Google camera port or the Gcam is something that has more or less taken over the stock camera on most smartphones. Yes, these are not the official replacements for the stock camera applications provided by the OEMs. However, the development of the Google Camera Port or the Gcam provides better image processing capabilities as compared to the stock camera application. In this post, we will share a guide on how to enable Camera2 API persistently on Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite and keep the bootloader locked. This means that this procedure does not require access to your device’s system partition or have an unlocked bootloader.
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Gcam is available for most smartphones and with passing time, new features are also being added like the Night Sight mode, HDR+, etc. These features allow us to take advantage of the Google Pixel camera, which is the best smartphone camera, period. Besides, it also gives us an idea of how the image processing capabilities can change the quality of the image taken from a smartphone. Xiaomi is known for providing powerful specs at a fairly low price as compared to others, however, the quality of the camera is still debatable. Moreover, Xiaomi devices were or at present, not known for their camera performance. But, you can take advantage of the Gcam or the Google camera port and install then on your Xiaomi device and improve the image-taking experience. So, without any further ado, let us get straight into the article itself;
What is Camera2 API?
Now, if you are a fan of Gcam or the Google Camera Port then, you need to enable the Camera2 API on your device. Almost all the OEMs have the Camera2 API enabled on their smartphones. However, even though the Xiaomi phones run on stock Android, the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite does not support the Camera2 API. And, in order to install and run the Gcam or the Google camera port on the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite smartphone, you need to enable the Camera2 API.
Moreover, it is pretty easy to enable the Camera2 API on the Xiaomi device if you have a rooted device but, in this post, we will guide you how to enable Camera2 API on the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite device without needing an unlocked bootloader. But, keep in mind that you need to have temporary root access to your device in order to enable the Camera2 API on the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite. For those, who did not understand what is temporary access to root, please follow this guide and you will be able to enable the Camera2 API pretty easily.
This sounds great. But what’s the purpose of the Magisk Manager App?
Since you seemed to unlock the bootloader, can you then re-lock the bootloader and still have Camer2 API enabled?