Weekly poll results: under-display cameras are exciting, never mind potential downsides

Last week’s poll shows that the image quality of selfies is not a priority – instead most people prefer a sleek-looking, waterproof phone. 75% of voters were in favor of under-display cameras while only 25% preferred the flip-up design.

Durability really proved to be a key concern, beyond just water resistance. Many are still not convinced that the flip-up mechanism will last the lifetime of the phone. Also, the mechanism does take up a lot more volume.

Asus claims the Zenfone 7 motor has more than double the torque of last year’s model and that the flip up can withstand 35 kg pushing it forward. And Asus found enough room for a 5,000 mAh battery. And note that the camera modules themselves are perfectly standard, so there aren't any sacrifices in terms of image quality - in fact its arguably the best selfie setup around this side of the Huawei Mate Xs.

In contrast, first generation products usually have some rough corners – and when ZTE announces its phone with an under-display cam, it will be the very first of its kind. As with the Zenfone, real world tests are the only way to know what you’re getting yourself into when buying one of these phones.

This isn’t the first time that under-display cameras proved to be the most popular option. There is admittedly a cool factor to them, which draws people in.

Of course, there are also those who don’t care about image quality of selfies – because they don’t take any. For them, a durable solution that doesn’t mar the screen is best, be it an under-display cam or even a top bezel.