The OnePlus 8T series may be equipped with a 64MP main camera, which may be exactly what it takes to beat Samsung's Galaxy Note 20.

The basis for this rumor is a finding published by XDA Developers regarding a recently released update to the OnePlus Camera app.

Some_Random_Username, a senior member of XDA, found a code string in the update that references a 64MP sensor. He also mentions that the camera will work at a lower 16MP resolution, which will result in smaller photos but more effective performance in low-light conditions. For comparison, both the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro use a 48MP sensor for the main rear camera, which can also shoot at 12MP.

While we really like the OnePlus 8 Pro and the photos it produces, its camera was not class-leading. That said, we are interested in the possibility of a larger sensor being introduced, especially with the upcoming launch of the Galaxy Note 20, the biggest Android release of the year.

Rumors suggest that the standard Note 20 will have a 64MP camera. However, this is not the main sensor, but a 3x hybrid zoom telephoto sensor, similar to the one seen on the Galaxy S20 and Galaxy S20 Plus. The main camera uses a smaller 12MP sensor.

The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is believed to use an even larger 108MP main camera, the same one used by the Galaxy S20 Ultra. However, testing of the S20 Ultra's photography techniques revealed that getting this massive sensor to work proved to be a tricky task, especially when it comes to getting it to focus properly.

Samsung appears to have addressed this by adding a new laser autofocus sensor to the Note 20 Ultra. However, while this new laser sensor may be an improvement, it is not certain at this time whether it will be as good as a regular camera sensor like the rumored 64MP OnePlus camera.

But hardware is not the only factor to consider when evaluating cell phone photography. Software processing, if done properly, can be a major advantage, as Samsung, Apple, and Google have proven by leading the pack with superior computational photography while focusing on smaller sensors.

There are not many leaks of the OnePlus 8T yet, but we can expect rumors to ramp up in October, when OnePlus usually announces the T model each year. We expect the 8T and 8T Pro to use the Snapdragon 865 Plus chipset and offer better performance than the standard 8 series.