iPhone, the camera phone

Despite its high price tag and innovations such as its touch screen, Apple's iPhone doesn't break new ground in all features and functions. Sometimes it's merely competent--as with its built-in camera, which is fine but nothing special.

The iPhone's camera does have a 2-megapixel (MP) sensor. That's more than most camera phones (at least in the U.S.), which are limited to no more than 1 MP of resolution. But other phones, such the Samsung SCH-a990, Sony Ericsson K790a, and Nokia N95, offer 3 to 5 MP.

But resolution is only one ingredient of image quality. The iPhone's camera yielded photos that were comparable in overall quality to those from our tests of those high-res cameraphones. Which is to say images were better than those from most cameraphones we've tested but fell short of those from a typical digital camera.

The iPhone's dynamic range (which is the difference between, or ratio of, the lightest and darkest elements of a displayed image) was especially good, with minimal visual noise in the resulting images. Also images taken in low light were passable, which they aren't from all cellphones. On the other hand, color balance was only fair, with many daylight shots bearing a bluish tinge.

That blue tendency might have been avoidable if the iPhone's camera offered white-balance settings. Instead, you're basically stuck with the settings the iPhone sets (although you might be able to fix problems later using an image-editing program). Some cameraphones offer white-balance settings and some other niceties the iPhone lacks, such as video recording, ISO options and a flash.

Spartan and straightforward, the iPhone's camera seems to aim to make picture-taking simple at all costs. And it largely succeeds: You use your thumb to click on the (virtual) shutter button and take the picture, which is indicated by a virtual shutter sound. The 3.5-in. LCD monitor, much larger than on other cellphones, further makes it easy and enjoyable to frame images. (Click on the image above for a larger view of the iPhone in action.)

Pictures looked great on the big screen in review and album modes, too. In those modes, the iPhone has a feature that's a rarity among camera phones (although common to digital cameras): it automatically rotates the image so that it orients correctly. A portrait-oriented photo will have lots of black space when the camera is held horizontally, for example, but will fill much more of the screen when the device is held vertically and the image automatically adjusts. Unlike some phones and many digital cameras, you are unable to connect the iPhone through an A/V out terminal in order to connect and view it on a TV screen.

The iPhone's scroll feature, a key distinction of the touch screen with all content, gives the impression that your finger is actually moving the photo across the screen, and pulling up the next shot in the album. You can also spread your fingers to instantly zoom in and out of images. As we've noted before, the screen does get oily with all that finger contact but the smudges are particularly noticeable only where the screen is dark, and you can use the included chamois cloth to clean it.

You get photos off the iPhone and onto your computer using USB or e-mail. (With the latter, iPhone downsizes high-res images to VGA quality--640 x 480.) You can import photos only using iTunes; unlike most other higher-res camera phones, there's no memory-card slot for getting images on and off the phone. The slot's absence is another basic-to-a-fault aspect of the iPhone's generally worthy camera phone.

For more information on the iPhone, check out:

• Our Flash-based interactive, which offers detailed look at its features
• Our look at the iPhone's performance as a cell phone
• Our online video First Look at its overall performance (Flash software also required)

-- Terry Sullivan, digital imaging editor

Comments

[kamren]

hey i think the i phone iS OFF THE CHAIN BECAISE IT HAS A CAMERA IPOD AND INTERNET ON I T THAT HAS EVERYTHING HOW COULD U NOT LIKE IT

[kennethandmary]

I have read Consumers article on the iPhone and what follows logically is a follow up on that half hearted attempt to review the iPhone with a substantial article elaborating it's strengths and it's weaknesses. I would also like to see features listed that would make the iPhone a world class communications instrument- for instance: the addition of an SD Memory Card, GPS, video recording, voice dialing, replacable battery, and much much more.
Common folks, I know you can do this. With your resources this is a given. Thanks for letting me put my two cents in.

[Dany]

People attacking the review are obviously Apple fanboys and fangirls. "How does he dare disrespect my prrrrrrrecioussssss iPhone?"

[Brenda]

i love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[vivian Perdomo]

i love it. Is the best the first day that i bought it. I loveded!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!YOU SHOULD TRY IT

[Deena Loveland]

I tested the IPhone at AtT&T yesterday. I was told at that moment the price was lowered $200. I was very close to buying one and decided to try it. As a woman I have fingernails, not long ones mind you. The keyboard was horrible and I kept making mistaks over and over again. I asked if they had a device like a stylist pen so I could type. They said IPod does not have one. It was so frustrating to me, even at the lower price, I did not buy it. Even the salesman at the store said that issue was a big problem, even for him. Has anyone had that problem.

[Michael]

... I knew we were in trouble when the boss called looking for his IT staff (that's us) to "replace the BB" (8700) he used for his company email (Blackberry Enterprise server / Exchange). Well we knew that the iPhone was never meant to satisfy the needs of the corporate users. What we couldn't know was that it would also fall short of satisfying the personal needs of his wife.

To this clients chagrin, the iPhone has a relationship with the exchange server that is definitely not a viable alterative to the Blackberry, not even close... The iPhone has No push, No voice dialing, No Reply All, NO IM, NO tasks, No many things...... The iPhone is really and iPod, Internet terminal, phone. The email and camera are just bonuses really.

The bosses wife was SO amazed how easy the iPhone synchronized her Outlook 2003 personal contacts and personal calendar items… Finally she could be on the road ALWAYS with contacts and always on schedule! Unfortunately, there is a known issue with regards to iPhone/Outlook which causes unexpected *shut down* to occur, and than “Safe Mode” requests once Outlook is reopened (POP email).

The problem is caused by the Apple software that came with your iPhone. It installs a COM Add-In called, “ITunes Outlook Addin". It appears that the current version doesn’t let Outlook fully close (something NOT clear to the user) until the user attempts to open another session… than Outlook crashes because multiple sessions of Outlook is never allowed!

Sadly, the 2 iPhones purchased were returned to the Apple store. The wife has learned that even a Motorola Razor can at least sync Outlook contacts without the hassles.

Apple pushes the envelope of technology. I think the most amazing thing about the product is that (1) the idea was conceived and (2) the idea was put into production. It is truly sleek and an amazing device with the touch-only controls and the way the touch is integrated into every aspect of its function.

Is it the most compatible? No. Is it the easiest to use? No way. Cumbersome pain in the rear keyboard entry on the little glass screen? Yes. But cool, new, and advanced and makes you HAVE TO SMILE just holding it. There is nothing in the world like it, and it’s truly APPLE, absolutely.

It's also only the FIRST GENERATION of the product. Let's see what happens...

[D.]

It looks like a lot of the folks commenting on this article missed the "Continue reading 'iPhone, the camera phone'" link at the bottom of the summary. If they had clicked that, they would've seen that the article concluded with links to other CR articles reviewing other aspects of the iPhone.

Maybe CR should consider opening future articles in a series with a link to "See Our Complete Coverage of this Product" or something similar. User interface design is hard, for web sites as well as mobile phones!

[David]

I have had the Iphone for about 3 weeks and find that the user interface is awesome. The revolutionary way the screen scrolls is cool and user friendly. However I bought it to replace a blackberry and find that it falls short in a few categories. 1) I have problems downloading pictures from my PC into the phone as well as getting the pics off the phone without having to email them. 2) Typing is not as easy as a standard qwerty keyboard as on a BB device. I make a lot of typing mistakes and have to go back and correct them. Although the auto correct helps, I still make mistakes. 3) There is no to do list function that allows a used to enter and prioritize tasks. 4) finally, you can send text messages but not pic messages. Nor can you receive them. That is a big downer.

[Tim]

I have read most of the comments from other viewers regarding the iPhone and I see much of the feedback about the reviewer is negative. However, the reviewer is only one person, who gives one opinion. Naturally, his opinion will differ from others. That said, people shouldn't be so negative about the magazine itself. More often than not, their tests and evaluations prove to be on target.

The iPhone is NOT perfect. I think everyone could agree to that. It is a well designed piece of hardware though. Stunning graphics and technology, something Apple excels in. The price is steep, but I'm sure Apple has put a lot of R&D and marketing capital into this product. Apple's products in the past have been innovative, refined and high quality. The iPhone has taken the PDA market into new territory and they are the leader because of their innovation and marketing. The Apple want-to-be's now have another benchmark to achieve.

I actually have never owned an Apple product, though I do work with a Macbook Pro that is owned by my employer. If the OS on the iPhone is half as good as what's running on my laptop, then Apple has a good thing going.

Based on a few hours playing around with my co-worker's toy, the iPhone does have its limitations though: Price, lack of expansion memory, lack of onboard memory, non-replaceable battery, virtual keyboard portrait view only, and, because this is a PHONE, the voice quality from both the internal and external speakers. My main concern with iPhone is actually AT&T's network. MAJOR mistake using the Edge network. Apple also should have made this product available to other carriers, some of whom have much better and faster networks. The one other thing that really turns me off about the product is that you MUST have a contract to use any, or some, of the functions. In other words, no contract...no iPod.

I believe CR will (and probably already is) conduct a thorough evaluation of this smartPHONE and give its readers an UNBIASED comparison against the competitors whose R&D departments are working feverishly to dissect the iPhone's technology and bring better choices to market. For the time being, Apple is doing what it has always done: being the first to take consumer product technology to the next level.

As I stated before, I don't actually own any Apple products. I have a Sansa e280 MP3 player with 8 gig memory that cost $100 dollars less than the 8 gig Nano. But if Apple makes the changes that most customers want to see (more memory, replaceable battery and lower price), then I will be more tempted to purchase a second generation iPhone. But I'll wait to see what the CR testers say before I even THINK about setting down $600 for a product that will be obsolete in two years.

[Scott]

I've had the iPhone for a week now. I had bought it thinking that the it would be an Apple gimick. I am happy to say that I was very wrong. The user interface is revolutionary. We are so used to poor cell phone interfaces that I think we have learned to expect little from our phones. The iPhone interface is really something to experience. I don't think I'll ever go back. I still question the price, its ridiculously high. But the iPod integration is amazing and almost makes it worth 70% of the asking price. 8 gigs of memory is NOT enough for a real video viewing device, especially if you have a large music library. For $599, we should be getting much more memory than we do.

[Robert]

When I saw that consumer reports had written an article reviewing the iphone, I was excited to get an honest opinion on one of the most anticipated products in recent history. So much to find out... How's the interface? how well does the touch screen work? How well does it surf the net? Is the storage adequate? I can go on, but you get the point. What I got instead of an informative article, was an entire article based on the iphone's camera. What a waste of time. It's as though the reporter, and I use that term loosely, wanted to write something bad about the phone. This article had no business being on the front page. Perhaps Consumer Reports is no longer the reputable magazine it once was.

[M Kahn]

The camera review of the iPhone was very thorough, but the review missed most of what the iPhone can do and do well; e-mail, web, calendar, address book, and all of the iPod functions including video. New browser based tools are coming to market and the fact that the iPhone has much more Web capablitlites using the Safari browser, than most other phones or PDAs clearly puts it out in front of its competition. The fact that the touch screen can react to two different touch points at once, plus other innovations were totally missed by the reviewer.

[Davis]

Like so much surrounding the iPhone, it seems like the interface and deal inked with Cingular/AT&T took second fiddle to the design hype. Yes it's beautiful, yes it seems well made, but the user experience just seems to have needed some more thought, time, and percolation.

Thanks for the post though Terry. Learned a lot.

[Carla]

The iphone is so much more than a camera...this artical was not informative and ceratinly not worth consumer reports front page. I am disappointed that Consumer Reports would put such an article up to seek and destroy the hottest thing since the ipod. I have certainly lowered my opinion of this service.