I Would Love a Phone With Swappable Camera Lenses: Why Hasn’t It Happened?

As good as phone cameras have become, they could provide much better shots by using detachable lenses, just like dedicated cameras do. I would love for this to be a thing.

Like Most People, My Camera Is My Phone

You know the adage: the best camera is the one you have on you. For many years, this felt like a sacrifice. Phone cameras couldn’t quite compare to portable digital cameras, but the photos were fine enough that it wasn’t worth carrying around that extra bulk.

These days, phones feel less and less like a trade-off. Hardware continues to improve at such a rate that it’s worth upgrading a phone for the camera alone.

I’ll admit I used to scoff at the idea of smartphone photography. I was someone who carried around a DSLR like a tourist, just in case. I once owned an HTC One M7, whose camera hardware was its weakest link, and now there’s an entire era of my life where the photos are 4MP and slightly blue. This was especially noticeable in poor lighting, like in this photo of the Pittsburgh skyline I took in 2013.

Over ten years later, I no longer have that concern. Many of the photos coming from my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 hold up just fine compared to the DSLR images that came before—but that has only made me want interchangeable lenses more, not less.

I Use My Phone Camera for Professional Work

Most of the images bearing my name on How-To Geek were taken with a phone. Since I’ve replaced my PC with a phone and work using Samsung DeX, many of my photos are taken with my Galaxy Z Fold 6 or my previous Galaxy Z Fold 5 (I don’t typically replace phones this often, but the difference in processing power between these two is noticeable when you’re docking your phone to an external display).

If I’m taking a picture of my phone (like the photo above), then I tend to reach for an old Google Pixel, even though I have a mirrorless camera within reach. For what I do, phone cameras are good enough.

I’m not alone. Many creators turn to their smartphone cameras, especially on social media. Many YouTubers regularly slip in smartphone footage, even if it’s just B-roll. Smartphone photos and videos now make the news.

Plus there are an abundance of apps for touching up photos and editing videos directly on your phone. For all the attention the idea of banning TikTok in the US gets, Bytedance’s CapCut video editor is just as important to many people, and there are many competitors out there.

Related

Instagram Edits Wants to Be a TikTok and CapCut Alternative

Instagram’s shameless CapCut clone.

Smartphone Cameras Could Be Better

While the Z Fold 6 takes great shots compared to most phones, foldable camera hardware isn’t quite at the same level as regular premium phones. And those cameras aren’t quite at the level of modern DSLR and mirrorless cameras.

You see, when I choose my smartphone over my Panasonic Lumix G7, I’m picking a phone over a camera that came out in 2015.

Modern smartphones really give that decade-old camera a run for its money. My phone can produce 50MP images, while the Lumix G7 is limited to 16MP. Plus, image processing has come a long way, and I find it easier to point-and-shoot certain shots in complicated lighting on my phone than with the camera. Despite all that, the mirrorless camera is capable of better images, since it has a larger Micro Four Thirds sensor and a wide range of interchangeable lenses to pick from. If transferring files didn’t involve dealing with an SD card, I’d still be quick to pick it up.

The hassle of transferring photos is a big part of why I haven’t bought a newer camera. I accept the limitations of my smartphone camera in exchange for convenience, but I would love if I didn’t have to. Being able to pop a camera lens on the back of my phone would be the best of both worlds, a marriage of superior hardware with superior software.

That’s why I like the idea of the Xiaomi Modular Optical System unveiled at Mobile World Congress 2025.

Related

This Phone Has Swappable Magnetic Camera Lenses

A bit like MagSafe, but for camera lenses instead of batteries and mounts.

These magnetic, modular lenses are limited to a specific phone, but imagine if they weren’t. This could be an open standard if phone makers were into such a thing. I could especially see this being useful for creators who already stick phones on tripods. What difference does the lens make if you aren’t holding the phone anyway?

I’m Already Used to Carrying Accessories for My Phone

The main argument against this idea is that dedicated lenses are bulky. If you’re able to carry around lenses, it isn’t that big a leap to carry around a camera body as well. If you still have to transfer files from your phone to your PC, then you’re not necessarily saving time or space.

The inverse is also true. If you’re willing to carry around a camera, it isn’t that different to just carry around lenses instead. For someone like me, who doesn’t use a PC, being able to shoot directly on my phone means I don’t have to transfer anything. I’d be solving my biggest annoyance with dedicated cameras. The size and weight of the camera body isn’t my issue. It’s the other hassles.

I’m already used to bringing around accessories for my phone. I have a wireless lapdock. I have Bluetooth keyboards and mice. An extra lens can easily fit in the same bag.

I’m aware that I’m part of a very niche audience. Samsung DeX has been around for the better part of a decade, but only a minority of us have actively chosen to use one as a replacement for our PCs. Not everyone sees the appeal of doing everything from one device, and among those that do, not everyone has need for a better camera lens.

Thing is, most people in the world already do all or the majority of their computing from their phone. Many have never owned a desktop or laptop computer. As fewer people have PCs to transfer photos to, it increasingly makes sense to let us get the same joy of using a DSLR and interchangeable lenses, except by using the camera body that’s already in our pocket.