Extensive smartphone camera test including the new iPhone 4S and several Android smartphones.
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Posts tagged "iPhone 4S"
Those upgrading or buying a new iPhone 4S should re-consider the data plans they are buying and ultimately the carrier they choose or else possibly face some ugly overage charges. If you send many txts with iMessage or plan to use Siri, the new voice assistant, make sure your carrier’s data plan (Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint) has room for the data used by these apps in addition to your normal data usage patterns with previous devices.
The new iMessage iOS5 app uses the cellular data connection for transmitting text and media messages to other Apple devices. It does not use traditional SMS and MMS, which means that text plan you’re paying for is unused for iMessage. We don’t have estimates on data used per message yet - text messages are likely very small but photo or video messages could be a factor even if compressed (checking on this). Consider the quantity of messages as a multiplier and as big a factor.
Siri is one of the big features of the iPhone 4S and is receiving raves so far. Siri also uses the data connection to transmit your questions, and Siri’s responses, to and from Apple’s servers. Every time you ask, “Do I need an umbrella tomorrow”, that question and answer uses data against your plan.
We are seeking values on the average data usage of these two new apps for the iPhone 4S. In any case, when buying the iPhone 4S and accompanying data plan it may be wise to think about bumping up to the next tier. Average US smartphone data usage is climbing rapidly. Beyond these two apps, iMessage and Siri, all of the new and great features in iOS 5 will require more data usage as well.
For a comparison of the three carriers, if you use 2GB or more of data usage per month, the obvious choice from a cost perspective becomes the carrier with an unlimited data plan (Sprint). The last thing you want to be on the hook for are those costly overage charges.
The reviews are coming in for the new iPhone 4S and here is a sample of impressions of the updated camera that are giving us much excitement and anticipation:
The sensor is not only larger on the new iPhone, but Apple has further tweaked the optics to deliver better results, even in low-light settings. The company has updated the backside illumination sensor, added a fifth lens element, and increased the aperture to f/2.4 — all of which sounds more interesting if you’re a camera fanatic. Even if you’re not, however, the improvements are obvious the second you start snapping pictures.
The iPhone 4S took some of the nicest, cleanest photos I’ve ever seen from a mobile device. If you’ve ever thought about using a phone as a replacement for your point and shoot, feel free to start taking that concept seriously. The 4S produced crisp, balanced, colorful photos that were surprisingly low-noise and never over-saturated. The iPhone 4 sometimes seemed to be compensating for its limitations by exaggerating colors, but the iPhone 4S looks and feels like a real camera capturing true images.
The “eye” of the camera is one half of the equation: the “brain” is the other. In the iPhone 4S’ case that’s the image signal processor in the Apple A5 chip, one, which the company reckons, is on a par with what you’d find inside a dedicated DSLR. Not only is it responsible for the overall quality of the recorded photo, but the speed at which the photo is processed and saved.
Does it all work? You bet it does. There are two noticeable improvements – quality and speed – and the best thing is that they’re clearly evident from the start. Sharpness and detail are significantly boosted in the iPhone 4S when compared to what the iPhone 4 can achieve; there’s less noise and less color bleed evident. Aberrations such as fringing around the edges of the frame are cut right back, a benefit of that five-lens array.
In brightly lit environments there’s less over-exposure; in darker scenes the iPhone 4S is less prone to crunchiness in shadow areas. We’ve been able to shoot low-light images without resorting to the single LED flash, and still make out detail thanks to the boosted sensitivity. Apple says colors are 26-percent more accurate now, thanks to the work that’s been done on the processing algorithms, and while we can’t exactly put a number on it ourselves there’s certainly a more natural feel to images taken with the iPhone 4S.
Now that that iPhone 4S is out there, the biggest question seems to be: which carrier to go with in the U.S.?
AT&T gives you speed — they’re the only network currently supporting the 14.4 down that Apple mentioned on stage yesterday. But AT&T blows in big cities like San Francisco and New York. It’s hard to vote for speed when you can’t even get a connection at all.
Sprint gives you unlimited. Their plans are clearly going to be the best from a cost perspective. And, as the new kid on the block, they will likely have the least congested network. But they’re also the third-place carrier.
Verizon gets you reliability. They’re the most expensive and don’t offer speed or unlimited. But you pay for the quality of their network.
Right now, I’m torn. I won’t go back to AT&T because of my awful experience the last time. But Verizon versus Sprint seems to be a toss-up.
I think having the iPhone on three carriers in the U.S. is ultimately going to be a very good thing for consumers. Instead of taking features away and raising prices as AT&T and Verizon have been doing for years, they may be forced to actually compete with incentives for users.
Verizon vs. Sprint is a toss up? OH PLEASE.
Cost efficiency, versus the fastest and most widespread 4G network in the United States? WiMAX is a terrible excuse for 4G, barely operating at what Verizon’s CDMA (3G) network operates on. That said, Verizon’s 4G is an LTE based signal. LTE is a worldwide project that is still under construction, especially where I am in the Southeastern United States. However, it is a global network- so one day you will have it everywhere in the continental US, and worldwide.
Can Sprint offer you that? Verizon spends $61 billion dollars a year on the network. That’s over $100,000,000 a day. I kid you not.
Yes, I am aware that paying for data (if you aren’t grandfathered into the system) absolutely blows. I hate telling customers that they have to pay now. But you pay for what you get, and Verizon is the best and has the best. Period. Whether device or service, even customer service is top rated. The thought that someone tries to put a second-rate carrier with shitty service nationwide (3 and 4 G) next to the best and hardest working network makes me a little heated and offended.
Apologies! As some of you may (or may not) know, I work for Verizon and love what I do. If that’s an explanation for the above.
The iPhone 4S is not a 4G device so I don’t see the relevancy of LTE. But to play along, Sprint is announcing LTE as well and has 3 times the spectrum of VZ. Sprint is also right there at the top with VZ in customer service - check the stats. So what now? Cost is king, and for that Sprint wins.
(via oliviaandthewhale)
Mobility & Photography.
