I won't buy an Android phone in 2026 without this feature

After years of using Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel phones as my daily driver, I switched to Chinese Ultra phones a couple of years ago.

These phones pack better camera hardware, faster charging, and bigger batteries.

I also stumbled upon a useful camera feature that has completely changed how I click photos on a phone. That feature is telemacro, and in 2026, I won't buy an Android phone without it.

Related

These are the 8 weirdest ways I use my phone camera, and my life is easier for it

Unlock your lens beyond selfies

Posts By  Irene Okpanachi

Telemacro and macro aren't the same thing

And the difference actually matters

The ability to take macro photos is a common feature in premium and flagship Android phones. That said, it's not the same as telemacro.

With macro support, your phone uses the ultrawide camera to capture extreme close-up shots. On paper, it sounds good and enables the possibility of capturing a subject with a new perspective.

However, in practice, there are several issues. It is difficult to get so physically close to the subject, and even the slightest hand movement can ruin the shot.

This is where telephoto cameras with macro support come in. It doesn't require you to get as physically close to a subject.

Instead, it uses the longer focal length of the telephoto camera (and a floating lens) to enable you to capture close-up shots from a comfortable distance.

This might not seem like a big deal, but in daily use, it's the difference between actually getting a sharp, stunning, and usable macro shot vs. not taking one at all.

Admittedly, I didn't pay much heed to macro support on phones before switching to the Xiaomi 14 Ultra last year. That's despite having used devices like the Google Pixel 8 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, which technically support macro photography.

Given the effort required to click a decent macro picture, I tried the macro mode a handful of times on these phones and then promptly forgot about it. And this isn't just a me problem.

It all comes down to implementation. These phones rely on their ultrawide camera for macro shots, which makes it awkward and challenging to take a usable shot.

The Xiaomi 14 Ultra's telemacro feature removed that friction. Being able to shoot close-ups from a comfortable distance instantly changed how I use macro mode, and I found myself taking more macro shots than ever before.

And this was not a feature whose sheen wore off with time.

Nearly two years later, and after switching to the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and now the Vivo X300 Pro, I've consistently taken some of my favorite shots using telemacro.

And at this point, I can't think of going back to a phone without a telemacro lens.

See the sample shots below. I took all of them with ease, without once having to worry about my shadow ruining the scene or getting uncomfortably close to the subject.

Before getting the Xiaomi 14 Ultra, I rarely clicked macro shots due to the challenges involved. And even if I did take all that effort, there was no guarantee I would end up with a usable shot.

That all changed after I got used to clicking pictures with the telemacro lens.

In the last two years, I've captured tens of amazing macro photos. All of them came organically, and not because I forced myself to.

This was only because the entire process became effortless and stopped feeling like a struggle.

Once again, the biggest smartphone players missed the mark

Telemacro shouldn't be a niche feature

Unfortunately, like many other mobile hardware trends, Samsung, Google, and even Apple have missed this train.

While their flagship phones do support macro photography, they rely on the ultrawide shooter instead of the telephoto camera.

Contrary to rumors and what even Google's AI Overviews might suggest, the Pixel 10 Pro and its XL sibling also miss out on telemacro photography.

Subscribe for smartphone camera insights and telemacro tips

Want clearer telemacro shots? Subscribe to the newsletter for deeper smartphone camera coverage - practical telemacro tips, hands-on shooting advice, lens and phone comparisons, and real-world examples that help you choose and use phones that actually capture usable macro photos.

Subscribe
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Like the Galaxy and iPhone, the Pixel uses the 48MP ultrawide camera to capture macro shots. And so, the same caveats apply to it.

Disappointingly, this means that no major flagship Android phone available in the US supports telemacro.

It's understandable that companies like Apple, Samsung, and Google may want to avoid using bigger camera sensors on their phones due to design, thickness, and internal space constraints.

However, skipping a genuinely useful feature like telemacro is another thing altogether, especially since it does not require radical hardware upgrades.

Plus, telemacro is no longer an experimental feature. Chinese smartphone makers have proven its real-world value, and the technology has been around for a few years now.

No telephoto, no purchase

Heading into 2026, telemacro has become a non-negotiable feature for me in my primary smartphone.

If a $1,000+ flagship phone cannot let me capture close-up macro shots without getting awkwardly close to a subject, it's already off my shortlist, irrespective of how good its other features and specs are.

Unfortunately, if the leaks are accurate, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra is already off my list as it's unlikely to use a telemacro lens for its 5x periscope shooter.