Does default camera app use all cameras?

Hi!

So it’s my understanding that smartphones now-a-days have several cameras on their back to somehow improve picture quality. I notice though when I use the default e/os/ camera app that I can switch between the different cameras on the back (using a Fairphone 4). Does this mean that the default e/os/ camera app only supports using one of them, and that I’m not utilizing my phone’s hardware to its fullest potential?

If so, any suggestions on good camera apps?

Regain your privacy! Adopt /e/ the unGoogled mobile OS and online servicesphone

The default camera app is a fork of Open Camera. A search for “open camera” multiple cameras did not turn up many results and those it did find were at best about switching between multiple cameras. (Open Camera itself btw might not detect the three cameras on the FP4, when I installed it I couldn’t switch between cameras and the option to enable it was not where the docs said it should be.)
So based on that I doubt the app uses all cameras to improve the picture quality, which is a shame

Would be nice if somebody could give more certainty though.

Second the question about camera recommendations. Have you found a good one in the mean time @frebys?
Presumably the default camera shipped by fairphone uses all cameras together, what is it called / where could we find it?

Open Camera does actually have rudimentary multiple camera support, however LineageOS includes a patchset that limits how many cameras apps can see if they are not on an allow list that is hardcoded into the system. This is done because in the past, and maybe still today, apps would crash if there were more than two cameras.
https://review.lineageos.org/c/LineageOS/android_frameworks_base/+/318991

Hi, I’ve recently converted to /e/ on a FP4 and I just noticed the same thing with the camera app.

It’s been a few months since this topic was made, anyone got any updates/suggestions?

Cheers

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I just got /e/ up and running on a OnePlus 7 Pro and am running into the same problem…tried taking a picture of the moon as it was setting on the horizon this morning and wanted to use the telephoto camera, but couldn’t find a selector for it. I can toggle between the normal (?) camera and the selfie cam and digital zoom is available, but I can’t figure out how to switch to the wide-angle or telephoto cameras.