iPhone 5S/5C thread

[Ns1]

In fact, I'm now considering buying a 5S for my wife for Xmas, mainly because of the camera. She takes tons of iPhone 4 camera pix of our kid and they almost universally suck. However, it's hard to justify a brand new phone just for the camera, esp. since I was originally considering giving her this phone anyway next year if the iPhone 6 got a 4.2-4.3" screen or got other improvements.

Your wife has a 4? You're not buying her a new phone with a camera. You're buying her a new camera with a phone.

Srsly my fiancé looooooves the camera - best thing about the phone for her.

 

[ponyo]

I agree, that is a disadvantage with these cameras in general. I will say that if I have a very specific reason to bring a camera, like a birthday party, I will still bring one. But it may not necessarily be my point-and-shoot either. It could be a point-and-shoot, but it instead could be my dSLR. Or else my waterproof camera for the pool.

OTOH, before 2013 I kept on thinking before that I should think about always having a point-and-shoot in my pocket because whenever I used a phone camera I just didn't like the results that much, esp. in lower light. But I didn't carry that extra camera in my pocket because it was a hassle. That has changed with the 5S. No longer do I think that I need that extra camera. Yeah, it still has drawbacks, but the quality for the shots it can take has finally reached that (mostly) "good enough" threshold for me for snapshots that all previous iPhones lacked IMO.

In fact, I'm now considering buying a 5S for my wife for Xmas, mainly because of the camera. She takes tons of iPhone 4 camera pix of our kid and they almost universally suck. However, it's hard to justify a brand new phone just for the camera, esp. since I was originally considering giving her this phone anyway next year if the iPhone 6 got a 4.2-4.3" screen or got other improvements.

Camera is one of the main reason I decided to get the 5s. My phone is the only camera I carry and I'm starting to take more pictures and videos. I think the 5s camera is fantastic for general use. 5s camera is fast and accurate. I don't have to worry about blurry shots anymore. Low light shots are still terrible but I think pretty much all phones take bad pictures in low light. I agree I would get the 5s just for the camera.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

I just went on a 4 day trip to NYC with a Canon 7D, a Canon S95, an iPhone 5 and a Nexus 4. The S95 and 7D had about equal number of photos, like 30-40 each, but the iPhone 5 had like 200. Seriously. I'd rather use the iPhone 5 and get a beautiful backlit photo with HDR than to setup my 7D with a tripod to do a 3 shot bracket or hold it damn steady and use some 3rd party HDR software to stitch it together.

As a photographer, I really love my cameras, but it actually bothered me when my friend was all like "Dude use the S95 to take our group photo, it's a real camera." I did, and I'd hand it off to someone, along with my iPhone 5. But the iPhone takes great SOOC photos. The S95 I'd have to take back home and touch up in Lightroom to bring out the colors or fix the dark areas.

I feel like the only reason I keep my S95 around is for the f/2.0 capabilities and how well it does in low light, but with cameraphones making such big strides, there's less and less reason to keep it.

 

[Oyeve]

I just went on a 4 day trip to NYC with a Canon 7D, a Canon S95, an iPhone 5 and a Nexus 4. The S95 and 7D had about equal number of photos, like 30-40 each, but the iPhone 5 had like 200. Seriously. I'd rather use the iPhone 5 and get a beautiful backlit photo with HDR than to setup my 7D with a tripod to do a 3 shot bracket or hold it damn steady and use some 3rd party HDR software to stitch it together.

As a photographer, I really love my cameras, but it actually bothered me when my friend was all like "Dude use the S95 to take our group photo, it's a real camera." I did, and I'd hand it off to someone, along with my iPhone 5. But the iPhone takes great SOOC photos. The S95 I'd have to take back home and touch up in Lightroom to bring out the colors or fix the dark areas.

I feel like the only reason I keep my S95 around is for the f/2.0 capabilities and how well it does in low light, but with cameraphones making such big strides, there's less and less reason to keep it.

I still think we are a couple of generations from having a phone camera become defacto. Will be interesting what camera manufacturers are going to do to keep in business.

 

[saratoga172]

I still think we are a couple of generations from having a phone camera become defacto. Will be interesting what camera manufacturers are going to do to keep in business.

If they could muster they should keep traditional cameras around, but might be more of a niche area...close to how pcs are becoming as tablets grow.

But what they should really do is work with phone manufacturers to build in sensors and camera gear. If they can start capturing that it'll help boost revenue and sustain when cameras start declining.

 

[bearxor]

I still think we are a couple of generations from having a phone camera become defacto. Will be interesting what camera manufacturers are going to do to keep in business.

If you're on Windows Phone, I bet it's only one generation.

 

[Eug]

I still think we are a couple of generations from having a phone camera become defacto. Will be interesting what camera manufacturers are going to do to keep in business.

Well, first off they have to clean up the camera UI. I have a Canon S110 with WiFi support and a touch screen.

The camera has decent low light support (and much better than the 5S), but the UI just sucks. Colour balance is also good, but ironically, the flash pix can come out wrong sometimes because the flash just blows everything out. Ironically, I don't have that problem with the 5S, esp. with close subjects.

As for WiFi, it's just horrid. There is an absolutely awful Canon iPad/iPhone/Android app that is supposedly for helping these mobile devices navigate and publish these pictures, but they don't work consistently and the UI is so broken that it becomes a waste of time. It may as well not be there, because I end up just removing the SD card and sticking it in my laptop to work from that instead. The only time I really used the WiFi connection was when I was on vacation and my laptop died, so I was forced to use the iPad to access the pictures.

If you're on Windows Phone, I bet it's only one generation.

Except that the Nokias have bad colour balance, and slow cameras (at least if you're talking Lumia 1020). I'm thinking that while the slow camera UI may be fixed with the next iteration, the colour balance issue will not. This is something that has plagued point-and-shoot camera makers for years, and Nokia and Microsoft are somewhat new at this. That said, Apple managed to mostly solve this issue for the masses, and they're relatively new at it too.

 

[gar655]

I still think we are a couple of generations from having a phone camera become defacto. Will be interesting what camera manufacturers are going to do to keep in business.

More than a couple of generations at least for those that actually take photographs and not just "pics".

They still sell a ton of DSLRs and interchangeable lens camera for a reason. Photographs from a phone pretty much suck when viewed any larger than the phone screen. And don't even start talking about low light IQ or action shots or shots with ANY movement.

Cameras on phones are good for documentation purposes and that's it.

 

[Eug]

Sometimes "suck" is good, esp. for documentation... or documentary... purposes.

$1.99 iPhone app saved Oscars film

After running out of money, director Malik Bendjelloul finished shooting the Oscar nominated documentary 'Searching For Sugar Man' on an iPhone app.

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/8mm-vintage-camera/id406541444?mt=8

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Well, first off they have to clean up the camera UI. I have a Canon S110 with WiFi support and a touch screen.

The camera has decent low light support (and much better than the 5S), but the UI just sucks. Colour balance is also good, but ironically, the flash pix can come out wrong sometimes because the flash just blows everything out. Ironically, I don't have that problem with the 5S, esp. with close subjects.

As for WiFi, it's just horrid. There is an absolutely awful Canon iPad/iPhone/Android app that is supposedly for helping these mobile devices navigate and publish these pictures, but they don't work consistently and the UI is so broken that it becomes a waste of time. It may as well not be there, because I end up just removing the SD card and sticking it in my laptop to work from that instead. The only time I really used the WiFi connection was when I was on vacation and my laptop died, so I was forced to use the iPad to access the pictures.

I have one of those wifi sd cards. They are more of a pain to set up then to just plug it into the computer and xfer it over.

 

[Eug]

Just to be clear, I don't have a wifi sd card. The camera itself has wifi. But yeah, it is just a pain to use. The interface design is circa 2000.

 

[bearxor]

Except that the Nokias have bad colour balance, and slow cameras (at least if you're talking Lumia 1020). I'm thinking that while the slow camera UI may be fixed with the next iteration, the colour balance issue will not. This is something that has plagued point-and-shoot camera makers for years, and Nokia and Microsoft are somewhat new at this. That said, Apple managed to mostly solve this issue for the masses, and they're relatively new at it too.

The Lumia 1020 screams first-gen product problems, which is surprisingly, since the PV808 came first and is still the better camera.

Nokia had to overcome a lot to bolt the PV camera on to a Windows Phone. I still think any color balance issues can be fixed with as software update and I think next generation SoC's will fix any speed problems.

I really wanted the L1020 but just using it screamed beta. I think the 2014 version of the device will alleviate the vast majority of problems with the L1020 and WP8.1 should solve a lot of issues we have winth WP in general. The merging of WP8 and W8RT will also go a long way towards this.

I know this is an iPhone thread so I don't want to get too off track. Suffice it to say, I think Microsoft's Windows 8 strategy is going to start paying off in 2014 and 2015 and Apple NEEDS to do something this year to show that they're ready to start moving iOS devices forward with regards to general purpose computing. I'm hoping we'll see some of that next week, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

[Eug]

I've encountered some reloading background pages in Safari, suggesting to me the memory was exhausted.

Granted, I had a lot of pages loaded, but as we said before, the next iPhone needs to be 2 GB.

 

[Eug]

Not bad for a 99¢ eBay bumper. The only problem is the buttons are silver, not gold.

 

[saratoga172]

That was 99 cents? Can you post or PM me the link EUG? I've got a work 5S that's white/silver. Running naked right now and sometimes have a thin white Rearth case on it. Been looking for a nice bumper and that one looks great.

 

[Eug]

Sorry, I lied. It's $1.30. I ordered the white + clear.

I ordered another one for 99¢ but it hasn't arrived yet. In fact, I ordered three different cases, for a total of under $5 shipped, just to see which one I liked the most. This was the first one that arrived... which is the disadvantage: It took 4 weeks to get here.

I'm not sure if it's kosher to post eBay links, so I'll send you a PM with the link.

 

[evident]

I just got the spigen tough armor for my wife. They claim it provides just as much protection as the otterbox defender, somehow I doubt that. Let's hope I never find out though. Very nice case overall but expensive

 

[StrangerGuy]

Which part exactly?

I'm sure some people like the 5C colors. I just think they made bizarre choices in that regard. I keep reading how these colors will appeal to teenagers and Asians. I find them extremely polarizing. The white is the only one I would bother using.

I'm sorry for repeating what I've said already in this thread but they really should give you the option to disable the lock screen entirely. Even with Touch ID there is a delay from when you can finally access your home screen.

Over here in Asia everybody covets the gold/silver 5S. Nobody cares about the rest and the 5C.

 

[bearxor]

That is a nice bumper, but I always want back protection and I don't think it would work with my glass screen protector. Take a look at this Spigen Ultra Hybrid Bumper:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00E48...110_SY165_QL70

It's still pretty thin, is cheap at $10, and protects the back. My favorite thing about this case is the volume buttons. I really hate the volume "titties" and this flattens them out and makes them much easier to press.

 

[bearxor]

One of my annoyances is that TouchID has essentially rendered lock screen notifications worthless.

Now, when I swipe on them to open the app (usually a text reply), I have to touch my thumb to the home button to get in.

I'm still not quite sure if the convenience of the TouchID is worth that trade off. Need more time.

I'm probably going to return my 5S Monday, the last day I can, to wait for a gold version to come in to stock. I also might just use the refund back from it to buy a Nexus 5 to play around with. Still deciding. Will probably start using an old GNex though.

 

[blairharrington]

One of my annoyances is that TouchID has essentially rendered lock screen notifications worthless.

Now, when I swipe on them to open the app (usually a text reply), I have to touch my thumb to the home button to get in.

I'm still not quite sure if the convenience of the TouchID is worth that trade off. Need more time.

I'm probably going to return my 5S Monday, the last day I can, to wait for a gold version to come in to stock. I also might just use the refund back from it to buy a Nexus 5 to play around with. Still deciding. Will probably start using an old GNex though.

Curious why you'd take a 5S over a Nexus 5.

 

[bearxor]

Curious why you'd take a 5S over a Nexus 5.

I greatly prefer iOS over Android. Everything seems to fit together in my head better on iOS.

But I'm a geek, so I like to try everything. My last go at Android full-time was a Galaxy Nexus on 4.1 in 2012. But an opportunity to get some of the latest Android hardware on Android 4.4? I might take it. I try to keep as open a mind as possible and always want to try new things. I'll wait until the 4.4 announcement to see if it brings any significant changes before deciding. I'll be on a GNex with 4.3 for the next few weeks anyways.

 

[blurredvision]

One of my annoyances is that TouchID has essentially rendered lock screen notifications worthless.

Now, when I swipe on them to open the app (usually a text reply), I have to touch my thumb to the home button to get in.

I'm still not quite sure if the convenience of the TouchID is worth that trade off. Need more time.

Touch ID is only useful for those who normally lock their phones for security. If you didn't set a PIN before, then Touch ID isn't doing anything extra for you. I always have a PIN set on my phone because it has work email on it, Touch ID makes it easier to get in. It's not revolutionary or anything, just a nice feature.

 

[MrX8503]

Touch ID is only useful for those who normally lock their phones for security. If you didn't set a PIN before, then Touch ID isn't doing anything extra for you. I always have a PIN set on my phone because it has work email on it, Touch ID makes it easier to get in. It's not revolutionary or anything, just a nice feature.

In Apple's keynote they said that most people don't use a pass code because its inconvenient. So those that normally don't lock their phones previously may lock it now with touch ID.

Touch ID's only purpose isn't to make pass code users' lives easier, it's also to get more people to use a lock.

 

[OneOfTheseDays]

I've been on the fence about upgrading my 4S to the 5S. I know hardware wise the performance bump will be substantial. I am disappointed, however, in two major things.

One is the screen size, 4" is simply too small in today's age of 4.3-5" screens on other platforms. I recently played with a GS4 and was sad to go back to my 4S's pathetic 3.5" screen. The thought of having to live with a 4" screen for another two years is really disappointing me.

Two, and this really surprised me, is iOS7. I really dislike the OS compared to iOS6. I feel the overall usability has gone way done for me and I'm not a fan of the ugly grey color scheme in apps like Safari. I feel like I can live with iOS7 in the long run because functionally I can still get things done quickly, but I'm not enamored with the OS the way I was when I first switched to Apple.

Thus, I'm in an odd position right now. I don't feel like there is any phone on the market today that has what I want. Android as a platform has always been a let down for me. It's laggy, the UI is inconsistent across apps, and it crashed for too often for my liking. Windows Phone lacks the app library and some really basic features (e.g. notification center) it needs to compete....although to be fair a lot of this is supposed to be addressed in their 8.1 update.

Anyone else in my boat?