Credit: Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

Whenever we talk about telescopic lenses on smartphones, we tend to focus (hah) on their ability to grab clear and noise-less pictures from afar. That’s what they’re made for, right? But in the past few months, I’ve found myself reaching out for my Pixel 6 Pro not just to snap a picture but also to simply just zoom. And zoom some more. And a bit more. Then just back out of the camera app without tapping the shutter button. Why?

Well, because the world is full of situations where you want to discern something from a distance but can’t. I’m human, I have 20/20 vision, and yet, I can’t read the airport departure board from 50m away, or spot a bus’ number when it’s still at the far end of the street, or see the menu behind a long queue of people waiting to place their order.