We put the Black Shark 5 Pro through our rigorous DXOMARK Camera test suite to measure its performance in photo, video, and zoom quality from an end-user perspective. This article breaks down how the device fared in a variety of tests and several common use cases and is intended to highlight the most important results of our testing with an extract of the captured data.
Overview
Key camera specifications:
- Primary: 108MP 1/1.52″ sensor, 0.7 µm pixels, f/1.75-aperture lens, AF
- Ultra-wide: 8MP, f/2.2-aperture lens, AF
- Macro: 5MP, f/2.4-aperture lens, AF
Scoring
Sub-scores and attributes included in the calculations of the global score.
Black Shark 5 Pro
101
camera
92
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (118)
93
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (119)
95
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (120)
88
Oppo Find X6 Pro
Best: Oppo Find X6 Pro (118)
88
Honor Magic5 Pro
Best: Honor Magic5 Pro (116)
77
Google Pixel 6
Best: Google Pixel 6 (81)
55
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (80)
61
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Best: Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max (91)
46
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (118)
56
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (119)
77
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Best: Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max (115)
89
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Best: Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max (117)
73
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Best: Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max (117)
104
Oppo Find X6 Pro
Best: Oppo Find X6 Pro (118)
103
Samsung Galaxy A23 5G
Best: Samsung Galaxy A23 5G (118)
78
Xiaomi 12S Ultra
Best: Xiaomi 12S Ultra (86)
93
Huawei P60 Pro
Best: Huawei P60 Pro (117)
Use cases & Conditions
Use case scores indicate the product performance in specific situations. They are not included in the overall score calculations.
Outdoor
Photos & videos shot in bright light conditions (≥1000 lux)
Indoor
Photos & videos shot in good lighting conditions (≥100lux)
Lowlight
Photos & videos shot in low lighting conditions (<100 lux)
Friends & Family
Portrait and group photo & videos
Position in Global Ranking
97
th
8. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
146
11. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max
141
14. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)
140
18. Vivo X80 Pro (Snapdragon)
137
22. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
135
22. Vivo X80 Pro (MediaTek)
135
27. Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon)
133
27. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon)
133
32. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
131
32. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
131
42. Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
127
45. Vivo X70 Pro (MediaTek)
126
49. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos)
125
53. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4
124
55. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
122
59. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
120
59. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos)
120
63. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
117
63. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon)
117
63. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon)
117
68. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
116
71. Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G (Snapdragon)
115
71. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
115
80. Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G
113
83. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4
112
85. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G
111
85. Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G (Exynos)
111
85. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos)
111
90. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Exynos)
108
92. Samsung Galaxy A54 5G
107
95. Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G
102
99. Apple iPhone SE (2022)
100
106. Samsung Galaxy A34 5G
92
109. Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
88
109. Samsung Galaxy A52 5G
88
111. Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
85
114. Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
79
115. Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G
78
118. Honor Magic5 Lite 5G
74
119. Samsung Galaxy A23 5G
70
120. Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G
69
123. Samsung Galaxy A14 5G
67
124. Motorola Moto G62 5G
66
125. Xiaomi Redmi Note 11S 5G
65
127. Xiaomi Redmi Note 12
63
129. Honor Magic4 Lite 5G
61
131. Xiaomi Redmi Note 11
60
137. Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022
51
139. Samsung Galaxy A22 5G
48
Position in Premium Ranking
25
th
1. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon)
133
6. Vivo X70 Pro (MediaTek)
126
9. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos)
120
10. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon)
117
10. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon)
117
14. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
116
19. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos)
111
21. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Exynos)
108
Pros
- Accurate target exposure in outdoor and indoor conditions
- Preview image that is close to capture
- Stable autofocus in photo and video
- Efficient macro mode
- Good level of noise in bright light conditions in videos
Cons
- Limited dynamic range with bright areas usually clipped
- Visible white balance casts
- In bokeh, visible issues with size and shape
- Low target exposure in video
- Texture artifacts in video, including distortion
- Low details when zooming in
The Black Shark 5 Pro camera achieved a decent score in photo and video thanks to its capabilities in outdoor and indoor conditions. It also has an outstanding macro feature that allows the user to take close-up pictures with a good level of details. However, the camera was less performant in challenging conditions such as HDR scenes and low light when taking photos or shooting videos. In those conditions, some artifacts were visible, and the device struggled to render scene texture accurately.
The device’s lack of a telephoto lens means that it relies on a digital zoom, which had an impact on image quality when zooming in.
When taking video, the Black Shark 5 Pro performed quite similarly to the Xiaomi 12, its closest competitor, but there were some differences in the color rendering. The Black Shark 5 Pro also showed some issues with video stabilization and had limited zoom capabilities.
Test summary
About DXOMARK Camera tests: DXOMARK’s Camera evaluations take place in laboratories and in real-world situations using a wide variety of subjects. The scores rely on objective tests for which the results are calculated directly by measurement software on our laboratory setups, and on perceptual tests in which a sophisticated set of metrics allow a panel of image experts to compare aspects of image quality that require human judgment. Testing a smartphone involves a team of engineers and technicians for about a week. Photo, Zoom, and Video quality are scored separately and then combined into an Overall score for comparison among the cameras in different devices. For more information about the DXOMARK Camera protocol, click here. More details on smartphone camera scores are available here. The following section gathers key elements of DXOMARK’s exhaustive tests and analyses. Full performance evaluations are available upon request. Please contact us on how to receive a full report.
Black Shark 5 Pro Camera Scores vs Premium
This graph compares DXOMARK photo, zoom and video scores between the tested device and references. Average and maximum scores of the price segment are also indicated. Average and maximum scores for each price segment are computed based on the DXOMARK database of devices tested.
Photo
105
Huawei P60 Pro
Huawei P60 Pro
About DXOMARK Camera Photo tests
For scoring and analysis, DXOMARK engineers capture and evaluate more than 2,600 test images both in controlled lab environments and in outdoor, indoor and low-light natural scenes, using the camera’s default settings. The photo protocol is designed to take into account the main use cases and is based on typical shooting scenarios, such as portraits, family, and landscape photography. The evaluation is performed by visually inspecting images against a reference of natural scenes, and by running objective measurements on images of charts captured in the lab under different lighting conditions from 1 to 1,000+ lux and color temperatures from 2,300K to 6,500K.
Black Shark 5 Pro Photo scores
The photo tests analyze image quality attributes such as exposure, color, texture, and noise in various light conditions. Autofocus performances and the presence of artifacts on all images captured in controlled lab conditions and in real-life images are also evaluated. All these attributes have a significant impact on the final quality of the images captured with the tested device and can help to understand the camera's main strengths and weaknesses.
Black Shark 5 Pro – Accurate target exposure and white balance.
Autofocus irregularity and speed: 1000Lux Δ0EV Daylight Handheld
This graph illustrates focus accuracy and speed and also zero shutter lag capability by showing the edge acutance versus the shooting time measured on the AFHDR setup on a series of pictures. All pictures were taken at 1000Lux with Daylight illuminant, 500ms after the defocus. The edge acutance is measured on the four edges of the Dead Leaves chart, and the shooting time is measured on the LED Universal Timer.
DXOMARK CHART (DMC) detail preservation score vs lux levels for tripod and handheld conditions
This graph shows the evolution of the DMC detail preservation score with the level of lux, for two holding conditions. DMC detail preservation score is derived from an AI-based metric trained to evaluate texture and details rendering on a selection of crops of our DXOMARK chart.
Visual noise evolution with illuminance levels in handheld condition
This graph shows the evolution of visual noise metric with the level of lux in handheld condition. The visual noise metric is the mean of visual noise measurement on all patches of the Dead Leaves chart in the AFHDR setup. DXOMARK visual noise measurement is derived from ISO15739 standard.
Zoom
66
Huawei P60 Pro
Huawei P60 Pro
About DXOMARK Camera Zoom tests
DXOMARK engineers capture and evaluate over 400 test images in controlled lab environments and in outdoor, indoor, and low-light natural scenes, using the camera’s default settings and pinch zoom at various zoom factors from ultra wide to very long-range zoom. The evaluation is performed by visually inspecting the images against a reference of natural scenes, and by running objective measurements of chart mages captured in the lab under different conditions from 20 to 1000 lux and color temperatures from 2300K to 6500K.
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Zoom Scores vs Ultra-Premium
This graph illustrates the relative scores for the different zoom ranges evaluated. The abscissa is expressed in 35mm equivalent focal length. Zooming-in scores are displayed on the right and Zooming-out scores on the left.
Video
104
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
About DXOMARK Camera Video tests
DXOMARK engineers capture and evaluate more than 2.5 hours of video in controlled lab environments and in natural low-light, indoor and outdoor scenes, using the camera’s default settings. The evaluation consists of visually inspecting natural videos taken in various conditions and running objective measurements on videos of charts recorded in the lab under different conditions from 1 to 1000+ lux and color temperatures from 2,300K to 6,500K.
Black Shark 5 Pro Video scores
Video tests analyze the same image quality attributes as for still images, such as exposure, color, texture, or noise, in addition to temporal aspects such as speed, and smoothness and stability of exposure, white balance, and autofocus transitions.
BlackShark 5 Pro – In moving scenes, stabilization performance is affecting scene rendering even if color and exposure are properly tuned.
DXOMARK CHART (DMC) detail preservation video score vs lux levels
This graph shows the evolution of the DMC detail preservation video score with the level of lux in video. DMC detail preservation score is derived from an AI-based metric trained to evaluate texture and details rendering on a selection of crops of our DXOMARK chart.
Spatial visual noise evolution with the illuminance level
This graph shows the evolution of spatial visual noise with the level of lux. Spatial visual noise is measured on the visual noise chart in the video noise setup. DXOMARK visual noise measurement is derived from ISO15739 standard.
Temporal visual noise evolution with the illuminance level
This graph shows the evolution of temporal visual noise with the level of lux. Temporal visual noise is measured on the visual noise chart in the video noise setup.
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