Just a little over a month after publishing the first part of this blind camera comparison conducted between top-end smartphone flagships, the votes are finally in. The lineup includes the leading flagships of 2025 like the iPhone 17 Pro Max, Pixel 10 Pro XL, Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, OPPO Find X8 Pro, Vivo X200 Pro, and Xiaomi 15 Ultra.
Over 4,000 responses later, we now have a clear picture of which phones people actually preferred when they did not know the brand behind each shot. This follow-up is all about revealing those results, round by round, and seeing whether the crowd favourites match the usual flagship expectations.
Some of these heavy-hitters already have next‑gen successors like the OPPO Find X9 Pro (review) and the Vivo X300 Pro (review) on shelves, which makes this feel like a proper final look at the camera flagships of 2025 before the new wave takes over. From daylight and ultrawide to portraits, selfies, zoom and low light, it is time to find out which phone or phones quietly emerged as the real camera champion of 2025, chosen purely by your votes.
Table of Contents
Daylight
Winner: Vivo X200 Pro (Phone D)
Phone D, which turned out to be the Vivo X200 Pro, won this round with roughly 47 percent of the total votes in the poll. The shot feels like something most people would instantly like. The building looks sharp and well-defined, and the reds and blues are vibrant enough to instantly grab attention. The sky stays bright while the entrance area still keeps decent detail, so the scene looks clean and appealing at first glance. This balance of sharpness, contrast, and colour likely helped it secure the lead.
Ultrawide
Winner: Vivo X200 Pro (Phone C)
Once again, Phone C turned out to be the Vivo X200 Pro and won the ultrawide round with about 47.5% of the total votes. The frame looks bright and sharp, very similar to how its daylight shot landed. The building remains detailed across the width of the image, and the colours still have that extra bit of vibrancy. The phone also keeps the sky and highlights well controlled and avoids the corners being too distorted, which is probably why people gravitated towards this shot again.
Portrait
Winner: iPhone 17 Pro Max (Phone D)
In the portrait round, the image from Phone D, revealed as the iPhone 17 Pro Max, pulled ahead with about 27 percent of the votes, just a touch higher than Vivo’s 23 percent. The shot has an easy, flattering look: skin tones appear natural, the background blur looks smooth and controlled, and the subject is highlighted without excessive sharpening. The colours are balanced, and the overall frame looks polished yet relaxed, which is likely what convinced people to pick this one over the others.
Selfie
Winner: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (Phone D)
Selfies were a one‑sided affair, and we’re seeing a bit of a pattern here with Phone D being the winner. The winning shot was actually from the Galaxy S25 Ultra, with a total of 47 percent votes. The image looks bright, doesn’t wash out the face, and the white shirt stays white and is not overexposed. Skin tones come across fairly natural, background details are intact, and the overall image feels ready to post and requires almost no tweaks. The mix of clarity, brightness, and flattering colour profile likely made this the obvious pick for most people.
5x Zoom
Winner: OPPO Find X8 Pro (Phone D)
For the 5x zoom round, voters leaned towards Phone D, revealed as the Oppo Find X8 Pro, giving it around 32 percent of the total votes. The shot appears sharp, especially around the “Unitech” signboard and the leaves and branches. Colours are rich and not overly vibrant, and the exposure holds well, so the highlights are well preserved.
10x Zoom
Winner: Xiaomi 15 Ultra
Zoom shots clearly showed a pattern too, with Phone D once again taking the win. This time, the image actually came from the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, which grabbed the audience with about 36 percent of the total votes. The 10x frame looks quite clean: the “Unitech” board is readable, the branches have good edges, and the trees still have texture. Colours are on the vibrant side, and the exposure looks controlled.
Low light
Winner: Xiaomi 15 Ultra
Low light was where things really tilted in Xiaomi’s favour, with Phone C, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, taking home about 49 percent of the total votes. The building looks clear and well‑lit without turning up the exposure too high, and the sky appears dark and smooth with minimal noise. Light flares from the windows are well controlled, the tree still has decent texture, and shadows are preserved as well. These are some of the reasons why you guys might have chosen this image as the winner.
Verdict
After running through all seven rounds, this blind test ends in a surprising tie at the top. Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Vivo X200 Pro walk away with two category wins each, while iPhone 17 Pro Max, Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and OPPO Find X8 Pro each pick up a key victory of their own. It is a neat reminder that there is no single “perfect” camera phone right now, just different strengths depending on what you shoot the most.
What this experiment really shows is how different things look once you strip away logos and spec sheets. In several categories, the popular choice did not always belong to the loudest or newest launch, and a couple of results were a lot closer than expected. Going into the next wave of flagships, it feels like a fitting send-off for the flagship class of 2025. Stay tuned for our next set of blind camera comparisons, this time with the newer flagship launches in focus.
