Sony’s Android 8.0 Oreo updates include camera distortion fix

Sony began rolling out its Android 8.0 Oreo updates on Monday, and its Xperia XZ Premium was first in line to get one. The company listed a whole host of improvements and new features included in the release, but there’s one it didn’t mention: A fix for the pesky camera distortion issue.

Users have been complaining about image distortion effects since the Xperia XZ Premium and the Xperia XZ made their debuts earlier this year. Sony says it can be common in wide-angle lenses, but the company certainly isn’t ignoring the issue.

“Our models featuring our new Motion Eye™ Camera, including XZ Premium, XZs, XZ1 and XZ1 Compact, feature a wide-angle lens,” reads a statement from the Japanese company. “This lens enables an immersive experience by providing the ability to capture more scenery in the shot, however it may also yield perspective distortion when shooting photos.”

“Whilst this distortion is consistent with similar wide-angle lens cameras in the industry, we have listened to your feedback and developed a new optional setting in the camera menu called ‘Correction for image distortion’ to minimize the distortion effect.”

That fix isn’t applied by default; you’ll need to enable it manually. To do so, head into the camera settings (after upgrading to Android 8.0) and activate the “correction for image distortion” feature. You should notice big improvements in your photos.

As things stand, Oreo is only available to Xperia XZ Premium owners, but Sony confirms the fix will be available in upcoming updates for the Xperia XZs, Xperia XZ1, and Xperia XZ1 Compact by the end of November.

[via XperiaBlog]