Are Cell Phone Light Metre Apps Reliable?

I had very good luck with Pocket Light Meter on an iPhone, but on my current combination of newer hardware and OS, the app freezes after a few seconds, so I’m in the market for something comparable. I’m pretty attached to the analog-like interface, and the other apps I’ve seen largely have digital readouts instead.

As others have said, I think reliability is a different issue on iPhones and Android phones. The former have captive hardware from a single vendor; the camera on an Android phone could be anything made by anyone, and I doubt whether universal calibration is possible across different hardware platforms.

-NT

Philippe-Georges said:

I have the Luxi app with the appropriate diffusor to attach over the iPhone's camera, which is, to my personal opinion, reliable (www.luxiforall.com).
Luxi needs an accessory for incident light metering (which doesn't bother me), and is not free but the profit goes to charity and this is important too.
I keep it as a spare when, on the go, an accident happens to my handheld light meter.

But, as discussed so may times in several threads over here, comparing light meters...

Click to expand...

I was ready to buy, but it's Out Of Stock. On the site an on Amazon as well. No contact info to inquire whether/when it will be available.

I like Ligthme for iPhone; I actually mostly use it for the focal length preview feature and the black and white viewfinder, even though it's marketed as a light meter.

When I was prepping a feature shoot in New Mexico years ago I met with a gaffer who had a done huge, and i mean HUGE mainstream hollywood movies and even way back then he said he was no longer using standard meters and instead just using his iphone.