Camera Shootouts

Samsung Galaxy S8 vs Apple iPhone 7 Plus: Camera Shootout

Published

April 9, 2017

Marvin Velasco

After pitting the Galaxy S8 against the best single-lens camera phone of 2016, we’re now reviving Samsung’s fierce rivalry with the one, the only… iPhone 7 Plus!

Yes, we’re aware the iPhone 7 Plus has two camera lenses in its arsenal — one for regular, wide-angle shots and another for zoomed-in photos, while the Galaxy S8 has only one. To make this a fair fight, we’re excluding the iPhone’s extra lens and relying solely on both phone’s Auto settings.

In addition, we’re sticking to each phone’s default camera app. Remember, this comparison is based purely on what we see directly out of the handsets’ unedited JPEG files on a single computer monitor.

Check ‘em out:

Like in our previous shootout, this scenario is perfect for testing each camera’s dynamic range. While neither stand a chance against the Pixel’s strong HDR game, the Galaxy S8 is clearly more capable than the iPhone 7 Plus when it comes to balancing a scene’s highlights and shadows. The iPhone’s shot looks bland, especially on the building’s reflections and the exhaust in the foreground.

Here’s a classic example of how a Samsung phones tends to oversaturate scenes while the iPhone leans toward cooler, more realistic colors. For this particular setup, we prefer the Galaxy S8’s version, as it breathes more life into the couple’s sweet moment. The iPhone 7 Plus also seemed to have difficulty rendering the grass, losing nearly all the details.

The Galaxy S8 once again emphasizes strong colors on Chay’s face, but becomes slightly underexposed in the process. While the iPhone went for color accuracy and a brighter subject, we have to commend the entries for giving a sweet amount of background blur in both cases.

This is a point we have to give to #TeamApple. Even though the Galaxy S8 did a great job of putting all the focus on the flower’s bright yellow hue, the iPhone 7 Plus pulled it off more subtly and even produced a more pleasant level of sharpness on the surrounding leaves.

Speaking of background blur, we checked to see how each handset manages a shallow depth of field. Ignoring the usual over and undersaturation, we love how accurate the two phones are in locking onto the subject — the flowers, in this case — and giving us the artistic aesthetic we were after.

Let’s turn things up a notch. For nighttime landscape shots, we have to side with Samsung. The Galaxy S8 intelligently exposes the entire area without blown highlights, while the iPhone takes the safer route by simply keeping all the noise and grain in check.

Both cameras did a commendable job in this tricky instance; a crappy camera wouldn’t be able to make the “2017” legible with its illumination. The Galaxy S8’s output happens to be a little warmer, but this is something you can adjust if you choose to go beyond Auto settings.

Similar to the dark landscape test earlier, the Galaxy S8 has an edge over its iPhone rival when it comes to exposing all spots just right. What’s more glaring, however, is the red tint over the iPhone’s photo, which seems to darken the scene and provide unrealistic colors for once.

Now we test the front-facing cameras, each of which has a single lens. Our selfie on the left produced much smoother skin and slightly brighter faces, whereas the other selfie turned out grainier and darker. To the iPhone’s credit, hair and clothing details are a lot sharper.

We’ll once again end this with a solo daytime selfie. Quality-wise, we’d call this a tie, since they outputted the same level of colors and sharpness. The iPhone’s shot looks less lit, but that can be blamed on the tighter angle it provided us.

This shootout wasn’t as close as the one between the Galaxy S8 and Pixel. Samsung’s flagship phone is a clearer winner here, having delivered excellent images across the board. Even in the few instances we preferred the iPhone’s pictures, the Galaxy S8’s was nearly as good and it could’ve done either way.

Then again, we can’t end this without mentioning the iPhone 7 Plus’ extra telephoto lens. It opens up more creative possibilities, and enables you to capture faraway subjects without having to move closer. Those are things a Galaxy can’t do until Samsung decides to jump on the dual-camera bandwagon. (On the Galaxy Note 8, perhaps?)

And, that’s it! Tell us which camera phone you think won this shootout. Leave a comment below and let your opinions be heard.

[irp posts=”12004" name=”Samsung Galaxy S8 vs Google Pixel: Camera Shootout”]

Related Topics:Apple Galaxy S8 iPhone 7 Plus Samsung

Camera Shootouts

Huawei Mate 30 Pro vs Y9 Prime (2019): Camera shootout

Do you really need an expensive phone for your photos?

Published

January 3, 2020

Vincenz

We all know Huawei phones are recognized for their superior camera quality. In this camera shootout, we decided to test the camera prowess (and differences) between a SG$1300 flagship phone over a SG$340 midrange smartphone.

The Mate 30 Pro reigns in the smartphone camera department. Meanwhile, the Y9 Prime (2019) is one of the affordable midrangers out there. Although the Mate 30 Pro has an extra telephoto lens, we just decided to exclude the zoom mode and use only the ultra-wide and wide lenses when shooting. Other than that, the Mate 30 Pro has a 3D ToF (Time of Flight) camera while the other one has a depth sensor.

Without further ado, let’s dive in!

#1 Greenery

#2 Food (AI Mode)

#3 Saturation

#4 Wide-angle (Daylight)

#5 Ultra-wide angle (Daylight)

#6 Ultra-wide angle (Backlight)

#7 Selfie (Auto)

#8 Food (Low-light)

#9 Low-light (Auto)

#10 Low-light (Night Mode)

#11 Dawn (Night Mode)

#12 Night Mode

#13 Night Mode

#14 Fireworks (Auto Mode)

Results

A – Huawei Y9 Prime (2019)

B – Huawei Mate 30 Pro

After seeing the side-by-side comparison, we can all tell that the Mate 30 Pro stands out most especially when the photos were taken in a dark environment. But in well-lit situations, the Y9 Prime (2019) was able to deliver quality shots just like the Mate.

One thing I didn’t like on either phones are the selfies, especially when Beauty Mode was turned off. But I guess that all boils down to personal preferences. Other than that, the Y9 Prime produces less saturated photos but it’s actually more accurate since it’s what I saw in real life. Except for the strawberry photo that looked too desaturated.

This further proves that cheaper smartphones can still deliver decent-looking photos. But in the case of the Mate 30 Pro, you’ll get more camera features (such as telephoto lens) because you paid more.

Camera Shootouts

Huawei Mate 30 Pro vs iPhone 11 Pro Max: Camera shootout

Which big phone takes better photos?

Published

November 11, 2019

Chay Lazaro

The year is almost over but we’re not done comparing smartphones. In this shootout, we’re pitting the Huawei Mate 30 Pro against the iPhone 11 Pro Max. All photos are shot in Auto Mode using the main cameras, except for a few to test their ultra-wide angle cameras, night modes, and portrait modes. The photos have also been resized so the images can load faster.

Get your pen and paper ready as this is a blind shootout. Make sure to take note of your picks. The answers to this test are found at the bottom of the page. Let’s start.

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

#9

#10

#11

#12

#13

#14

#15, Ultra Wide Angle

#16, Ultra Wide Angle

#17, Portrait Mode

#18, Night Mode

#19, Night Mode

#20, Night Mode

#1
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#2
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#3
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#4
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#5
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#6
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#7
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#8
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#09
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#10
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#11
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#12
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#13
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#14
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#15, Ultra Wide Angle
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

#16, Ultra Wide Angle
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#17, Portrait Mode
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#18, Night Mode
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#19, Night Mode
Photo A: iPhone 11 Pro Max
Photo B: Huawei Mate 30 Pro

#20, Night Mode
Photo A: Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Photo B: iPhone 11 Pro Max

This is one of the closest shootouts we’ve done. Results could have gone either way for a lot of scenarios. For the photos that look drastically different — my choices all boiled down to preference. I personally don’t like how the Mate 30 Pro washes out skintones and blows out highlights, but I like the colors it produced better during sunsets. I don’t like how some of the iPhone photos turn out a little dull, but they were more of than not closer to real life colors.

If you’re like me who color corrects photos before sharing them, you can’t go wrong with either phones if cameras are your priority — they’re both able to capture details even in low light situations and can be post-processed whichever way you prefer.

Camera Shootouts

Realme XT vs Samsung Galaxy A80 vs Huawei P30 vs iPhone XR: Camera shootout

Yet another four-way shootout

Published

November 8, 2019

GadgetMatch

Most of the smartphones that released a higher megapixel count belong in the midrange category. With this trend, we started wondering if these smartphones can actually hold their own against pricier smartphones from today’s top three brands.

In this shootout, we’re pitting the Realme XT against the Samsung Galaxy A80, Huawei P30, and the iPhone XR. For a fair-fight, we opted to use a regular shot for the Realme XT since its 64MP camera shoots 16MP photos by default. The Galaxy A80’s 48MP camera shoots 12MP by default, and the Huawei P30’s 40MP camera shoots 10MP. On the other hand, the iPhone XR shoots 12MP.

Of course, there were no filters applied and all settings are the same for all the smartphones. As usual, the photos are resized for you to load the images faster.

The answers to this test are found at the bottom of the page. Now, let’s start!

#1 – Ultrawide mode

#2 – Flat lay

#3 – Food

#4 – 2x zoom

#5 – Outdoor

#6 – Greenery

#7 – Selfie

#8 – Saturation

#9 – Macro

#10 – Interior

#11 – Low light

#12 – Lights

#13 – Night

#14 – Portrait mode

Here are the results of this camera shootout:

A – Realme XT

B – Samsung Galaxy A80

C – Huawei P30

D – iPhone XR

As you can see, the Realme XT does well despite belonging in the midrange category. Of course, the iPhone XR still leads the shootout with accurate color reproduction while the Huawei P30 and Samsung Galaxy A80 appeal to different kinds of users with a preference for warmer and cooler photos.

Nonetheless, the Realme XT opens up the possibility for consumers with a limited budget but still want to get value for money smartphones. In a few months, more midrange smartphones will shake the upper midrange and premium categories. For now, we can enjoy these midrange smartphones offering more than what we deserve. So, which photos did you like better?

This feature was produced in collaboration between GadgetMatch and Realme Philippines.