TechPhonesAndroid PhonesYour Google Pixel phone just got a great free camera upgradeThis new Pixel Camera upgrade will have you seeing starsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

TechPhonesAndroid PhonesYour Google Pixel phone just got a great free camera upgradeThis new Pixel Camera upgrade will have you seeing starsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

This new Pixel Camera upgrade will have you seeing stars

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Future / Mike Lowe)

Google Pixel 8 Pro review

(Image credit: Future / Mike Lowe)

Quick SummaryThe Pixel Camera app has a new update that enables you to manually enable its Astrophotography mode. You’ll literally see stars.

The Pixel Camera app has a new update that enables you to manually enable its Astrophotography mode. You’ll literally see stars.

The Pixel Camera app has a new update that enables you to manually enable its Astrophotography mode. You’ll literally see stars.

The Pixel Camera app has a new update that enables you to manually enable its Astrophotography mode. You’ll literally see stars.

One of the great features in the Pixel Camera app can also be a little frustrating. It’s the Astrophotography mode, which enables you to capture stunning shots of the night sky. But while it’s clever, it’s also a little unpredictable because you can’t select it manually. That’s about to change as the Pixel Camera gets anothergreat free upgrade.

At the moment, to turn on Astrophotography mode your Pixel needs to be sat on a solid surface and pointed up at the night sky; switching to Night Sky in the app should then engage Astrophotography mode. But like all automatic modes in camera apps, just because it should do something doesn’t necessarily mean it always will. So there’s a new manual mode that’ll ensure you get the mode you need when you want it.

How the new manual mode works in the Pixel Camera

When you switch to Night Sight you’ll see the moon-and-star Astrophotography icon towards the bottom right of the screen. Tap on that and you’ll see three options: about, which tells you more about the feature, manual, which is the new manual mode, and the existing auto mode.

In manual mode the on-screen instructions are clear enough: select Astro, tap the shutter to start the five second timer, and then place the phone somewhere stable. You can adjust the timeframe to suit:AndroidPolice says that the mode length can be as long as four minutes, with your Pixel taking 16 pictures with a sixteen-second exposure each time and then stitching them together to create a single image. How quickly that stitching happens will depend on how recent and powerful your Pixel phone is; it’s quite demanding.

The new feature should be rolling out in the Pixel Camera app imminently, or if you’re in a hurry you can sideload the new app via APKMirror.

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