IPhone4S vs. HT One S

[rick_reno]

I'll save you the pain of reading their review -
Detail shots - Winner - IPhone
HDR - Winner - IPhone
Indoor/outdoor - Winner - IPhone
Shutter speed - Winner - HTC
1080P video - Winner - HTC
Special effects - Winner - HTC

http://www.gadgetbox.msnbc.msn.com/t...t-one-s-728840

Though most current Android smartphones come with high-resolution cameras, most of these pale in comparison to the iPhone 4S’ 8-MP shooter Not only does the average Android camera take lower quality pictures than Apple’s handset, it also takes a lot longer to fire up and shoot. HTC”s new One Sphone promises to change all that by providing high-speed shots, an f/2.0 aperture 8-MP lens for improved picture quality, and powerful camera software that provides over a dozen filters, HDR mode and more.

To see which phone takes the best pictures and provides the best overall photo-taking experience, we grabbed an HTC One S and an iPhone 4S and used them to shoot the same subjects. The results may surprise you.

skip to the verdict...

Both the iPhone 4S and the HTC One S have really strong 8-MP cameras that are capable of shooting sharp, colorful still images in under a second. Both phones can also capture great 1080p video, and provide support for HDR.

When it comes to features, the HTC One S is superior to the iPhone in every way, offering burst mode, the ability to shoot photos while filming video, slow motion video capture, and a wide variety of filters and settings you can’t get on the iPhone without third party software. Because of all these functions, the act of shooting pictures on the HTC One S is a lot more fun than on the iPhone 4S.

However, there’s a noticeable difference in still image quality that favors the iPhone. Though both take attractive photos, the iPhone’s pictures are almost always brighter, sharper and more colorful than the One S’s. When you look closely at pictures from the two phones side-by-side, it’s clear that — at least in the automatic and HDR modes we used — the iPhone’s photos feel warmer and have more of a yellow hue while the HTC One S’s shots are colder and have more of dark red or purple bias. In almost all cases, the iPhone photos were sharper and more detailed so when you combine that with warmer colors, you have better looking images.

[Numenorean]

lol smartphone camera reviews

[rick_reno]

it's hard to argue with numbers, lots of people are using them. recently a gallery in Honolulu had a showing of nothing but smartphone photos - some were very good. i look at DSLR's as dinosaurs, all they're missing is the asteroid hitting...but i believe it's coming.

[Numenorean]

Originally Posted by rick_reno

it's hard to argue with numbers, lots of people are using them. recently a gallery in Honolulu had a showing of nothing but smartphone photos - some were very good. i look at DSLR's as dinosaurs, all they're missing is the asteroid hitting...but i believe it's coming.

Sure lot's of people are using them. Not a lot of serious photographers though. A serious landscape photographer isn't going to think "Hey, my smartphone can take these shots!" DSLR's are going to be around for a long time. Sorry but phone cameras just cannot do what I need. Perhaps the cameras will change to mirrorless or transparent mirror tech, but I don't see phones with metering sensors, selectable AF points, growing large enough to fit nicely in the hand with well laid out controls, a range of optical lenses from 16-400+ mm with IS, constant apertures, a mounting system for tripods, a mounting system for filters, hotshoe, etc.

Even those small mirrorless things that are out now are just too small and cumbersome for me to use in a professional manner.

[rick_reno]

I'm not disagreeing with you, they don't do what I want either, but the advances I see in them and the apps that support them are happening at a very fast rate, much faster than I what I see in the DSLR world. It's possible that public perception of what a "professional" photo should look like will change, just based on the staggering number of photos taken and viewed with phones. I couldn't envision a gallery having a phone photo show 3 years ago, but I believe we'll be seeing more and more encroachment of photos shot with these things as time progresses.

[Jericobot]

heck my 365 project so far has been pics taken with the phone only, thinking of making it that exclusively. I love the advancements of nearly all technology phones (all makes) and cameras (all makes as well).
To each their own...

[Charlie]

anything other than spectacular lighting, and phone photos fall apart.... badly. Iphone photos are great for what they do.... background phone images and some web display, but they're mostly terrible like pns cameras. I have a HTPC to view slideshows all the time, and I have a few iphone photos in there.... absolute garbage, but better than nothing I guess.

[Spacemunkie]

If you work within their limitations, iPhones are capable of producing decent enough pics - as we know, a quality photo is far from determined purely on the tech that was used to take it. I use my iPhone for quick 'sketches' - stuff I can shoot and process on the spot to capture the mood for later reference. Geotagging is great for bookmarking locations too...

I've printed a 12x12" of this and it looks great. Have other iPhone stuff blown up to A3+ and I doubt you'd tell the difference at that size between stuff shot with an S90 or G12...


Driftwood, Tangimoana by Scott.Symonds, on Flickr

[imjason]

if the proliferation of the camera phone is an indicator that the general masses will be using digital cameras, then the digital camera as we know it is in the late stages of the technology adoption lifecycle. remember were talking about camera technology in general, not form factor. if were already this late in the lifecycle, companies that want to grow will need to develop new camera technology as a successor to the old tech.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_lifecycle

during the 90s when AF and meter allowed the masses to easily access film photography with point and shoots, that indicated that film was pretty late in its lifecycle and the digital era of photogaphy started to rise.

[vas182]

The phone will never catch even a point and shoot.

[dog rocket]

Now there's some forward thinking for you. You must be around 20 years old because before that and for all practical purposes there weren't phones without cords period. It amazes me that people still say never this and never that while the world passes them right on by. Human nature, I guess.

[Colgate41]

Originally Posted by vas182

The phone will never catch even a point and shoot.

I think the phone has caught a passed the point and shoot in terms of eye popping photos through app's like instagram and hipstamatic. People love the look of effects on photos, be it a simple vignette or a crazy super 8 look. A lot of point and shoots and even some DSLR's (Hello 60D) have the "art filters" on them because people want the processing right then and there and not wait till post. The cell phone also works so well for this because its lens is not that good so it only ads to the low-fi effect. Also, when the light is nice and abundant, my iphone 4 takes sharp, crisp, contrasty photos all day.

[Numenorean]

Originally Posted by Colgate41

I think the phone has caught a passed the point and shoot in terms of eye popping photos through app's like instagram and hipstamatic. People love the look of effects on photos, be it a simple vignette or a crazy super 8 look. A lot of point and shoots and even some DSLR's (Hello 60D) have the "art filters" on them because people want the processing right then and there and not wait till post. The cell phone also works so well for this because its lens is not that good so it only ads to the low-fi effect. Also, when the light is nice and abundant, my iphone 4 takes sharp, crisp, contrasty photos all day.

No...those instagram and other crap look just like that - crap.

[Mjolnir]

One of the great things of the cellphone camera's, as i see it, is that they got more young people involved in photography. Either thru apps on their phones or the sharing of pics on faceyspace.

I now have the 645pro app on my iphone 4s. I can seriously say that the quality rivals some point and shoots.

I use the phone for my 365 project when i dont have a camera around. Not often, but im glad the possibility exists.

[rick_reno]

Originally Posted by Numenorean

No...those instagram and other crap look just like that - crap.

The question here is how long will it take human perception to look at crap and think it looks good?