[Closed] What mobile phone thats good at taking pictures as well?

Budget?

Otherwise this could get pointless quite quickly.

I've got a Sony Experia Z. Missus has a Z1 Compact. Not cheap but take excellent pics.

A mate has just got the samsung s5. The camera is amazing, but not exactly a budget option.

Budget is pretty flexible, I'm not really wanting to pay as much as an Iphone but if thats what it takes then I'll fork out. I've had a few cheap PAYG phones in the past and they were so frustrating to use that I never bothered using them.

The camera on my HTC One Mini is pretty good - I got the phone free on a £25 a month contract from EE.

I'm not really wanting to pay as much as an Iphone

from my experience Sony Xperia's have really good cameras and so do Samsungs. both me and the wife have the S4 and the picture quality is superb!

if you want a decent camera then i'd avoid the iphone as the picture quality on them is absolutely shite.

Err...

I am not a Apple fanboy, and it's depressing to have add that caveat when talking about these things, but the iPhone 5/5S cameras are up there with the best of them. Fair enough, Android/Windows phones might allow for more adjustability, and the Lumia 1020 has got the best hardware, but to say the iPhone cameras are shit is perplexing.

if you want a decent camera then i'd avoid the iphone as the picture quality on them is absolutely shite.

Drivel.

Klaus, You can get decent deals now on Iphone 4S, camera is decent, wee Julie won a GoPro last week with a photo from hers!.

There are phones that are more camera than phone? Nokia something?

All high end phones have decent cameras, certainly worthy of snapshots. If you want the best camera on a phone then I think the Nokia 1020 "wins". There's also the Samsung S4 Zoom, which as the name suggest has a big old optical zoom.

Even the humble old Nexus 5 (which is what I've got) has got a decent camera now (thanks to software update) , [url= http://www.androidcentral.com/comparing-cameras-galaxy-s5-versus-nexus-5 ]tieing with the S5 on this test[/url]

There are phones that are more camera than phone? Nokia [s]something[/s] [url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nokia-Lumia-Windows-Smartphone-Camera/dp/B00F0KUZOQ/ref=sr_1_1?m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1399634602&sr=1-1&keywords=lumia+1020 ]Lumia 1020[/url]?

avoid the iphone as the picture quality on them is absolutely shite.

a picture my niece took on her iphone5
[url= https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/t1.0-9/1043916_10151788319862265_2075628727_n.jp g" target="_blank">https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/t1.0-9/1043916_10151788319862265_2075628727_n.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

a picture taken on my S4
[url= https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1.0-9/10295776_10203676060325792_224221694391079514_n.jp g" target="_blank">https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1.0-9/10295776_10203676060325792_224221694391079514_n.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

I'd go with a Nokia 1020 but I'm biased.

Pro review of some top of the line camera phones
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/video/2013/nov/07/smartphone-cameras-reviewed-photography-video

Lumia 1020 is amazeballs if you do value the camera high enough to have a Windows Phone 😉 - I had one on trial for our company, would have liked to keep it as a holiday/cycling phone.

*(Windows Phone 8 is actually pretty nice, but the app store can lag behind Apple/Play - I have a hand in publishing apps for my company, and NO ONE has asked me to publish for Windows, but most of the bigger players are covering it fine, I don't think you'd find it wanting).

a picture my niece took on her iphone5

Would be a better comparison if you took both photos?

@Gonzy

Tooooooo many variables.

Samsung S4 is an incredibly good phone with an amazing camera. However phone cameras are really only good for taking snaps, which they do very well if you can hold them steady enough. If you want to zoom or do any manipulation you need a proper camera.

Some good deals on the Galaxy S4 Zoom now if you want a "real" camera that also makes calls and does smartphone things.

here's 2 completely different photos, taken by 2 different people of different subject matter, on different days.

perfect comparison.

The Iphone 5s camera is so so good, if you ask me. It also seems that lots of journalists and pro photographers think so too.

There are also loads of apps to help out with editing, taking long exposure shots and correcting any issues... and all that jazz.

Really really recommend it

Tooooooo many variables.

you're probably right there...but there are pictures we have both taken of the same subject(my daughter) at the same time and the picture quality of the S4 wins...

How much do you want to spend? I've got the Galaxy S3 which was pretty much state of the art 18 months ago. Excellent camera and excellent phone. Admittedly not as fast/feature rich as the S4 or even S5 but it'll do everything you need it to and you can get them on well cheap contracts now. Unless you're absolutely sold on web pages loading up 1 second faster, or just need to have the latest device (which given that you're only now getting a phone, I'd suspect isn't the case) then the Galaxy S3 will do everything you need it to, will cost a hell of a lot less and has an excellent camera

I think my iphone 5s takes excellent photos, also having a lot of fun with the slo mo video feature.

[HERESY]I don't have an opinion on the Samsung as I haven't owned one[/BURN HIM]

I know, not good form, one MUST have an opinion, I'll have a word with myself.

I want one of these.

[img] [/img]

[url] http://www.gottabemobile.com/2013/06/06/olloclip-review-iphone-5-lens-quick-flip-case-are-awesome/ [/url]

IIRC the iPhone5s and some of the Sony Z's (1) share the same camera module.
What you tend to find is its the post processing stuff makes or breaks the picture.

My dearly beloved has shelled out for the Samsung Galaxy S5.

Makes my iphone 4S seem quite basic.

Not cheap, but justifies itself by being just as much a tablet as a phone with a great camera on it.

Water/dust resistant too. (Not actually dunked it though)

I've just got a Nokia Lumia 1020 precisely for the camera which is generally accepted to be the best on any phone, get it through phones4u and you can claim the Nokia camera grip doohicky thing for nowt until June.

After having Android for years the Windows Phone seems much fresher, we've various iDevices in the house as well and the WP OS is much better imo.

Apps are lacking if you go by pure numbers and want to have the choice of several hundred for each thing but you'll get practically anything you need.

'The best camera you have is the one you are carrying'

Some of my best pics have been from an iPhone 4, but wouldn't print bigger than a postcard.

Many of the worst pics I've taken have been with the same phone, worse still were the ones taken before I realised that the little air-bubbled protective sticker was still on the rear lens.

brassneck - Member
Would be a better comparison if you took both photos?

Would be a better comparison if you took both photos?

fair enough..i'll do that tonight....if only to prove to myself that my utter dislike for Apple products is correct!! 😆

I've an Xperia Z and have always found the camera to be of decent enough quality. Smartphones are never going to compare well against a DSLR or a decent quality compact for that matter, but a lot of high end phones are very good and comparable in quality, but there will be differences just as there are in the proper camera world.

Here's a shot from the Z.

[img] [/img]

Also, I picked up a Moto G as an interim phone whilst the Z is getting fixed (cracked the screen). What a phone. For £100 I just can't fault it. Latest Android, minimal bloatware, super quick and the camera is alright too. I had an S3 Mini before this (its taking a while to fix the Sony) and simply the Moto G craps all over the Samsung!

Moto G pic:

[img] [/img]

Finally, if you are a bit more serious about getting high-end compact quality images, the Smart Lens might be worth considering. Nice concept and they're easy to use (from limited use whilst hanging around an airport).

http://www.sony.co.uk/hub/lens-style-camera

You can get a decent snap from most of the higher end smartphones if you get the focus and things right, just like a normal camera if you get the settings wrong it'll look worse.

iPhone 5.

[url= https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3740/9532137010_8f70cd746c_b.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3740/9532137010_8f70cd746c_b.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/fwjGeQ ]Family Hols 2013[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/90632750@N00/ ]-Drac-[/url], on Flickr

Another vote for the Nokia 1020. The camera is fantastic. Your monthly payment will be less than a iPhone too.

Thanks for all the repies, lots to investigate and mull over. At the moment I have a DSLR and a nice compact, but for quite a while a lot of pictures have been taken with my Ipod touch. I need a phone and had been considering a tablet to help with some of the editing of pics as I've been using Instagram and lately VSCO cam on the touch. Lookign at some of the suggestions I'm particularly liking the Experia Z 1/2. Theres a fair deal on EE and topcashback has a generous offer too.

Another vote for the Nokia 1020. The camera is fantastic. Your monthly payment will be less than a iPhone too.

But sadly you'd own a windows phone.

But sadly you'd own a windows phone.

What's wrong with Windows phones?

I've had android phones, wife has an iPhone and the 1020 is my 2nd Windows phone. I prefer the Windows phone.To the OP have a look at the 1020 if the camera is a deal breaker.

What's wrong with Windows phones?

It's the new Betamax.

It's the new Betamax
But have you actually used it?

Of course he hasn't. He just wants to sound down with the kidz.

Me handle a Windows phone? I have standards.

See Jamie gets it.

New nokias are really impressive. Multi scan composites. I have an older one so the sensor is poor, but i do rate a proper dual stage hardbutton dedicated to the camera, and really like the wp os

I have a Iphone for work the camera is pretty decent but the OS and me just dont gel as well as the Windows OS that I have on my personal phone.

The camera on entry level Windows phones is adequate but get one with the Carl Zeiss optics and they tend to be pretty good and the Pureview ones are exceptional.

The app store arguments are boring now, you can now get most of the big name apps or the equivalent of from a third party and some of these are actually better than the originals.

Those two iPhone photos that gonzie posted are clearly blurred, either because of camera shake, taken too close for the focus to operate, or a smeary lens.
This is a panorama I took last Sunday on my iP5, straight from the phone, no post-processing, and it looks perfectly sharp to me when you zoom in:

[img][url= https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7306/14143995422_6eb11597d1_o.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7306/14143995422_6eb11597d1_o.jp g"/> [/img][/url] [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/countzero1/14143995422/ ]image[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/countzero1/ ]CountZero1[/url], on Flickr[/img]

There are some really shonky phone cameras, my sis-in-law has a Samsung of some sort, and the photos from it are pretty dire, but I don't think it's an upper-end phone anyway.

Xperia Z has a very decent camera.

Currently using an LG G2 which makes awesome pics 🙂

Samsung Galaxy S3, 2 generations old now, but still very capable, excellent camera, much better than iphone 4s.

Countzero- the picture of the flowers was the ip5 picture. The kryptonite lock picture was with the s4. You can see clearly the image quality is sharper than the ip5 but I accept that they may have been taken in different light conditions. As ive stated my daughter has been photographed by both phones at the same time and the picture quality has akways been sharper and clearer on the s4. What I said about iphone cameras being shite was just my opinion fuelled by my dislike for apple products...but I still believe the standard is nowhere near that of other phones especially when you consider the retail price of the phones themselves. I know a lot of people who use these photo apps on their iphones and the only logical explanation I can think of is that they use these apps to mask/improve the low quality images that iphones produce

Another vote for galaxy s3. I've taken loads of moving bike action snaps and they are realy very good. Many mates use my shots as their facebook profile pics now

S3 here (insurance replacement for a Nexus 4). Best camera in a phone I've used for years (as long as you're careful with the settings etc.).

Having said that, historically the best phone cameras have been in Nokias with Zeiss optics IME. Whether that's enough to make me go Windows phone is debatable still.

It would appear that Apple agree that Nokia are doing camera phones better they've just poached some top talent. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/09/apple_poaches_nokia_photo_guru_ari_partinen_from_microsoft/

Oh and the reg rate 1020 as best camera phone http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/09/20/nokia_lumia_1020_review/

Marques Brownlee makes some good points on the iPhone 5S camera/Lumia 1020.

From 9:20.

Thanks all, I've settled on the Sony Experia Z2 over the 1020. The 1020 had more camera power but the Z2 for me pipped it as a package. Bigger screen, expandable, a bit faster, bigger battery and not least of all the water/dust proof build. Plus I generally like Sony stuff. I discounted the Iphone as I have the Ipod touch and anything I'd want to do outside of the phone I could do on the touch.

Windows phone = Betamax? Good job I'm plumping for the Sony then 😉