The iPhone 4 has a bunch of great hardware updates, but the one I am most excited for is the camera. As a hobby photographer, I’m quite disappointed with how the camera on the iPhone has functioned thus, especially with the quality of the photos compared to other mobile devices.
The new iPhone camera, like the iPhone 3GS, will be capable of video recording, except this time it’s 720p HD at 30fps all wrapped inside of a 5MP sensor near an LED flash. It’s safe to say this camera will most likely outperform the ones we have seen thus far. In fact, those video specs are even better than my Nikon D90 DSLR which comes in at 720p at only 24fps. While the difference here is barely noticeable by the human eye, add in the tap to focus on the iPhone and you’ve certainly surpassed the Nikon D90, where the focus must be set before recording and doesn’t easily flow with the subject. For a $299 device (32GB) when subsidized as compared to a $700+ Nikon D90 body only, that’s quite impressive.
That’s why taking videos with such great quality is what I’m most looking forward to on the iPhone 4. For such a small and connected device, this use is almost perfect. Videos will easily be uploaded to YouTube and shared with friends, and iMovie for iPhone will allow you to edit them as well.
The only downside I see to all of this is that my iPhone’s storage level may get quite low with such large videos files being stored. Hopefully, this doesn’t become too much of an issue for those who already have their iPhones nearly filled with photos, apps, and music. Either way, that may not be a bad issue to have if taking videos on this device becomes that addictive.
"…those video specs are even better than my Nikon D90 DSLR which comes in at 720p at only 24fps. While the difference here is barely noticeable by the human eye, add in the tap to focus on the iPhone and you’ve certainly surpassed the Nikon D90"
The bare specs?… Yes, surpassed the D90?…No!
There is more to image quality than specs and as a hobby photographer you should know this. You are plain overlooking sensor size and lens quality in your equation along with many other factors that play a significant role in the process.
While I will admit I am no Nikon fanboi, I'm a Canon man myself, I have read several trusted reviews from individuals that actually have the product in hand and post clips of what they are talking about. After having viewed sample videos from each device, I hardly think the tap to focus pushes the iPhone 4 over the top, even with the limitations of the D90.