Apple iPhone 3G S Digital Camera Digital Camera Review

Apple iPhone 3G S Digital Camera

Digital Camera Review

2.7 The Apple iPhone 3G S adds some significant under-the-hood improvements, including an updated three-megapixel image sensor with autofocus and video recording. The camera performed well in color accuracy and resolution, but we disliked the shortage of controls.
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Sample Photos  
x Videos Page 7 of 14 Playback x

Sample Photos


 

Click on any of the following image samples to see them at full size. If you're on a slow connection, this may take some time to load, as they're very large files.

Detail Sample
x Focal length: 3.85mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter: 1/15
ISO: 76

Given the low light levels of a wet Boston day, we're surprised that the phone didn't choose a higher ISO, which would reduce blurring by allowing a faster shutter speed.
x x x  

 

Wildlife Sample
x Focal length: 3.85mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter: 1/15
ISO: 76


Once again, under low light, the iPhone chose a relatively long exposure, which in this case led to the white parts of the flowers over-exposing.
x x x  

 

Sign Sample
x Focal length: 3.85mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter: 1/119
ISO: 119


The faster shutter speed and higher ISO from this image let the photo retain a lot of detail, even though it's comparatively low resolution.
x x x  

 

Macro Sample
x Focal length: 3.85mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter: 1/119
ISO: 126


Even using the "touch to focus" the camera had difficulty pulling off a proper macro shot. Given the stated aperture of f/2.8, the depth of field should be more shallow, which we're just not seeing.
x x x  

 

Still Life Examples


Click on the images below to download full-size sample images. The iPhones all shot on automatic ISO, and the Sony image was at the ISO 80 setting. These images are large, and may take some time to load.

  Still Life Comparisons
  x x x x
  Apple iPhone
3G S
Apple iPhone 3G Apple iPhone Sony T900
Auto ISO x x x x

NOTE: The images above are not used in our testing or scoring, but are included here to show real-world examples of the differences between cameras at the various ISO settings. 

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