Need new phone(s) and camera - one purchase or three?

fadingathedges

Hi PA!

We need a camera(s):
We are going to Venice and Munich in August, and we want decent quality working cameras. If I could afford it I'd buy an SLR, but price is a factor for us. A friend of mine advised that a $100-200 dedicated camera will vastly outshine almost any camera built into a phone.

I have no knowledge or experience about this kind of thing, but I know a good local shop I could talk and buy in. Also: the internet.


I need a phone:
My phone is very overdue for replacement. I have tmobile and plan to keep it. I want an unbloated Android that will last me a good while, preferably with a decent camera.

I am leaning towards an LG G2.


She needs a phone:
My gf's iPhone took a nasty spill less than a week after her 1 year warranty passed, and the cameras are all fuckered. Apple Science Women had no luck fixing them. She has AT&T.

Left to her own devices, she will probably eventually replace it with another iPhone, but I was wondering if something like the Lumia 1020 would be a good choice - the camera is a higher priority for her phone than mine, and she might break the iPhone cycle for the right camera. Any input on that or other phones focussed on the camera would be appreciated.

Thanks PA

Enc

Smartphones are better cameras than have been around in much of human history, but yes a professional grade camera will still beat them. For vacation photos I don't think a pro camera is really worth it given the amount you would have to carry/protect it on the trip unless you see yourself carrying a heavy camera everywhere and using it often even after your trip. We used an Iphone 2 for our Europe trip and the pictures were high enough resolution and quality to blow several up to wall-print size.

The phones discussion should probably entail more about how much in the way of software you have already invested. If you have a ton of money in iphone apps, there isn't much sense in moving off from it if it will double your costs to re-buy the apps you use on android (and vice versa). If the costs are negligible, I'd suggest doing a comparison of each phone OS with providers and going with whatever seems to best fit your needs at the time.

ceres

My camera is excellent and is just the one in my S3. The S4's camera is even better.

At this point, unless I ever get into photography as a serious hobby, I'm just going to buy my phones with the camera in mind.

I don't know anything much about recent iphone cameras, but my experience with the iphone was incredibly poor compared with every android phone I've ever owned.

Djeet

I have a DSLR and a few P&S cameras and still 90%+ of my photos are taken on my smartphone, cause that's the camera I happen to have at the time. That said, for vacationing people often want to have an optical zoom that covers wide to semi/full-telephoto. Smartphones will have a fixed focal length and no "real" zoom (only cropping or scaling). If you don't think you're going to be using the camera much after the vacation (and chances are you won't) then I'd consider just practicing a lot with your smartphone camera and just use that; 1 less thing to keep track of and keep charged.

I just got a Nexus 5 and am quite happy with it. The LG G2 is supposed to have a better camera, but I don't think there is a huge difference between the flagship smartphones in camera performance. Phonearena did a recent article comparing the cameras on a number of flagship phones available. Edit: Also dxomark does pretty in-depth evaluations of cameras on mobiles.

Regarding your wife and the Lumia 1020, I personally wouldn't buy a smartphone for the camera unless it had both an optical zoom and a significantly larger sensor (physical dimensions, not mpizels) than you find in smartphones. She also may hate having a windowsphone, or the Nokia apps/way of doing basic things, usability and familiarity of use can matter a lot to phone users so she probably shouldn't get the 1020 unless she also likes the phone itself. True it has 41 mpixels but I've heard that there is significant overhead in processing time so you nd up with a less responsive camera.

fadingathedges

Thanks for the input everyone. 'Just use phones' was my original plan, maybe I'll just stick with that.


ps OH GOD DO I HAVE A WIFE NOW?

Darkewolfe

A smartphone will do for you in almost every instance except:

1. Wrist strap on a camera that you can dangle out off a cliff/over the ocean/out the castle to take a picture without risking a critical piece of communication equipment is nice. More than a few times I was afraid to take certain pictures because if I dropped my phone I'd have a harder time traveling.

2. Low light conditions are often still pretty hell on smartphone cameras due to the shitty flash.

ceres

I have a case with a strap for my phone.

About the LG phone with the quad core: my husband got it and loved it till he realized that the battery life is terrible unless it was on standby. It's something to consider if you're going to be out and about all day.

Akilae

I want to say go with a cheap camera.

Do you really want to hand your phone to a total stranger in a foreign country?

NotYou

The Lumix Lx7 is the cheapest highest quality compact camera available. 300 on amazon. It can take some awesome low light shots and even has a bit of depth of field. It has full manual controls. I think it does better than the cheaper SLRs. Read some reviews on it if it sounds interesting.

But really it just depends what you want out of your photos. Just snapping quick pics so you remember the trip? Just use a phone. Want something a bit more high quality? Want low light shots? Grab a dedicated camera.

eric0707

I recommend SMART CAMERA NX200 camera has excellent quality and a good price. Search it on Amazon or eBay.

hsu

If you want good camera reviews, there's only one place on the internet:
http://www.dpreview.com/

Personally, I have traveled around the world with my old Olympus E-PM1, a very portable (fits in a jacket pocket) interchangeable lens camera. With a great 25mm/F1.4 lens, it practically takes pictures in the dark, at near zero second auto focus speeds. However, it ain't cheap, especially not my lenses.

bsjezz

a smartphone camera is fine unless you think you're going to want to snap a photo in a couple of seconds. with a real camera around your neck and the knowledge to use it, you can get more fantastic photos just because you get the shot as soon as you see it - which isn't really possible with a phone. but if photography's gonna be a peripheral thought and you're not really going to care to take the camera everywhere you go anyway, a phone will do just as well for the big landmarks. plus you can do quick image enhancements so that they are interesting and publishable immediately.