14 DAY TRIAL // The Google Camera HDR+ app was ported a while back and made to work with non-Google devices, and now it also comes with RAW support and full HDR customization.
Google phones have this nice application called the Google Camera app, which is good in itself. Even if you were to export it and try to install it on other devices, it would not work. It’s built only for specific devices.
A third-party developer took the time to port the application for other phones, and in one of the latest updates, the application received a lot of interesting features and customizations, well beyond what the original app was providing.
Google should take notes
One of the reasons Android is so popular is that it’s a relatively open system, for the most part. Developers from all over the world can make apps for it, change it in various ways, and improve it. The same goes for the applications made by Google.
The Camera app was already a good one, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be better. That’s why Ivanich, a senior XDA member, brought some features that were really needed, such as the ability to choose your own HDR algorithm, and there is even RAW support.
RAW images contain a lot more information and are not compressed in any way. This means that it’s possible to greatly improve upon an image with the proper application.
Of course, there are some drawbacks. The application is designed for the Snapdragon SoC (system on chip), and it won’t work on other devices that have different SoC solutions, such as Exynos for example.
Some of the devices that have been confirmed to work, according to XDA, include LG G6, OnePlus 3, OnePlus 3T, OnePlus 5, Samsung Galaxy S8, LG V20, and even the Essential Phone. Most likely, the application will also work on other phones as well, so you can give it a try.