Those of us of a certain age will remember a time when if you wanted to capture a special occasion, you needed a camera. And the results were not always good: blurred pictures, demonic-looking people with red eyes and the occasional image of a finger over the lens were all things we had to put up with.
Thankfully those days are long gone. Instead we can rely on our phone’s camera set-up to deliver impressive images. From high-end 1-inch sensors to AI‑infused filters, smartphone photography has never felt more exciting. In fact, these days you have to look long and hard to find a phone that doesn’t take a decent picture with its main sensor during the daytime. Where things get a bit trickier is if you want impressive zoom photography, in which case you’ll need a capable telephoto lens. Similarly, not every smartphone is well equipped for low-light photography. That’s where our in-depth guide comes in. We’ve rounded up the best camera phones in a range of categories, so whatever your needs, we’ve got it covered.
These days there are apps for just about every function. But many request extensive permissions that don’t always seem justified. A torch app, for example, doesn’t need access to your microphone. Often, invisible ad trackers run in the background, logging your behaviour, aggregating data and selling it to third parties. Inside this month’s issue, we’ll show you which apps are particularly problematic and how to check which permissions you’ve granted on your Android or iOS device.
All this and more, including reviews of the latest smartphones and best new wearable tech, how to use Android’s phone theft protection tools and the to-do list hack that will help fix your work-life balance, can be found inside the latest issue of Tech Advisor.
For details on how to download the August 2026 edition of Tech Advisor, click here.