Pixel 8 Pro brings back the ultra-wide camera for astrophotography One of the features that made the Pixel phones stand out from the crowd was the ability to capture stunning photos of the night sky using astrophotography mode. This mode, which was introduced in 2019, allowed users to point their phone’s rear camera at the sky and keep it steady with a tripod or any other means. The phone would then use computational photography to create a beautiful image of the stars and the Milky Way.
However, in 2020, Google decided to remove this feature from the ultra-wide camera of the Pixel 4a (5G) and the Pixel 5. The reason for this decision was not clear, but some Pixel users had reported issues with the quality of the ultra-wide astrophotography shots. The feature was still available on the main camera, but users could no longer use the wider field of view to capture more of the sky.
This year, Google has brought back the ultra-wide camera for astrophotography on the Pixel 8 Pro, the premium model of the Pixel 8 series. The Pixel 8 Pro has a 48MP ultra-wide sensor that uses pixel-binning technology to combine four pixels into one larger pixel. This improves the low-light performance and reduces the noise of the images. The Pixel 8, on the other hand, has a 12MP ultra-wide sensor that does not use pixel-binning.
The pixel-binning technology could be one of the factors that influenced Google’s decision to restore the ultra-wide camera for astrophotography on the Pixel 8 Pro. Another factor could be the marketing strategy to differentiate the Pro model from the regular model and attract more customers who are interested in this feature. The Pixel 8 Pro also has other advantages over the Pixel 8, such as a higher refresh rate, a telephoto lens, and wireless charging.
The Pixel 8 Pro users can now choose between three zoom levels when using astrophotography mode: 1x (standard), 2x, and .5x (ultra-wide). Google has also updated its Google Camera support page to clarify that astrophotography mode only works on zoom settings that are equal to or greater than 1x on Pixel 4a (5G) and later models. This means that the ultra-wide camera for astrophotography is exclusive to the Pixel 8 Pro.
The Pixel 7 Pro and Pixel 6 Pro, which were released in 2020 and 2021 respectively, also have 12MP ultra-wide sensors that do not support astrophotography mode. Therefore, it is unlikely that Google will make this feature backward compatible with these models. It seems that the ultra-wide camera for astrophotography is a new feature that Google will reserve for the Pro models of the Pixel series from now on.