Now that cellphone image sensors have evolved beyond the dark days of sub-megapixel blockiness, photo quality has become an important determinant when choosing among handsets. To that end, we’ve collected sample shots from some upcoming models, hopefully giving you a basic idea of what to expect when you release the shutter. Of course, as we’ve noted before, test shots from pre-release devices often don’t represent the output from shipping products: camera firmware, which plays just as important a role as sensor quality, is often tweaked right up until the last minute.

In situations where more than one sample photo was available, we tried to pick a nice-looking shot, although we certainly didn’t pore over each and every option. Full-size images are hotlinked to the resized versions below. Other than resizing/resampling photos to fit the layout — and blurring out children’s faces — no changes were made to their appearance.

HTC Runnymede

Samsung GT-i9210

Nokia 600 Cindy

Samsung GT-i9220

LG MS910 Bryce (MetroPCS)

Samsung SGH-T859 (T-Mobile)

Sony Ericsson LT18i Ayame

Samsung SPH-D705 (Sprint)

Motorola MB865 (Atrix refresh; AT&T)

Samsung SCH-i110 (Verizon)

Pantech P9070

Samsung SCH-R920 (MetroPCS)

Motorola Electrify (US Cellular)