yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Asus Zenfone 9] iceeyes91:
Try out the latest BSG gcam mod:

BSG GCam APKs - Google Camera Port

Modified Google Camera app by BSG.

www.celsoazevedo.com

Working front, rear cameras. Haven't test everything. But so far so good. Wide angle works too. No config applied

The stock camera auto HDR pictures are way to overexposed. This is just an example I took this morning. I prefer the gcam output.

I will post about this in the Asus forum once I have more time.

Cheers
[Asus Zenfone 9] Cero Osc:
You can try lastest Wichaya's 8.1 v1.6 Gcam:

Wichaya GCam APKs - Google Camera Port

Modified Google Camera app by Wichaya.

www.celsoazevedo.com
[Asus Zenfone 9] CuraeL:
The GCam makes photos look way better - how ever I'm not knowledgeable enough about the configs to know how to fix. The 8.1 Wichaya version seems to work the best. Though video modes still feel sluggish in the viewfinder. A lot of delay from moving the phone.

I also can't select the main 773 sensor in the noise reduction section. It's simply not there as an option.

Oh well. It seems to work otherwise. :) Slow motion and 50MP RAW has been disabled for now from Wichaya.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Veiranx:
This guy evidently got GCAM working and notes improvements over native camera app.
[Asus Zenfone 9] eneuro:
Has anyone how things are with android 13? The Gcam is way better, but cannot be used for all purposes, I wish Asus just fixes the heavy post-processing so I can use the native app which is great by the way.
[Asus Zenfone 9] CuraeL:
I just joined Android 13 beta program from my Zenfone 9. No ROM yet, but will let you know when they start rolling out.
[Asus Zenfone 9] mickey36736:
I made a config for my Wichaya 8.1 and created noise model with some other adjustment to the settings

Enabled 50MP for video and slow mo only (partially working)
[Asus Zenfone 9] Yoodj:
Just my 2 cents for wichaya.

The photo is tricky (but ugly) and the purpose was to demonstrate that the Asus process is not on par with the Gcam for color rendering and HDR.

The reds (box, chair and dress) are much more realistic on the Gcam shot. Same for the woody wall.

And look at the sky....
[Asus Zenfone 9] avivasaf:
The 50M dont work
[Asus Zenfone 9] mike freegan:
Did anyone get a gcam with working portrait mode? For me it doesnt apply the blur effect. I have to manually end the blur in Google Photos after
[Asus Zenfone 9] eVen123:
Works for me.

I'm using Wichya's Gcam mod + zenfone8/9 config. You have to take the photo in "Portrait" mode.
[Asus Zenfone 9] mike freegan:
I'm a little new to this. How do I apply that config?
[Asus Zenfone 9] eVen123:
GCam_8.1.101_Wichaya_V1.6.apk

Wichaya8.1-ZF8-V5.xml

In the app, you Setting -> Advanced -> XML config -> Import XML config (and you import it).

Before it will allow you to import, you also have to give the gcam the "All Files" permission.
[Asus Zenfone 9] mike freegan:
Thank you! Where do you find the config files?
[Asus Zenfone 9] mike freegan:
Oh I worked out the problem. It only applies portrait mode to photos of people, not to other objects. I remember this was the case with the original Google Pixel 1 that I had.

Is it the same for you?

It doesn't pick up my dog, which is a bummer.
[Asus Zenfone 9] eVen123:
Sadly, I don't have a pet to check :)

It works on my front and rear camera in vertical or horizontal orientation. It only works this way in "portrait" app setting (so chosen from between Night Sight/Portrait/Camera/Video/more...).

I've provided you the link to the config file too. It's an .XML file in the previous comment.
[Asus Zenfone 9] mike freegan:
Yes I got it thank you very much. I have a Pixel 6 too, and the portrait mode on that (and camera in general) is much better so I may just stick with that for now.
[Asus Zenfone 9] zilexa:
@eVen123 the config you link to is the one for Zenfone 8. Am I correct there is no Zenfone 9 config yet?

Is the gimbal stabilisation then used with Gcam?
[Asus Zenfone 9] eVen123:
I am actually using this config right now:

https://xdaforums.com/t/gcam-for-zenfone-9.4480591/#post-87393203

The gimbal stabilization works.
[Asus Zenfone 9] zwirek75:
I may be wrong, but based on what I see gimbal stabilization is always active on main lens for all apps including GCam.
[Asus Zenfone 9] deepsync:
Gimble stabilization is physical. No need to configure it.
[Asus Zenfone 9] eVen123:
Did anyone manage to get the 64mpx mode working in gcam?
[Asus Zenfone 9] CuraeL:
The stock ASUS app seems to have less sharpening in the Androind 13 beta release. A bit more saturated than Gcam but over all it looks way better than in Android 12. Images too big for me to upload here and I can't be arsed compressing them.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Dayuser:
Zenfone 9 has 50MP camera :unsure:
[Asus Zenfone 9] eVen123:
Yep, just like zf8. This is taken with stock cam.
[Asus Zenfone 9] vizzletf:
Hello, is there way to change default asus camera to gcam in apps (like telegram) and lock screen without root?
[Asus Zenfone 9] CuraeL:
Sadly not, no.
[Asus Zenfone 9] llamasurprise:
Anyone managed to get the 50MP mode working on Gcam mod?

I'm using this config:
[Asus Zenfone 9] Thecurse21:
Anybody knows if there's a dev working on a gcam version for our phone?
[Asus Zenfone 9] gsmm0n:
Any way to make QR codes work with gcam? They only seem to work with the Asus app ...
[Asus Zenfone 9] Cero Osc:
I used GCam_8.1.101_Wichaya_V1.6 and have tried some config.

Viewfinder is accurate, but the result is low saturation, so color reproduction isn't accurate.

Anybody knows how to adjust Saturation? Such a Highlight Saturation & Shadow Saturation, I tried to change Saturation in RamPatcher but didn't effect.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Thecurse21:
Try turning off the Google AWB, for me it made the colors way different than they are.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Cero Osc:
Unfortunately doesn't work for me
[Asus Zenfone 9] proeprnorf:
Anyone tried gcam 8.7 from BSG ?
[Asus Zenfone 9] S4turno:
On 4PDA there's a guy posting configs for Hasli's GCam 8.4. Don't know if it's better than the ones already mentioned here, but in case someone wants to try it out:

LMC8.4_R15

Configs:

Amal-3.0-LMC.xml (less noisy than v2.0 below)

Amal-2.0-LMC.xml

The configs folder for this version is /LMC8.4/ (in root of your storage, next to DCIM, Downloads, etc), not the usual folder.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Cero Osc:
I tried it, but 8.6 is better for me
[Asus Zenfone 9] Thecurse21:
Well I tried this one coming from Wichaya this one seems a bit more color accurate and has more details in certain situations and worse in some. Front camera seems to be more grainy, but the Wichaya version does a lot of processing, I will at some point post some photos for comparison. Also no initial lag when recording a video with Hasli's
[Asus Zenfone 9] traegr:
Hi, I recently came across this video too and have some questions about installing GCam for Zenfone 9:

1) Do I need to root or unlock bootloader to install GCam? Is it possible to install the apk without doing so?

2) I read that you need Camera2 API to install GCam and I used Camera2 Probe to check and it says for Back Camera 0 and Front Camera 1 it's "Level_3" and Back Camera 2 it's "Limited".....so does this mean it's possible or not?

3) Fron the youtube video the link for apk file is provided, but which config file should I be using/is there one provided for the zenfone?

4) Do I lose OTA updates/warranty from ASUS if I unlock the bootloader?

Thank you in advance!
[Asus Zenfone 9] Dayuser:
You don't need root or unlock bootloader to install GCam port. Just download apk what you like or suggested here (y)

Camera2 API level 3 is what it needs. Back camera 2 is limited so it may not work on GCam properly.

I suggest try that LMC R15 mentioned in post #37
[Asus Zenfone 9] traegr:
Huh I installed the GCam and realized for GCam wide-angled shots (0,7x vs Stock 0,6x) the distortions at the corner of the image are appalling.
[Asus Zenfone 9] zilexa:
For me Wichaya with ZenFone 8 or 9 configs on the website, give me video without any kind of stabilisation. If you are used to the stock camera, videos are very shaky.

Also, it often has an initial lag. And some videos are not smooth.

So I'm a bit lost. Asus did do a good job improving the stock cam (less extreme post processing!).

But taking a photo of a field of grass from my window while it's raining hard or snowing: the rain or snow is not visible in the photo!

Really weird. At least with Gcam you still see the rain. This is proof to me Gcam captures more detail or Asus still applies a little too much post processing.

But I do need gimbal stabilisation.

Btw QR code scanning also only works with the stock cam unfortunately..
[Asus Zenfone 9] zilexa:
So I removed data+cache of Wichaya then uninstalled. Installed Hasli version with Amal-3.0-LMC.xml.

But Hasli has no option to actually import and apply a config! If you select "Import Ready-made config", all it does is create a folder with lots of different configs in your root. No option to select one.

So I again removed data+cache+deleted contents of LMC8.4 folder.

Then copied Amal-3.0-LMC.xml into that folder and installed his Gcam again.

I suppose now it will automatically use that config?

If I go into Video Settings and disable video stabilisation, because I don't want software stabilisation, only hardware, my videos are much more shaky/choppy compared to stock cam.

Am I doing something wrong?
[Asus Zenfone 9] Dayuser:
Double tap empty spot next to shutter button choose xml.
[Asus Zenfone 9] AsusUser1:
Hello everyone! Please help with a couple of questions.

I am using ASUS Zenfone 9 + Mod GCam 8.1.101 by Wichya V 1.6 (+ Config «Wichaya8.1-ZF9-V4-081257.xml»).

1. When i turn off the “Video stabilization” item, does the stabilization turn off completely or does the first “Standard” item remain activated?
[Asus Zenfone 9] AsusUser1:
2. And, if there is a minute, please, the second question. When i activate the "Video" mode, the picture gets closer. Is this normal behavior?
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
Here's a comparison of HDR photos from GCam vs. the Asus stock camera software. This time, the GCam photo has a smaller file size than the stock camera software. This is because some of the details are blown out around the lights in the GCam output. Also, the Asus stock software was overall brighter (by a fair bit more than reality) and less noisy in the shadows. The Asus stock software pulled more details in the shadows and did a better job with the trees reflecting in the windows.

However, GCam was better with the midtones, see inside the lit hallway and the concrete texture of the building (again with more depth). Also, the NO Trespassing sign is more readable from GCam and the handicap parking sign is way oversharpened by the stock camera software.

I've also attached a 50 MP non-HDR output from the stock camera software. All three have a weird red lens flare or something in the top left.

I find the GCam output more pleasing.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
Decided to try out a couple other mods of GCam that have been reported to work on the Zenfone 9 including Hasli's LMC 8.4 R15 with a Zf9 specific config, and BSG's MGC_8.7.250_A11_V15 which does not have a specific config. For now I've only tested out the functionality differences and I'll try to compare the photo quality later.

Hasli's LMC has a a configurable viewfinder UI area so you can add a button for "Optical stabilization" enabling you to toggle it in photo mode. You can also add a Pro Mode, LDR mode, and Leica mode, I'm not sure what they all do but I expect it will affect image quality, dynamic range and colors, or just not work at all on the zf9. By default Hasli's LMC does not use tap-to-focus-and-track but you can add a button for "Tracking focus" to the UI which enables it.

Wichaya's mod doesn't seem to have as configurable a UI and by default the tap to focus will make it track that object/region while framing. You can't switch it to normal behavior of temporarily locking focal length upon tapping.

BSG's MGC doesn't have a config file for zf9 but it's the only one that doesn't crash out when you switch to Video - Slow Motion capture and I was able to film at 1/4 speed, but haven't tried any faster like 1/8. However, for slow motion I'll probably stick to the Asus stock app.

There are so many more settings I haven't dived into among these modded GCams but I'll start by comparing photo quality at default settings.

It's great that they all have different package names so you can have all three installed.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Thanks for reporting all this. Very interesting.

I have only tried Wichaya + config, but in my experience colors are worse (less natural) than on the stock cam - except for red(dish) colors in bright light. So I have stuck to stock, though I agree the sharpening / noise / detail balance is clearly better on the GCam.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
My preliminary testing shows that Hasli LMC keeps the most details by a good margin while BSG and Wichaya's mods are almost equal but BSG might be slightly less detailed and applies more denoising.

However, Hasli colors are rather off and shifted orange-yellow, especially for reds. Colors from BSG are very close to Wichaya and I'm certain they are closest to reality among the four cam apps I tested. Also a tiny bit more accurate than my LG V30. I'll upload some shots from them so you can see how hilarious overly sharpened the Zenfone stock cam software is compared to what the sensor and lens must be capable of since LMC is so much better. In fact, LMC details rival and maybe exceeds the 50MP unbinned jpeg from the stock camera.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Thanks. Below are some pics I made this morning comparing my Pixel 4 with ZF9 Wichaya (HDR+, not enhanced, hence the clipping); and, in some cases, with stock. Colors look somewhat better than I remember them on Wichaya, but hardly great. There is a bluish, evident tint on brighter ("beiger") surfaces, but present elsewhere.

p4x refers to the Pixel 4; w9x to Wichaya gcam; z9x to stock ZF9 camera.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Here are the rest of the pics (threesomes). Notice again the bluish tint on Wichaya - but also the better detail (better than P4 in some cases, in fact).
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
And finally... Here, the P4 pic is a bit blurry, sorry. But gives you a sense of colors at least. Stock is better than Wichaya colorwise, poorer in other respects.

I do not think I have time for Halsi and BSG comparisons now, but it would be terribly useful if you monitored the color differences. Thanks again for the detailed comparisons.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
OK, a quick comparison of Stock, Wichaya and LMC (ZF9 config 3.0). This is a crop of a pic taken indoors, with a source of light (windows) above the wooden bench.

Stock, as per usual, overbrightens and oversharpens, and has a lot of noise (look at the radiator). Whichaya messes up the white balance, again as usual, and is rather noisy. To my eyes, LMC does comparatively well with noise management vs. detail and does not oversharpen. Colors are relatively natural as well.

Do we have a winner? (There's a caveat: the pic size on LMC is almost twice as large as on the others - 8.2MB versus approx. 4.3MB).

Edit: Added MGC. Funny, here the file size is half stock: 2.5MB.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Final comparo - all four variants. To my eyes, very predictable behavior from all of them.

Note that this was a rather difficult shot due to the high contrast (bright sun in the bottom half of the pic, shade above), so there's highlight clipping in the gcam shots. That said, the stock HDR brightens up everything, as usual.

Again, I prefer the LMC shot for the detail / noise balance (zoom in on the tomcat's face to see what I mean). Stock is so oversharpened.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
OK, let me harrass you with an additional comparison. Since the Pixel 4 has a 2x telephoto, I thought I should compare it with what's available for the ZF9, since digital zoom may be relevant as well for GCam. Results below (crops).

To my eyes, the P4 is the winner here, as expected; but not only in terms of detail, also colors - most true to life (yes, the room is a bit dark). Once again, the LMC has good noise-detail balance, but messes up the colors (reds). Stock Asus cam app is oversharpening and overbrightening, color is better. Wichaya messes up the colors (reds in particular) but has has relatively decent digital zooming algorithms. GMC is the worst in terms of zooming detail (big splotches everywhere).

Of course, judge for yourselves.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
I can definitely see the bluish cast in your Wichaya outputs and I agree, Pixel has the best colors but LMC has better detail in your shots.

I have attached a comparison here and a few of the original files including a shot taken from my LG V30 which is a bit warmer than real life but definitely not as warm and orange as LMC on the Zenfone 9. I really hate the stock Asus app output in 12MP binned jpeg. The 50MP unbinned jpeg from the stock cam app is also not really that good and maybe worse than the binned output from Hasli LMC. If Hasli's colors weren't so off from real life and were a little less saturated I'd use it the most because it produces the best detail with low noise too. Wichaya is more noisy than BSG but retains a little more detail while also being slightly less accurate for color than BSG (see the gratings at the very top of the crane structure). The noise of Wichaya really mangles the grass directly to the right of the front bumper of the Ford Focus, which happens to make a great color reference because everybody knows that Focus shade of red. BSG and Hasli both handle the grass better and the LG V30 algorithm is great too.

I have a few more comparisons to add and even a couple instances where LMC's softness loses to Wichaya's sharpening for details across the scene.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Colorwise, I quite like the V30. But look at the branches carrying cones in the crop comparison. Hasli/LMC looks good; the best, I would argue. Stock is terrible. It would be great if LMC managed to deal with the excessively warm colors (which I prefer over blueish ones, it should be said).

That said, we're pixel-peeping a lot. Truth be told, Asus stock is not bad at all. It's just not very good.

Looking back, I am also somewhat amused at how criticized LG's flagships were in the community for their pictures. People said they were too soft, HDR was not radical enough a.s.o.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Dayuser:
It's your job to find right color settings in gcam to get pictures you want. Not devs job. There are many color settings in gcam to play with.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Where did I say it's his job? It's not his duty to even make the app work at all. But I am glad it works and I would be even merrier if the guy who did the config file (my thanks to him!) also sorted out the colors.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
Haha, I also recall all the criticism people gave LG about their photos and was a little worried when I got the V30 used; ended up using it for 5 years and have been happy with the photos. Their camera software is very good too and I love that I can say "kimchi" or "cheese" to trigger the shutter.

Yes, we're pixel-peeping and I'll admit most people wouldn't do it to this level. However, my job outdoors ends up requiring me to take many environment photos and also photos of the vegetation on the ground. So being confident that I can discern the type of plants from one another in a photo at a distance of about 3-5 m away is super useful. I should try photographing vegetation from directly above where I point the camera down at basically my feet, so about 1.3 m away.

Anyway, I appreciate your test photos and opinions. I have attached another comparison of a tough scene. In the very middle, the leaves and branches of a cherry tree are in front of a branch of a spruce tree, which is in front of a pine tree in the background. Hasli's LMC outperforms them all in terms of distinguishing the 3 trees and shadow/realism., however its color is off from reality. Wichaya is a little better than BSG, and the stock cam is just awful and overly brightened. I've also attached a crop of the 50 MP unbinned file which isn't bad in the centre but pretty bad for the background. I also see that Wichaya is very slightly more blue than BSG ever since you've pointed it out.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
Okay, I'm sorry for turning this thread into a showcase of photos from my holiday, but I think these shots of the same scene with the 3 different Gcams further demonstrates their differences and may be useful to others.

In the scene with the small stream you'll see how much worse stock is compared to Wichaya and Hasli. Also apparent is the differing sharpness between the latter two.

The next scene of the brick road is just Hasli LMC vs. Wichaya where I think I prefer Wichaya overall though Hasli may have arguably better detail if you pixel-peep.

In the portrait of the lighthouse, Wichaya seems to have the best dynamic range and beats Hasli in details too.

The last two photos show the difference in color and saturation between Hasli and Wichaya, especially for ocean waters on a sunny day. Also, this is where I first noticed how much smoother water surfaces are from Hasli vs. the others. It's apparent in all my photos with moving water, so waves and ripples are less pronounced and thus less true to life, but some people might prefer it. Most seem to prefer the colors from Hasli.
[Asus Zenfone 9] Silly22:
Some more comparison shots:

In the scene of the cadets, Hasli LMC definitely has the best detail though the greens are oversaturated compared to reality. BSG is more smeared than Wichaya. I have a photo using the Asus stock software here too but it's pretty terrible in all respects.

In the next photos of the harbour I personally prefer LMC over Wichaya for the feeling of distance since it seems to retain the fog better, but the foreground sharpness is more pleasing from Wichaya. Also, this is another example of how smoothed out the waves on the water are in Hasli compared to Wichaya which shows much more texture on the water. The colors are warmer than natural from Hasli too but only very slightly.

For the next two photos with the valley of greenery, I like Wichaya on a small screen and Hasli on a proper computer monitor. Hasli definitely retains more details in the background but the green is a little oversaturated and brighter than it was in real life.

The following jellybean photos are only really useful to see the different colors, mostly that Hasli is oversaturated and a little too bright. Wichaya jellybeans, Hasli LMC jellybeans, BSG MGC jellybeans.
[Asus Zenfone 9] landsome:
Thanks. Very interesting shots. Generally, they consolidate my impression that, for my tastes at least, it's LMC > Wichaya > GMC > Stock. I prefer Hasli's LMC over Wichaya colorwise as well, though both bother me. Stock is worst due to oversharpening, although Asus got the colors right - minus the overbrightening.

I have not really tested video (which seems worse on all Gcam ports); or other gimmicks such as portrait (seems not to work on LMC in my case) or night shots (LMC messes up bright sports badly, they obliterate everything around). But my impression is that Gcams are substantially worse than stock in these respects, so there will be a sacrifice here.