Sony’s AI Camera Assistant is exactly as bad as it looks

When Sony announced the Xperia 1 VIII last month, it promoted the phone by sharing some of the worst photos taken on a Sony camera in years . These weren’t just any photos, though: they were taken with Sony’s new AI Camera Assistant. After a week with the Xperia 1 VIII, I’m here to tell you that the AI assistant is exactly as bad as Sony made it look. After Sony first showed me the AI Camera Assistant during a press briefing for the Xperia 1 VIII, I said it looked “like an improved version of Google’s Camera Coach.” It’s pretty clear I got that wrong. Camera Coach, found on the latest Pixel phones, is a dedicated camera mode that talks you through framing a shot, asking what you want to focus on and giving specific tips on framing, positioning, which camera lens to use, and whether to use Portrait mode or not. I found it underwhelming when I reviewed the Pixel 10A , but it does clearly serve as a basic photography coach. Sony’s AI Camera Assistant is different. It’s embedded directly into the camera app’s default mode, and pops up automatically while you’re trying to take a photo — though Sony does allow you to turn it off entirely. While you’re trying to take a photo a small box pops up in the viewfinder showing what the photo would look like with alternate settings suggested by Sony’s AI. A quick tap enables those settings, or you can swipe down to flick through another three alternate options. …