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HJM.NL

macrumors 68020
Jul 25, 2016
2,321
4,039
Netherlands
Where did I said "optical" ?
the point is that you get better zoom photos ? not sure what tripos is but if you are talking about tripod it's certainly not mandatory.
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Almost every brand is on par with the iPhone Pro these days and in many ways surpass the iPhone with better camera systems, screens, RAM and even speed.

The only premium of the iPhone is its price.
 

Tagbert

macrumors 603
Jun 22, 2011
5,957
6,924
Seattle
Where did I said "optical" ?
the point is that you get better zoom photos ? not sure what tripos is but if you are talking about tripod it's certainly not mandatory.
View attachment 2394641 View attachment 2394643
Optical zoom is the important measure. Anything else is just resizing the image after it is taken which you can do virtually infinitly in software but doesn’t add any detail. The results are not as good as an actual optical zoom.

I know that the Samsung phones have a 10x zoom. They can likely do digital zoom to much larger ranges but its just a visual trick, not an actual zoom.

”Tipos” was supposed to be “tripod”. You will need something to stabilize the camera if you are using longer optical zooms. Otherwise your hand shaking will make everything blurry.

There is little need for super long zooms in a portable device. the longer zooms require much bigger camera elements and that size grows exponetially with the zoom factor. No one wants to carry that around. If you do, you’ll bring a traditional camera with the big zoom lens.
 

HJM.NL

macrumors 68020
Jul 25, 2016
2,321
4,039
Netherlands
Optical zoom is the important measure. Anything else is just resizing the image after it is taken which you can do virtually infinitly in software but doesn’t add any detail. The results are not as good as an actual optical zoom.

I know that the Samsung phones have a 10x zoom. They can likely do digital zoom to much larger ranges but its just a visual trick, not an actual zoom.

”Tipos” was supposed to be “tripod”. You will need something to stabilize the camera if you are using longer optical zooms. Otherwise your hand shaking will make everything blurry.

There is little need for super long zooms in a portable device. the longer zooms require much bigger camera elements and that size grows exponetially with the zoom factor. No one wants to carry that around. If you do, you’ll bring a traditional camera with the big zoom lens.
Other brands are able to have very good zoom capabilities with crispy and sharp natural looking photos. Maybe Apple should outsource the camera systems to Samsung.
 

lkrupp

macrumors 68000
Jul 24, 2004
1,999
4,099
i’m not chasing this zoom again - overspent for a 15 pro max & i’ll be trading in for whatever is the smallest model in the 16 lineup non pro. the whole phone lineup is borked. need to make ONE phone lineup then its all profit you dummies.
So buy a Pixel. Why buy something from a completely borked lineup (your words).
 

Eggtastic

macrumors 65816
Jun 9, 2009
1,038
689
NJ
You've made me realize me that, having donated the dust-collecting dslr and zoom lens, I no longer own anything that could zoom in on the neighborhood. iPhone Pro is not for me, so maybe some compact binoculars are in order.

View attachment 2394624
Did you ditch your camera gear for the simplicity of having one device that takes decent photos or do you still have a separate camera set up?

Just curious as I always went with the highest tier model every 2-3 years for the camera but realizing maybe I should invest in a mirrorless and take up a new hobby.
 
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Mother Nature

macrumors regular
Sep 15, 2023
102
87
Colombia
The 5x zoom on my 15pm isn’t any better quality than pinching to zoom 5x. It’s just as blurry and lacks detail. Zoom to nowhere
Maybe your iPhone is not switching to the 5X lens. This also happens on Android phones but those devices let you control that behaviour.
 

Mother Nature

macrumors regular
Sep 15, 2023
102
87
Colombia
Did you ditch your camera gear for the simplicity of having one device that takes decent photos or do you still have a separate camera set up?

Just curious as I always went with the highest tier model every 2-3 years for the camera but realizing maybe I should invest in a mirrorless and take up a new hobby.
I also use a Sony camera when travelling, the iPhone cannot replace a professional camera but there are situations where the flexibility that the iPhone offers is unbeatable, and when it comes to video, when using Log (and/or ProRes) it can actually do really great stuff.

Plus, you can use Apple ProRAW and take really good pictures.
I'd use both.
 

HJM.NL

macrumors 68020
Jul 25, 2016
2,321
4,039
Netherlands
2016 - iPhone 7 Plus [2x zoom]
2020 - iPhone 12 Pro Max [2.5x zoom]
2021 - iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max [3x zoom]
2023 - iPhone 15 Pro Max [5x zoom]

Why can't Apple go the Samsung [Galaxy Ultra] route? A dedicated lens for each: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, 3x, 5x, 10x
Apple could… but it will cost Apple a few more dollars per iPhone and a few more dollars to up the RAM as well. Timmy will tell you that you don’t need it. Timmy is afraid getting less pennies per iPhone.

“Innovation at Apple” = using parts from other companies (like Samsung and Sony) that make those.
 

Mother Nature

macrumors regular
Sep 15, 2023
102
87
Colombia
Almost every brand is on par with the iPhone Pro these days and in many ways surpass the iPhone with better camera systems, screens, RAM and even speed.

The only premium of the iPhone is its price.
Nope. The iPhone doesn't win any of those categories, but it delivers the most consistent experience among all of those categories you pointed out.

I even switched to the S24 Ultra thinking that it was going to be a good experience, it was for the most part, it's just that Android (and thefore any OEM using that OS) is so inconsistent, let alone those OEMs that customize Android like Samsung.

iPhone doesn't stand out in any particular category anymore but you can expect it to do almost everything in a reliable way.
 

bradman83

macrumors 65816
Oct 29, 2020
1,094
2,723
Buffalo, NY
Every iPhone rumor now just seems to be another round of "meh...who cares..."

This product line is so boring now

I can't believe this is all Apple is ever willing to do anymore ... just tiny little spec bumps to a camera or a super minor dimension change, etc
I’m legitimately curious what you’d like to see changed about the iPhone lineup. Smartphones are mature platforms where there’s not much more that can be done with them outside of iterative upgrades, sort of like how laptops have been for the past 10 years. Yes, some Android phone makers deploy things before Apple, but that’s usually tech that isn’t ready for prime time yet (foldable displays, under display cameras, ridiculously pixel-dense camera sensors).

To be clear I agree smartphone upgrades have gotten boring, but that’s kind of the point. When I upgrade my laptop I enjoy several years worth of iterative upgrades, and the same is becoming true with smartphones now that I’m keeping them longer.
 

ThunderSkunk

macrumors 68040
Dec 31, 2007
3,959
4,338
Milwaukee Area
iPhone doesn't stand out in any particular category anymore but you can expect it to do almost everything in a reliable way.
Yeah i think that makes sense for what a phone cam does. If you want to take better photos than a tiny lens on a tiny sensor & an algorythm can put together, thats what real cameras are for.

For instance, heres the puny 4x zoom I just ordered for me olde timey walkaround Z8 daguerreotype maker. I can’t expect a phone cam to do this, but it‘s ok, it’s not for that. Instead it will get all the shots I‘d otherwise miss bc I don’t carry the beast around on me everywhere I goes. So, its fine.
 

Smittywerben

macrumors member
Mar 26, 2024
56
208
Optical zoom is the important measure. Anything else is just resizing the image after it is taken which you can do virtually infinitly in software but doesn’t add any detail. The results are not as good as an actual optical zoom.

I know that the Samsung phones have a 10x zoom. They can likely do digital zoom to much larger ranges but its just a visual trick, not an actual zoom.

”Tipos” was supposed to be “tripod”. You will need something to stabilize the camera if you are using longer optical zooms. Otherwise your hand shaking will make everything blurry.

There is little need for super long zooms in a portable device. the longer zooms require much bigger camera elements and that size grows exponetially with the zoom factor. No one wants to carry that around. If you do, you’ll bring a traditional camera with the big zoom lens.
Phone camera is different than DSLR or such, processing matters a lot more and other competitors while still using digital zoom, they are far far superior than what 15PM can capture. tripod isn't "needed" if phone has good stabilization already, I have seen a lot of people doing these crazy high zoom in concert or stadium by just using their bare hands.
If there was little need, Apple would not have gone 5x which is standard for other flagships as well. for Apple, zoom is the same as AI, they missed the boat and now they are trying to catch up, which takes years and probably won't happen till 17PM either.
Almost every brand is on par with the iPhone Pro these days and in many ways surpass the iPhone with better camera systems, screens, RAM and even speed.

The only premium of the iPhone is its price.
This was probably the first year that other competitors did catch up, 7 years of software update, double the RAM (now that it actually matters and Apple is still going for 8) and SD8G4 is rumored to be better than A18 Pro which if real should be a first in years. 15PM losing to a much cheaper OP12 in terms of battery life + both 14/15 series having bad battery health in general is not a good look either. things were a lot lot better for Apple in 2021.
Videos about switching from iPhone to Android were a popular trend on YouTube when the S24U came out, I couldn't see this many of them before.
 
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Chungry

macrumors regular
Jun 10, 2024
136
144
Every iPhone rumor now just seems to be another round of "meh...who cares..."

This product line is so boring now

I can't believe this is all Apple is ever willing to do anymore ... just tiny little spec bumps to a camera or a super minor dimension change, etc
The Tim formula is widely successful and decidedly boring. Gone are the days of interesting changes and bold designs because they design by committee and exude a very beige feeling in all that they do. I feel like this quote was a defensive self own: “can’t innovate anymore my @$$.” Saying the quiet part out loud. Because Apple institutionally can’t!
 
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CharlesShaw

macrumors 68000
May 8, 2015
1,513
2,398
Did you ditch your camera gear for the simplicity of having one device that takes decent photos or do you still have a separate camera set up?

Just curious as I always went with the highest tier model every 2-3 years for the camera but realizing maybe I should invest in a mirrorless and take up a new hobby.
My only cameras are on my iPhone and iPad, and are rarely used, so I doubt I will ever justify buying a dedicated camera again. My digital camera gear was from 2007, and while it was fun to purchase and tinker with off and on for a few years, I regretted that it was in a drawer unused for so many years, so it went to the charity resale shop.
 
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imlynxy

macrumors 65816
Mar 8, 2012
1,417
613
The 5x zoom on my 15pm isn’t any better quality than pinching to zoom 5x. It’s just as blurry and lacks detail. Zoom to nowhere
Let me disagree. I have 15PM and my family members 15P. My phone is always better with zoom pictures. Not a lot better, but still visible.
 
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Crom!

macrumors member
Apr 26, 2014
30
38
I spent a pretty penny on my 14pro I am not going to go and upgrade to get a slightly better camera. I am going use this darn thing till apple bricks it with planned obsolescence
 
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