Under-display cameras are perhaps the largest unexplored area of cutting-edge smartphone technology today. With foldable phone designs finally being refined, making the camera available from below the screen is the next challenge for R&D teams at smartphone companies to get it to work properly.

This is because, as far as currently available under-display cameras are concerned, we are not there yet.

The adoption of this technology is accelerating. Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 3 has an under-display camera under its main 7.6-inch display, and the newly released ZTE Axon 30 5G is ZTE's second attempt at an under-display camera after producing the first ever phone with one last year with the Axon 20. s second attempt at producing a phone with an under-display camera.

More under-display cameras are rumored for 2022, with devices like the Galaxy S22 rumored to add this feature. Clearly, we are at the beginning of a revolution in cell phone front-facing cameras, but as it stands, these under-screen sensors are not in a position to become the next default feature in cell phones.

One concession I can make to these under-display camera phones is that the display is almost exactly what it appears to be; the hidden lens may be noticeable on the Galaxy Z Fold 3, but the Axon 30 almost always looks like a seamless display The Axon 30 succeeds in making it look like a seamless display almost all the time. If you look closely, you can see the lens, especially if the screen is bright white, but for everyday use, you can enjoy an unobstructed display basically whenever you want.

Unfortunately, the camera portion of an under-display camera is where dreams can crumble. The selfie camera is one of the most unique parts of a smartphone; in fact, the term was coined for it. I don't take many selfies, but I still appreciate a clean, clear image when I do. However, this is not the case with an under-display camera.

The phone's software fails to properly handle bright light sources in an attempt to account for the phone's obtrusive screen, an obstacle that ruins both outdoor and indoor shots.

You can see this in this selfie comparison in the Axon 30 review. The Samsung Galaxy A52 5G and its standard front camera house cutouts do not produce incredible selfies in a vacuum, but just looking at the tint of the scene and the detail that the ZTE loses in the background foliage, which phone provides a better self-portrait is obvious.

Not that I am completely trashing the under-display camera; I would still rather have an older phone with a regular front camera than take selfies or make video calls with the Axon 30. However, photography is one of the most competitive areas of the smartphone market, so phones currently offering under-display cameras will be at an immediate disadvantage.

The Z Fold 3 has no such problem because it also offers a front camera on its external cover display, but for the ZTE Axon 30, that unique feature is also a major weakness. Still, my colleague Mark Spoonauer tested the Galaxy Z Fold 3's under-display camera and was disappointed with the images.

In other words, the revolution isn't quite there yet, but that's OK for now. As much as we want to enjoy seamless displays, we can accept the caveats of punch holes and notches when it comes to watching movies and playing games on our phones. It's a small price to pay for an entire library of movies, TV box sets, and games in your pocket.

As it stands, there is one type of phone that could benefit from an under-display camera. The best gaming phones already put photography on the back burner compared to display and other features directly related to the playing experience, and I think the successors to the Asus ROG Phone 5 and RedMagic 6 would do well to ditch the old-fashioned top bezel and implement an under-display camera. They are targeting niche markets where the selfie issue mentioned earlier is not important at all.

As for the future, it will be interesting to see where under-display sensors go next. I don't think it's a dead end, at least for the time being; the iPhone and Galaxy S deserve a proper under-display camera, not the underdeveloped one we have now.