Camera Reviews
Gionee Elife E8 Camera Review

Gionee first introduced its E-Series of handsets in India when the company officially entered the country. The times have changed for the company, the range that started as the first smartphone range from the company has become something more than that now. The E Series is touted as the flagship camera phones, and the latest Elife E8 is the beast according to the company. It was recently launched in India after being first announced in China couple of months ago.
The device packs 24-megapixel sensor on the rear of the device, which has the aperture number of f/2.0, which has got a good lens for a flagship. The lens might not be large as seen on Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and LG G4, but it certainly has an advantage when it comes to megapixel count. Alongside the massive camera sensor, the device on the rear has a dual-tone LED flash, which should help in color correction in low light conditions.
The camera app is amusing while I still prefer the stock camera app, but the new Amigo UI 3.1 has stepped its game. The clean and simple UI is the charmer once you start operating the camera features. There are plethoras of modes available on the app most of them serve their purpose fine, but my favorites are the Ultra Pixel and Magic Focus.
Low Light Captures – Gallery
- Gionee Elife E8 – Low Light Normal Mode
- Gionee Elife E8 – Low Light Night Mode
- Gionee Elife E8 – Low Light Normal Mode 2
- Gionee Elife E8 – Low Light Night Mode 2
- Gionee Elife E8 – Low Light Normal Mode 3
- Gionee Elife E8 – Low Light Night Mode 3
- Gionee Elife E8 – Dark Light Normal Mode
- Gionee Elife E8 – Dark Light Night Mode
- Gionee Elife E8 – Dark Light Flash ON
Company claims that that it has the fastest focus at 0.2 seconds, these days every manufacturer claims that, and that’s one of the confusions being faced by smartphone consumers, especially if you’re getting a smartphone just for its camera capabilities. For what my experience was with Elife E8, the focusing was snappy, it doesn’t make you wait, you just tap on the screen where the focus is required, and the camera will get it done quickly.
Though, the one thing I’m a bit of disappointed on is the low light capabilities of the module; it is not as advertised. The 24-megapixel rear cam is claimed to have the best dark capture capabilities in Night mode. But that was not the case when we tested out the device in low light conditions.
Comparing the normal and night mode captures you could see improvements in details but that too only slight. It does not impact a lot. I would rather suggest you to go with Pro Mode or even with LED Flash. The Pro mode at full shutter speed does miracle even in the dark light, but for that to work you have to keep the device still and without using a tripod it would be quite impossible to hold still for such long time. While the LED Flash is simply splendid, the dual-tone support allows the color saturation to be close to true. And in doing so the white balance looks neat as well.
Natural Light Captures – Gallery
- Gionee Elife E8 – Natural Light Focus on Background
- Gionee Elife E8 – Natural Light (3)
- Gionee Elife E8 – Natural Light (7)
- Gionee Elife E8 – Natural Light (6)
The broad daylight captures are stunning on the Elife E8 rear camera; you’ll be in love with the photos. There is no complaint about the daylight captures, the color saturation, white balance and everything else is pretty great. You see plenty of details in the normal capture mode with 5696 x 4272 resolutions.
If that’s not enough then you can go ahead with Ultra Pixel mode, which offers the 120-megapixel (12608 x 9456) resolution images where details can’t hide from the camera. Literally. Of course, you’ll have to be good at still photography but that’s worth the time. The Ultra Pixel mode makes it easier to capture clear details as far as 1 mile that is not achievable on the Normal mode. See for yourself in the camera samples below.
- Gionee Elife E8 – Normal Mode
- Gionee Elife E8 – Ultra Pixel Mode
- Left Side: 100% Zoom – Normal Capture , Right Side : 100% Zoom – Ultra Pixel Capture
There is no optical image stabilization support, which is sad, and that is the reason of the shakes in the video recording. Even though there is an anti-shaking feature that is nothing but a software stabilization helps in removing those shakes you might have done while recording. It’s not surprising that you get 4K Video recording option since the camera module is so large. But what was expected that there should be a better stabilization available on the E8 than E7. Even with a generation gap the video content output seems to be of same quality.
There was one more thing that displeased my experience was that I was not able to upload the 4K video directly to YouTube. The site was not able to convert the RAW 4K video recording.
Artificial Light Captures – Gallery
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light Focus on Object
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light Focus on Background
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Shot
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Close up Shot
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
- Gionee Elife E8 – Artificial Light
The front facing camera is of 8-megapixels, which has an aperture number of f/2.2. It pretty much blows the competition with its stunning captures. There are many selfies dedicated smartphones out there in the market, but I wouldn’t recommend them over this camera phone from Gionee. There is no flash present on the front, but it’s not needed in most lighting conditions except it’s too dark to see even. Just for your FYI, the front snapper yields 3264 x 2448 resolution images.
Verdict
The device is pretty much all about the camera, and we are almost sold out on that part. The 24-megapixel camera sensor is gigantic for a smartphone, which takes stunning captures in natural light, artificial light and even in low light. But the dark light capabilities aren’t good on the Elife E8. You have to either use the LED Flash or go in the Pro mode to take a full exposure shot; of course you’ll require a tripod for that. The front snapper is pretty much all you need to take good selfies at the dinner table or almost anywhere.
Overall, the camera module combination is worth a buy if you’re in a market for a camera smartphone. Though, you can also get some other options in the market for much less price such as Huawei Honor 7 and Lenovo Vibe Shot. If the price is not the issue for you, then it is one of the best camera phones let alone a smartphone for its large size and camera buffs.