DPReview review all the best cameras and can offer actual facts having used more than one phone. It doesn’t have the absolute latest phones but at a max budget of £200 should give you some useful information.

https://m.dpreview.com/articles/6292086726/roundup-best-smartphone-cameras

Ive just got a P20 pro to replace my oneplus3.

The camera is something special. I got a deal from mobilephonesdirect which worked out to £13 a month more than my O2 SIM only for 2 years thus costing me an extra £312 for the phone whereas buying it outright is £600.

I’ve got the Pixel XL and for daily photos it’s been great. Just had the software update for nightsight but not tried that yet. Works pretty well with DJI osmo for stabilised video as well. Will probably go with a Pixel 3 when I upgrade soon

Huawei P20 currently £400 in John Lewis

No experience of the actual phone but looked interesting from a photographic perspective

On a similar but different note,

What compact camera would take as good a pic as modern smartphone? My smartphone takes abysmal photos so I’m thinking of getting something small enough to fit in a jersey pocket (so must be a compact, not a “system”), but with a big enough lense and sensor to take genuinely good photos.

I could get a better smartphone but I quite like being a bit disconnected when out riding, my phone has STRAVA running in the bottom of a pocket but apart frorm that I like to take the opportunity to forget about it for a few hours (I even still like paper maps!).

Budget £200 or so, preferably secondhand.

I have a Sony TX30 camera that I stick in my back pocket for ‘expedition’ rides – waterproof to 3m and I’ve frequently fished it out my pocket crusted in ice. Virgin are also doing the Huawei P20 Pro for £23/month

Is it massively better?

I just broke my OP3 and insurance are replacing it with a OP3T, but I’m thinking about selling it and upgrading. I thought the camera on the 3 is pretty awesome!

I note my Huawei p9 is still available new on Amazon. Takes great photos and is around your budget.

I’ve lugged a heavy old DSLR and multiple lens up mountains and on multi-day bikepacking trips – but occasionally my phone is the only thing I want to carry, so it might as well have decent camera in it.

They’re also highly optimised for viewing on a 5″ 4K or whatever screen, so it’s entirely possible to take photos on an iPhone which look better than anything on Flickr on your iPhone, but that won’t necessarily translate into prints.

Mate of mine is a very good landscape photographer, has all the gear.  He’s got a canvas on his wall that he took, it’s maybe two feet across.  I asked him what lens he used to take it, he said, “oh, iPhone.”

BTW Xiaomi will be officially selling their full range in the UK soon. Apparently they are going to be selling there wares at similar prices to their domestic market.

Oh dear bad news for the rip off merchants.

https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/a4%2fg-2pw4200%2f32blk/google-a4g2pw420032blk-pixel-smartphone

I’d recommend the mine and the new Mate 20 and the P20/P20 Pro but you won’t get them for £200. Amazon and Carphone Warehouse have got the Sony Xperia XZ Premium for only £229 unlocked and SIM-Free which is a bargain if you want a good camera (and good hardware generally) and aren’t phased by the unfashionable bezels.

I cant find it new at that price… any pointers?