What do photographers miss the most in smartphones?

[Alan Edward Klein]

Live Photos do utilize the battery more but that feature is easily toggled on/off from the camera app. It's the bullseye thing next to the flash icon.

Does it also constantly focus? Is something moving all the time?

 

[koraks]

Does it also constantly focus? Is something moving all the time?

The depth of field of those tiny systems is so huge that very little, if any, refocusing is needed in a typical scene. If there is, the focus travel is so tiny, as is the mass of the lens, that it's hardly noticeable in terms of battery wear etc.

 

[Disappointed_Horse]

Me too. I do very few calls and it's practically also a phone, among other things, not primarily a phone.

I think of all the functions the iPhone performs, actual use as a phone is probably Apple's lowest priority. Sound quality of voice calls has never been great and certainly has not improved in my last three or so iPhones.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

I think of all the functions the iPhone performs, actual use as a phone is probably Apple's lowest priority. Sound quality of voice calls has never been great and certainly has not improved in my last three or so iPhones.

What makes hearing at the other end even worse, is that they use those little white ear phone/microphones that makes the speaker sound like theyre inside a washing machine. WHAT? WHAT? SPEAK UP, PLEASE. WHAT?

 

[VinceInMT]

What about the iPhone battery usage? Does the camera constantly adjust its lens to focus at all times?

Only when the app is open and Live Photo is turned on.

My current iPhone is the X which I’ve had for 6 years. It gets heavy usage, except as a phone, and its battery is at 81% capacity, which, IMO, is pretty good. My son always asks if I want a new one when the new model comes out as he’ll just send me one but I’m still happy with this one.

 

[VinceInMT]

What makes hearing at the other end even worse, is that they use those little white ear phone/microphones that makes the speaker sound like theyre inside a washing machine. WHAT? WHAT? SPEAK UP, PLEASE. WHAT?

Regarding the sound quality, I wonder how much of it is the compression/multiplexing that goes on after it leaves the phone. For non-phone use I have Apple AirPods Pro and the sound quality, and the noise cancellation, is quite impressive.

 

[jeffreyg]

I just read some of the features of the new iPhone camera and they are rather impressive especially for something you would be carrying around in a pocket. Three lenses and 48mp. Along with all the other goodies. For street photography you can be inconspicuous since most everyone around you are probably on their phone. In the meantime I m still using the hand me down from my granddaughter Film is still my mainstay

 

[Sirius Glass]

The depth of field of those tiny systems is so huge that very little, if any, refocusing is needed in a typical scene. If there is, the focus travel is so tiny, as is the mass of the lens, that it's hardly noticeable in terms of battery wear etc.

I let my iPhone do the focusing.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

Regarding the sound quality, I wonder how much of it is the compression/multiplexing that goes on after it leaves the phone. For non-phone use I have Apple AirPods Pro and the sound quality, and the noise cancellation, is quite impressive.

That's hearing at your end. I'm talking for people at the other end who are trying to hear what you're saying to them on a phone call.

 

[VinceInMT]

That's hearing at your end. I'm talking for people at the other end who are trying to hear what you're saying to them on a phone call.

Like I referenced early, this is likely due to what happens to the audio once it leaves the device. Telephone transmissions have a frequency response of something like 300 Hz to 3.4 kHz which is much lower than what the hardware on the user ends can do.

 

[VinceInMT]

I just read some of the features of the new iPhone camera and they are rather impressive especially for something you would be carrying around in a pocket. Three lenses and 48mp. Along with all the other goodies. For street photography you can be inconspicuous since most everyone around you are probably on their phone. In the meantime I m still using the hand me down from my granddaughter Film is still my mainstay

My son is getting the new iPhone 15 (he works for that company) so I'll ask him how he likes it. He texted me today and said that he'll send me iPhone 14 to upgrade my iPhone X, Paying for that college education of his has some benefits.

 

[Hassasin]

Part of image making skill is to work within limitations of capture device used. This applies to every single such a device ever made, none provide everything for any situation. Same goes for a phone camera. So in this sense phone can take as worthy a photo as anything else out there, LF & Hasselblad included.

One could easily argue phone camera has a lot to offer over most other cameras, it's all about what is needed for a given moment. But it will not replace them for many other reasons.

This argument is more like why bicycle isn't as good as a car (or vice versa).