Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

It is Carl Zesis which makes Nokia Cameras great. Now if we compare N9 & Lumia 900s 8MP camera with iPhone 4S and SGS2. It gets the last spot. Although Apple and Samsung never use CZ. So is it just 1080P video recording compared to 720P that gives iPhone 4S and SGS2 the advantage over N9/Lumia 900?

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Carl Zeiss is only the lens. Better cameras also have larger sensors and bigger apertures to let more light in, and in the latest phones, backlit sensors to increase low light performance. Which is why the N8 still wipes the floor with the iPhone and Samsungs because the others are still using a "pinhole" to capture the image (and it also has a Xenon flash).

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

if you got your results from american bias blogs like the verge, engadget, gizmodo, bgr etc you'll even tend to believe that the n8 is inferior to the ip4s and sgs2.

the n9 suffers from greater exposure, tweak the settings abit while using and a better picture will be taken. the iphone4s has over-saturated images that may look better but actually are not producing colors accurately.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Absolutely agree. I just recently saw a comparison of various phone cameras on a famous blog and they gave the N9 miserable results - I still don't know why... Every camera has its weakness, and you mention the N9's one.

A couple month ago when I was traveling with friends we made some nice comparison pictures since we had the debate about which phone has the best camera (N9, 2 iPhone 4S and a Galaxy S2). We looked at them on a big TV screen an the N9 had simple the best pictures, especially when it comes to sharpness and color saturation. The N9 pictures looked the most "real".

I wished we would have published this comparison... So I don't know what the heck those mentioned US blogs are doing wrong.

@maverick788us: Don't worry, you have a very good small sized camera (I'm not comparing with N8) - except for 1080p video recording.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Like the other users above said.
"Real" ( Closest to the exact colour of the moment )
The other phones have been packing in more colours to make the picture more lively.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I completely disagree. As much as i want to like the N9's camera (hype was built up around it) it is simply disappointing.

There are times when it shines. Delivers great results. This is usually only in good strong sun light with the subject well lit. Most times, if not always, there is a strong haze, a very saturated feel to the photos.
I end up using 'Auto Fix All' function every time i take a photo as that fixes the colours up a bit.

Some might say its more 'real' but i've looked at things with my own eyes and the camera and its def not real. Some will again argue no camera can replicate the eye - also true - however i've seen results from the S2 which are far far superior. Not sure what post processing samsung are doing but its working. I have stopped using my N9 for taking photos as the results are not consistently reliable.

I am not saying the N9 has a bad camera, not at all, it sometimes surprises me - however it is not worthy of the Carl Zeiss label. If anyone strongly disagrees with me I am happy to do a n9 vs S2 comparison with zero editing for all to see. I have no interest in making false accusations without basis, but I feel we all fell into the Nokia/Carl Zeiss wagon a long time when Nokia did indeed live up to high expectations and today Nokia is barely keeping up. Of course, N8 and PureView 808 being huge exceptions.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

You guys are really tough on the N9 camera. The pictures I get from the N9 camera are amazing and I constantly compare them to the N8's camera all the time. They are very similar pictures in quality. The N9 is a feat for Nokia. A sensor 30% smaller than the N8's with extremely similar picture quality.

These pictures do the talking, btw none of these pictures have been edited at all.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

@ afaq

I'm neither agreeing or disagreeing with what you say as I've not had chance to make those comparisons myself.

So I would like to see the comparisons first hand - I'm sure others would too - if you want to post your results... :)

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

jakiman has made a very nice comparison of cameras at his blog: http://shootspeak.com/2011/10/07/2-c...ung-galaxy-s2/

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I Think they are all good cameras for a phone. But if I want a truly good photo I don't use a phone.
And said Zeiss is just the lens. It's a good start, but there's a lot more to making a photo than a lens.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Jakiman is a top contributor. However for sake of multiple views I'll do the same.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

carl zeiss lenses are not made by carl zeiss. They just licence their name to lens manufacturers (like nokia) who keep their quailty ip to their (cz) standards. They do make some lenses but only high end expensive optics.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I am not sure if GSMArena is an American or European website. But there is a section of 8MP race in which iPhone 4S is the winner and GS2 the runner up.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

my shots recently, taken by N9, check the exif

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8155/7...814a7f6467.jpg
Rain drops n lrt #5 by nikacu, on Flickr

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I really disagree with most of you two, and I tihnk your judgements are biased because you love your phone.
To me, the N9 camera is very average, and in low light conditions it is simply really really bad.

Ok you can argue that with the settings you can get better pics, but this is not the point with a phone where you want to be able to take quick pictures.

And here, the N9 is BAD, the iphone 4 (not s) make better pictures (now when I'm with my girlfriend I never use my camera anymore because she has an iphone....)

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

i see that you are over-saturated-EDOF color lover, you should use an iphone 4 rather rant here then :D

before you go, change your N9 to landscape mode and try take picture of it. and dont get jizz when you knew how fast n9 take the picture

fyi, iPhone 4 have 5MP EDOF camera, and oversaturated color postprocess.

and I do agree Iphone4s takes better picture than N9 , but not iphone4

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

In low light conditions, to me iphone4 is superior.
In normal light, N9 take better pictures for sure.

I think we keep using iphone4 because it is more "reliable", even if the quality is not always the best of the two.
Same for videos indoor : we shot two videos at a rock concert, low light condition again, and we see more details on the iphone 4 video, and furthermore the sound is better (not saturated).

That does'nt really bother me anyway, when I bought an N9 I knew its camera was not that good, and I don't really need it.


Edit : for the color saturation, you get a point. But as far as it's not too surrealistic and you can watch some of your party/holiday pictures, I don't mind. One may bother, but anyway you don't use your phone as a main camera for your best pictures.
The phone is useful to capture some quick pictures for the moments you want to keep.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I want to share

Nokia N9
http://img.techpowerup.org/120524/Capture662.jpg

SGS2
http://img.techpowerup.org/120524/Capture663.jpg

the Nokia N9 has wide area !
SGS2 not

All with Flash

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Since 2010, when we upgraded to iP4, we have stopped carrying a separate camera anywhere, as of now our Nikon is carrying dust somewhere at home - we don't even know where. iP4 was that good, so what if it was 5MP... it gave us all the quality shots we needed. Most at par to our digicam if not better.

Come 2011, we avoid iP4S (why, it's another matter for discussion) and go for the N9 instead... and boy, did we make a wiser decision, u bet? I've not tasted the 4S myself but my N9 is a marvel, at everything for me, including it's shooting capabilities. What we had with the iP4 the N9 surpassed it leaps & bounds.

Yes, we aren't the best photographers in the world, but our N9 shoots wholesome pics, very accurate details, good color separation, great to look at. It not just serves the purpose (for us), but actually does a better job than most of our friend's camphones, including BB, iP4S and the Samsungs/HTCs galore. We don't know why/how, but we've compared them & they (our friends) concur.

To us, our N9 remains a pure joy. Besides, it's form factor gets the accolades whenever we flash it, in public. Yes, we do get the random, "oh, is it a Lumia" call lately, but when we say, "no, it's an N9, a much better phone & OS", they go, "wow"! I guess, that's more to us than it's imaging capabilities, though it indeed is a good shooter.

No wonder the N8 and 808-Pureview might do a better job, but what we have now, at hand, is good enough. Then, if we really needed to shoot professionally, we'd rather carry a DSLR, won't we? But since we don't need that, didn't as yet, our N9 suffices... And, as I said earlier, surpasses!

It's all in our minds... To us our Nokia-N9 rocks, we couldn't have asked for anything better!

Qorax

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

amaziN9 N9 is a kiN9, :)


just saying, :D

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

sample picture please, and i dont want something cme from engdget/gsmarena/yada2

since.u. have n9 n ur gf have the ultimate ip4, post.comparison.shot

and u chose ip4 over nikon dslr? u mst be color.blind...and i believe 'we' referring.to.dlusional ifags

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

That's unreal !
That is not because we are on a N9 forum that we MUST think this is the best photophone ever and lose our judgements !

N9 is not a good camera phone, that's it, and NO, not all the websites on Internet are anti Nokia and pro Apple, this is ridiculous !

I will try to post some sample pictures as soon as possible to illustrate why I say that.

PS
"We" refered to "me and my gf".

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Reading this thread was really interesting, including some links to comparisons between the N9/N8/SGS2.

If I got this right, I believe this all boils down to the touch-only interface of the N9's camera. It is *hard* not to shake the phone a bit when taking a picture, and in low-light conditions, that may make blurry images.

So the N9 camera uses higher ISO for pics in low light, when compared to other cameras, in trade of faster shutter. But higher ISO do not produce colorfull detail...

So my understanding is that if you want beautiful details in worse-than-ideal light, the N9 camera is not your best bet.

On the other hand, with good light the pics are great.

I blame the (lack of) shutter button ;-)

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I have to agree with the others that feel that the N9 is not up to par with other Nokia camera phones. That is why I still keep my N8.

The N9 has to be tweaked...ALOT to produce wonderful pictures. My N8 is literally point and shoot and 99% of the time the picture comes out great regardless of situation. My father's N82 IMO takes better pictures than the N9.

That being said the comparison between the N9 and N8 is not fair. The N8 has a larger sensor. The N9 is not terrible but it takes a fair bit of work to get the camera to the right settings in anything other than ideal situations.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I am completely agree with N9 current camera isn't the best here. I am too still keeping N8 for my best shot. However, N9's wide scope of landscape and point focus is the one made me use N9's camera more than N8.

AND, Iphone4s >> N9, but iPhone4 camera not any better than N9.

Girlfriend and boy friend here? how amusing

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Im liking touch-shutter N9 better than physical shutter N8, I can take steady shot on N9 better than N8.....maybe that is just me.

it all boils down to camera software itself. Lumia 800 took overall better picture than N9. N9 only wins in Macro shot...(source is somewhere around net recently, go google)

usually, people adapts to the camera, not camera adapts to you.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

anyone who says the lumia 800 is better than the n9 (the source you're talking about i'm pretty sure is mynokiablog.com's ali) needs to check their sight. for heaven's sake the 800 has been acknowledged and issued 2 updates for it to come to some parity with the n9....

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

The Lumia 800 has a higher mpbs of video capture, not much else. The rest the Lumia falls short every time, it also has the best email integration, but besides that, I think it's the most boring OS i've ever touched.

So much so that if I had to decide between iOS and WP, I'd go iOS.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Photos taken with the Lumia 800 (at least with mine, and a friend's which I tried) are really bad. They show an ugly red tinting and bright colors appear washed out.

The N9's camera is OK IMHO, but not exciting and slightly inferior to the N900.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

Sorry, offtopic a bit but WP has the best email integration? Maybe it has some good points but it still lacks basic email functionality like photos embedded in emails will not be displayed and you can't attach any file to email other than a photo and only one photo per email.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I think that Nokia implemented the self timer at 2 seconds to avoid the shaky when you are pressing the shutter key. It is neat, I have to say. Not that practical but it proves itself.

In low light condition, N9 do not shine at all. In landscape mode, however, I am surprised it takes a very good picture.

Iphone 4s... Well, it is good for those who liked "lively" picture rather than accurate ones. Sure, it looks better on the phone, and since most users view it on the phone, Apple succeed in deceiving the consumers. N9, however, when you view it on PC, you will be amazed.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

The Galaxy S3 has voice controlled camera. It will launch with a voice command and take a shot when you say "cheese".

Too bad this can't be done with our N9. It will help to reduce the picture shake problem when you press the screen to take a shot.

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

S3 definitely has some neat features but it also has an annoying price tag of some 550+ EUR (700 USD)...
you simply can´t compare the two, especially if you can get a new, unlocked 16gb N9 with full warranty for 289 EUR around here, as of today...

Re: Despite having Carl Ziesis why does N9 have an inferior camera?
 

I can understand why a lot of people may not like the camera on the N9 - people want something that shoots high quality photos without the hassle of adjusting settings

The thing with photography/videography, is that some products NEED to have their settings adjusted to work well. i know of MANY high end video cameras that produce outstanding video when their settings are tweaked - but in automatic mode, the results are very average

I haven't played around with the N9's camera properly, so I don't know if this is the case. But it DOES have a larger aperature than all other phones cameras at f2.2, plus it has carl zeiss optics, so i'm sure you can get some very good results. I have seen some extremely good photos on the net taken with the N9's camera

Of course, at night time it isn't going to be anything special. An LED flash is nowhere near as good as a XENON flash, so making comparisons between the N8, say, is unfair