Apple made a song and dance of the new iPhone 5′s camera improvements, and although the resolution remained at 8-megapixels (translating to "unchanged" among the overwhelming majority), Apple not only improved its build quality by incorporating a Sapphire lens, but also claim it performs much better in low lighting conditions.
Of course, Apple said its new Maps app was the real deal, but we all know how that has transpired, so of course, the only way to properly gauge its performance is to test it in the real world. What better cameras to compare with than those of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S, the two predecessors to the iPhone 5 having released in 2010 and 2011 respectively?
In the following video,
Redmond Pie’s Steven Chi recorded various settings using the three Apple smartphones, and although there is little separating the three solid snappers, the iPhone 5′s is noticeably sharper and more vibrant than the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S.
When all is said and done, the camera is certainly one of the lower-key improvements in a device boasting a brand new processor, 1GB of RAM, and 4G LTE. That said, with the likes of Instagram and its parent company, Facebook, popular among mobile users for uploading photos on a daily basis, it was important that Apple delivered some enhancements to the main, rear-facing camera – if only small – and that definitely looks to have been the case.
It does look as though Apple – along with most other mobile vendors – are close to hitting a plateau in terms of what can be offered to consumers. Sure, the processor, GPU, and camera can always be bumped up a notch or two – as has been the case here – but when a smartphone performs seamlessly, delivers sharp graphics and offers very high quality image and video recording, it’s hard for Apple et al to deliver that "wow" factor every time.
The device – in the eyes of many – certainly does have that, but I think you’ll agree the improvements to the camera are negligible at best. Amateur photographers will continue to take snaps of their lunch, the aficionados will still use their Canon or Nikon DSLRs, and everybody will remain happy.
What do you make of the new snapper? Leave your thoughts via the usual mediums below!
