Gcam is probably the most popular app for shooting pictures on Android phones. Gcam stands for Google Camera, which as you may know has the best software-based photo processing algorithm, which ensures your pictures are as sharp as they can be, even in challenging light conditions.
The thing is, all phones come with a stock Camera app from the OEM which don’t really hold a candle to Gcam. That is why many people rely on the modded camera app for their photography needs.
Gcam modder slams OnePlus for removing access to full sensor resolution and auxiliary cameras
Gcam modder Celso Azevedo, has called out OnePlus for some of the company’s practices. Here’s why. A lot of phones these days ship with three or four cameras, but what you may not know is that most of these devices have an unusual limitation. You can only access the auxiliary cameras (the secondary, tertiary and quaternary sensors) with the official camera app that the phone comes with.
As if it wasn’t bad enough that Cemra2API is mandatory for third-party camera apps such as Gcam, to work correctly, these apps do not have access to the other cameras without root. Celso says that a developer recently found a workaround for this, which enabled OnePlus 7, OnePlus 7T, OnePlus 8, OnePlus 8 Pro, and OnePlus Nord users to use the popular camera mod with the other optical sensors.
Unfortunately this bypass was short-lived, as OnePlus blocked the method with the Android 11 Update. Apparently the reason behind the move was “potential security issues”, but Celso speculates this may also have been due to the backlash from users who complained that the sensors were far inferior to the primary camera. The company didn’t want a negative impression, and instead blocked access to the auxiliary cameras.
And it gets worse, OnePlus also prevents Gcam from using the full sensor resolution, such as 48MP. So, users can only get 12MP photos with Gcam. This may not seem like a huge deal, but the binning technology can capture more details in pictures. The worst part is that OnePlus is that other OEMs including Xiaomi, Samsung, Realme do the same with their phones. We can’t help but agree with the developer, and this worrying trend should stop.
OnePlus was also criticized by MKBHD recently for their declining standards. And this makes us wonder why Carl Pei left the company, perhaps there is more to it than meets the eye.
