Google Camera Go App Could Bring HDR To Budget Android Phones

Google is a huge fan of solving problems with software rather than adding more hardware. It was the reason why the first Pixel phone had only one camera but still bested those that had two or more. The one catch to that solution is that the software still needs to run on hardware powerful enough to run the necessary computations. That's why it's unbelievable yet also exciting to hear word that the humble Camera Go app might bring some rather heavy software-based HDR processing to cheap and less-powerful Android Go phones.

To be fair, Android Go phones these days are a far cry from the entry-level phones of yesteryears. Thanks to advancements in technology and manufacturing, these budget phones pack a lot of power today, perhaps enough to do some heavy computational processes, including combining several shots of the same object taken with different exposures. In other words, what camera apps call "HDR".

Google Camera app modders have dug deep into the new Camera Go app to inspect what the modest new addition to the Go family is really capable of. Imagine their surprise when they saw what is practically an HDR mode hiding under a "Detail Enhance" toggle. Considering how few features the app has, it's an unexpected find indeed.

It does suggest that Google may have found a way to utilize Android Go phones' meager resources to pull this off. That or it's confident that those phones have enough hardware muscle to support what has practically become a common feature on smartphones. It will definitely go a long way in making Android Go phones more attractive despite their very basic features.

Camera Go is currently only officially available on the new Nokia 1.3 and its single 8 megapixel camera. Google did promise it will make its way to other phones and you can expect that GCam modders will be doing what they can to expand its availability, unofficially of course.