a 2MP true chroma sensor that’s designed to allow the phone to capture up to 40 different color temperatures within a single photo.
On paper, the Find X8 Ultra boasts a more capable overall camera, despite Samsung using a primary camera with a much larger megapixel count. In theory, Oppo’s true chroma sensor should also ensure that it captures color temperatures and light more accurately.
However, does real-world performance match these expectations? Let’s find out!
Regular photos in all lighting conditions
To test these photos, I took 200 photos with each camera in a variety of lighting conditions. Most were captured simultaneously, but occasionally, they were taken one at a time. Before we evaluate two key areas — portrait and zoom photos — let’s first explore how each handles the same scenes in different lighting conditions.
In this first sample, the Find X8 Ultra (left) captures a more vibrant photo of the entryway, but does so at the expense of the blue sky. Meanwhile, the Galaxy S25 Ultra (right) takes a darker photo but has better color reproduction in the sky. I find the Find X8 Ultra photo to be more vibrant; however, your preference may vary.
In this second shot, the Galaxy S25 Ultra (right) photo appears slightly blurry when you zoom in on the details. The Find X8 Ultra is also somewhat blurry, but to a lesser extent than the Samsung. However, it’s safe to say this particular test is a draw, as neither completely outshines the other.
We all love taking photos of our food to post on social media, so which phone takes the best photos? Here, there’s a clear winner: the Find X8 Ultra. I ran this test with several different food pictures, and the Find X8 Ultra always won, especially as it has a faster autofocus that proves more capable than Samsung’s camera.
Winner: Find X8 Ultra. The Find X8 Ultra wins two out of the three tests; however, this could easily be a tie depending on personal preferences.
Portrait photos and selfies
Oppo is positioning the Find X8 Ultra as the king of portrait photography, but does it deliver? Samsung has one of my favorite portrait modes, known as Color Point, but what about the standard portrait blur that every phone offers?
This first test compares the portrait photography capabilities of both phones at 1x, 2x, and 3x zoom. As we reach the 3x portrait zoom, it’s clear that the Find X8 Ultra captures the strands of hair better than the Galaxy S25 Ultra. However, it’s worth noting that you can adjust the strength of the portrait blur on both phones after taking a photo.
Both phones perform admirably in this test, and the results are remarkably close. There are subtle differences between the two, but it comes down to personal preference. I’m quite impressed by the performance of the Galaxy S25 Ultra at all zoom lengths, but I do prefer the vibrancy and saturation of the photos captured with the Find X8 Ultra.
These two portrait tests show the color science of each phone’s algorithm. The Find X8 Ultra is designed to capture smoother skin and brighter tones, but the Galaxy S25 Ultra takes arguably more natural photos. It’ll come down to personal preference again, and I’m torn between the two.
Both phones also let you use the front-facing camera in portrait mode, but how do they compare? The 32MP front-facing camera on the Find X8 Ultra takes wider photos than the 12MP snapper on the Galaxy S25 Ultra, and the extra resolution proves to be more capable at differentiating between the foreground and background of an image. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is also very aggressive in the portrait selfie and doesn’t recognize multiple subjects in the photo.
Winner: Find X8 Ultra, just. There’s very little difference between these two phones, but at a pinch, I’d give it to Oppo just for better capture of strands of hair and the less aggressive portrait selfie mode. However, neither camera stands out more than the other.
Testing the zoom performance in daylight
The biggest reason to buy either phone is the zoom performance, which is something we’ve come to expect from any smartphone with the Ultra branding. Zoom is integral to the overall offering, and both phones have similar offerings in terms of focal lengths and max zoom length, so which does it better?
In this first test, the Find X8 Ultra struggles to stay focused on the sign in the distance at some of the smaller focal lengths, but completely outshines the Galaxy S25 Ultra once the telephoto lenses kick in. The natural bokeh in the 6x photo is particularly spectacular, especially considering it was not taken in portrait mode.
Once you reach the longer focal lengths, the Galaxy S25 Ultra begins to struggle. It’s still capable of capturing a photo that looks great in isolation, but when compared to the Find X8 Ultra, it lacks the detail and vibrancy that the Find X8 Ultra achieves.
The same effects are observed in this test, with both phones fairly evenly matched at the lower focal lengths, and Oppo proving to be more capable at longer distances. You can see the differences in the color temperature between the 3x and 6x photos captured on the Find X8 Ultra, so Oppo has some work to do to reduce this disparity.
Consider the 10x photos in the slider above, and you’ll see there’s virtually no difference between the two lenses. I’m quite impressed by the detail captured by both phones, especially since the 10x photo on both uses a hybrid zoom, rather than offering a dedicated telephoto lens with 10x optical zoom.
In this test, the Galaxy S25 Ultra performs significantly worse than the Find X8 Ultra, especially at longer focal lengths. In most of the photos, the Find X8 Ultra captures more detail, but again, you can see the difference in the colors captured by the 3x and 6x telephoto lenses.
This test is the first time we see the true difference between the two lenses. This is something I’ve observed when subjectively comparing different scenes captured on these two phones, but the Galaxy S25 Ultra lacks considerable detail compared to the Find X8 Ultra.
In this test, both phones are fairly evenly matched again, even at 10x zoom. There’s little to choose from between the two, and the same characteristics are observed again, with the Find X8 Ultra proving to be brighter and more colorful, and the Galaxy S25 Ultra proving to have better dynamic range.
This test reveals similar dynamics to many of the zoom tests again, with the Galaxy S25 Ultra lacking sharpness and detail in photos captured at the higher zoom lengths. Meanwhile, the Find X8 Ultra proves extremely capable even at 30x zoom.
The lack of detail in the base of the lantern in the photo captured by the Galaxy S25 Ultra is the biggest indicator that Samsung’s camera flagship can occasionally struggle at higher zoom lengths. It’s quite surprising, especially given that the 50MP resolution of the 5x telephoto matches that of the 6x telephoto lens used in the Find X8 Ultra.
It’s becoming a recurring theme that Samsung struggles to capture details at above 10x zoom, and this is particularly apparent when photographing subjects with intricate details. Neither phone utilizes pure optics to achieve photos at the highest zoom lengths, so it comes down to how much each company relies on AI to fill in the lack of detail.
Considering that, it’s clear that Oppo uses AI more than Samsung does. In some cases, this can lead to oversharpening of photos, but in scenes like this one, there’s no doubt that I’d rather have the picture captured by the Find X8 Ultra than the one captured by the Galaxy S25 Ultra. If using AI means we have usable photos at longer focal lengths, that’s a tradeoff I’m willing to accept.
Initially, I hadn’t intended to include this sample set, but upon examining the details at 10x magnification, I was forced to reconsider. Both phones take equally good photos at most distances, but it’s at the 10x zoom that you can see the subtle differences between the two.
In particular, the Find X8 Ultra captures more detail in the subject’s face than the Galaxy S25 Ultra and more accurately reflects the true colors of the subject. These are subtle differences, but noticeable, and the Find X8 Ultra produces a better overall photo as a result.
Winner: Find X8 Ultra. You often buy an Ultra phone for its telephoto performance, and the Find X8 Ultra proves more capable at higher focal lengths in most of my tests.
Testing the zoom in lowlight
The Find X8 Ultra may have won the zoom test in daylight, but does it also beat the Galaxy S25 Ultra in low-light conditions? The Find X8 Ultra’s true chroma sensor is also designed to yield significantly improved color reproduction in low-light conditions, but does it deliver?
This test is particularly interesting, as the Find X8 Ultra captures more accurate colors in both the subject and the blue skies, whilst the Galaxy S25 Ultra struggles to compensate for two different color profiles, resulting in washed-out skies.
The same effect can be observed in this test. The Galaxy S25 Ultra aims to balance the colors of the sky with those of the vibrant buildings and lighting, but struggles to do so, resulting in muted colors in the buildings and a duller sky.
The final test is one of my favorite scenes from my trip to China. It was the last photo I captured in this scenic park in Xi’an. Both phones take spectacular images at each of the different focal lengths. It’s worth mentioning that I love the duller blue in the Galaxy S25 Ultra photos, which makes all of them pop, but the Find X8 Ultra is more accurate.
Once you zoom to 30x, you also see how the Find X8 Ultra captures significantly more detail than the Galaxy S25 Ultra. This reaffirms the trend I’ve noticed throughout this test: Samsung is quite capable at lower focal lengths, up to 10x, but often struggles to capture details at higher focal lengths. The most surprising aspect is that the Galaxy S25 Ultra is equipped with a Space Zoom feature that promises to capture photos at 100x, but the results are not as impressive as those of the competition.
Which camera wins? Oppo Find X8 Ultra or Galaxy S25 Ultra?
Overall, this camera comparison yielded many interesting results. First, both phones feature very capable cameras at a variety of focal lengths. Second, it’s also clear that both can take excellent portrait photos, and you’ll likely be happy with either phone.
However, upon closer examination, it also becomes clear that the Galaxy S25 Ultra lags behind the Oppo Find X8 Ultra in capturing details at longer focal lengths, as well as in low-light conditions and certain portrait mode scenes.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra performs better than I had expected, based on my testing at different times; however, the Find X8 Ultra is the overall winner. Crucially, it’s more consistent than Samsung, and although there are differences in color reproduction between the various lenses, it’s the better camera overall.
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