From top: Nokia Lumia 1020; Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom; Sony Xperia Z1
At a combined count of 77 megapixels, these are some of the best camera-phones today. Mihir Patkar tells you which snapper should be in your pocket.
Nokia Lumia 1020
The Camera
Tech: With a 41MP sensor, the Lumia 1020 wins the specs war as no other phone comes close to that. The PureView tech means that when you click a photo, you get a full 41MP snap as well as a 5MP oversampled picture with lossless zoom. In a nutshell, click first and zoom later.
Software: Nokia's Pro Cam app makes photography easy and also offers manual controls. It's simple to adjust settings like shutter speed and white balance, encouraging you to play around with these even if you are an amateur. But it is also slow between shots.
Results: The 1020 has better detail than any phone camera out there. In fact, it's good enough to go toe-to-toe with high-end point-and-shoot cameras. For night shots, Nokia is the clear winner.
However, it does not reproduce the right colours. The colours you see with your eyes won't be what you get on any screen.
The Rest
As a smartphone OS, Windows Phone still lags behind the likes of Android and iOS with its apps, notifications system, and other quirks. The 1020 is a stylish and sturdy device. The performance is great for regular tasks, but high-end games struggle. The screen suffers in sunlight and it doesn't support expandable memory. On average, you can expect 14 hours of battery life.
Specs: 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 4.5-inch 800x480 screen, 41MP rear camera with Xenon flash, 1.2MP front camera, 32GB memory, 2GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-n and Bluetooth 3.0
Verdict
Is the Lumia 1020 the best camera-phone today? Definitely. Is it the best phone-camera today? Not by a long shot. If you care most about the camera and can live with Windows, then this is what you should buy
Price: Rs 41,499
Nokia Lumia 1020
The Camera
Tech: With a 41MP sensor, the Lumia 1020 wins the specs war as no other phone comes close to that. The PureView tech means that when you click a photo, you get a full 41MP snap as well as a 5MP oversampled picture with lossless zoom. In a nutshell, click first and zoom later.
Software: Nokia's Pro Cam app makes photography easy and also offers manual controls. It's simple to adjust settings like shutter speed and white balance, encouraging you to play around with these even if you are an amateur. But it is also slow between shots.
Results: The 1020 has better detail than any phone camera out there. In fact, it's good enough to go toe-to-toe with high-end point-and-shoot cameras. For night shots, Nokia is the clear winner.
However, it does not reproduce the right colours. The colours you see with your eyes won't be what you get on any screen.
The Rest
As a smartphone OS, Windows Phone still lags behind the likes of Android and iOS with its apps, notifications system, and other quirks. The 1020 is a stylish and sturdy device. The performance is great for regular tasks, but high-end games struggle. The screen suffers in sunlight and it doesn't support expandable memory. On average, you can expect 14 hours of battery life.
Specs: 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 4.5-inch 800x480 screen, 41MP rear camera with Xenon flash, 1.2MP front camera, 32GB memory, 2GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-n and Bluetooth 3.0
Verdict
Is the Lumia 1020 the best camera-phone today? Definitely. Is it the best phone-camera today? Not by a long shot. If you care most about the camera and can live with Windows, then this is what you should buy
Price: Rs 41,499
0 comments: