After the updated Google Launcher from the Pixel 2, we have the APK file for the updated Google Camera app that will come on the new Pixel as well. You can install this one on your current Nexus, Pixel, or other OEM-branded phone and give it a try to get a taste of what the Camera app will be like on the Pixel 2.

However, you'll be sad to know that the two most interesting features of the Pixel 2 won't work on your current device: the AR stickers are nowhere to be found and Motion Photos are, as we reported previously, exclusive to the Pixel 2 and Google Clips (for now at least). With that said, there are still a couple of interesting changes to the Camera app from the existing 4.4 to the new 5.1, so let's take a look around.

Minor interface changes

First, the row of buttons on the top has been spread out, probably to lessen accidental triggers of one instead of the other.

Google Camera 4.4 (left) and 5.1 (right)

Second, the Lens Blur icon in the side menu has been changed from a camera shutter to a flower, which, as far as I recall, is almost always associated with macros. That's so it better indicates that it works with up-close objects.

Google Camera 4.4 (left) and 5.1 (right)

Better auto-exposure and auto-focus lock

With the previous Google Camera 4.4, you could tap anywhere on the screen to trigger the exposure meter then drag up and down to change it. You may have not known it, but if you tapped and held on the screen after adjusting the exposure, you could lock it down. That, however, was mostly a hidden option and it was a bit unpredictable since you had to tap somewhere on the screen to lock it, which meant it could mess a bit with your exposure and focus if you weren't careful.

Now, there's a new lock icon on top of the exposure slider. So you can tap to focus, move the slider to adjust the exposure, then tap the lock. It's both more visible and less confusing since it doesn't require you tap anywhere on your image and risk changing the exposure/focus settings.

Google Camera 4.4 (top) and 5.1 (bottom)

Small settings changes

Two last differences we noticed in the updated Google Camera 5.1 app are in the app's settings. First, the title bar has gone from dark to white, which is more uniform, though we wish Google would have gone all black instead.

Second, the Volume key action isn't a top menu item anymore, but is nested inside the new Gestures menu along with Double-tap to zoom. The option for double tapping to zoom isn't new, it was introduced in 4.4, but you can now disable it if you don't want it.

Google Camera 4.4 (left) and 5.1 (middle and right)

If you want to try the new Google Camera on your device, we've got the file up on APK Mirror: Google Camera 5.1.011.170395186. Grab it and let us know if you notice anything else that's new or if you manage to get Motion Photos to show up, somehow, magically. Edit: Or you know, if you have a first-gen Pixel, you can download version 5.0 from APK Mirror and get the Motion Photos working as described in the update at the top of the post.