The rumors of the potential end of the Oppo/OnePlus partnership with Hasselblad and vivo’s collaboration with Zeiss have sparked memories of Woody Allen’s short story, The Scrolls. In this humorous tale, ancient scrolls are translated and found to include the word “Oldsmobile,” casting doubt on their authenticity. One scroll tells the story of a struggling shirt salesman who pleads with God for help. The Lord advises him to put an alligator over the pocket, which leads to a surge in sales.

While putting an alligator on a phone won’t do manufacturers any good, they have found success by focusing on camera quality. Brands like Leica, Zeiss, and Hasselblad are like the Ferraris of the photography world and partnering with them has led to some impressive smartphone cameras.

Here’s a brief overview of some notable brand collaborations in the smartphone market:

Huawei and Leica – This partnership produced the stylish Huawei P9 smartphone with a dual main camera, but ended due to US sanctions against Huawei.
Xiaomi and Leica – After Huawei’s breakup with Leica, Xiaomi announced a long-term cooperation that led to the impressive Xiaomi 12S and 12S Pro duo.
Motorola and Hasselblad – Motorola’s collaboration with Hasselblad for a smartphone with interchangeable Moto Z modules did not resonate well with consumers.
OnePlus and Hasselblad – This partnership resulted in great success, as seen in the OnePlus 9 flagship announcement.
Nokia and (Carl) Zeiss – The Nokia N90 phone featured an inscription that read “Carl Zeiss,” marking an early collaboration between these brands.
Sony and Zeiss – While their lenses have been highly praised for Sony’s mirrorless cameras, this partnership hasn’t translated well to Sony’s mobile phones.
vivo and Zeiss – The satisfaction of taking photos with a vivo/Zeiss phone is surprisingly high despite vivo not being as popular as other brands.

Apple, Samsung, and Google are notable omissions from this list because they don’t need brand partnerships to sell their phones. They have proven themselves capable in the mobile photography field over many years.

Despite smartphones reaching a plateau in terms of overall innovation, mobile photography continues to evolve. The question remains whether photography-oriented brands like Leica, Zeiss, and Hasselblad will continue their partnerships or seek new opportunities.

At the end of the day, what matters most is not just what brand name is inscribed on your phone but rather its ability to capture great photos. Whether it reads Leica, Zeiss or Hasselblad – or nothing at all – what’s important is that mobile photography doesn’t become boring.