Discussion
AmitG said:
Agree with a lot of that. The pictures from the S23 Ultra are nice but not as ground breaking as I was hoping.
It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
I think there was a controversy about this recently. Samsung was showing off a picture of the Moon taken with the S23 Ultra. It looked amazing...and turned out to be a bit misleading. Technically it was a picture of the Moon taken on that phone, so they did not outright lie, but the actual optical quality was not great; the result was mostly done with an AI that had been trained on pictures of the Moon.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/15/23641069/samsun...
Many years ago there was the Nokia PureView, but that is long gone. It would be interesting if Leica or Hasselblad produced something more like a high end camera with a phone attached. There might be a big enough market for that.
Still I am keeping my S23 Ultra because I needed a new phone anyway. But I will be more careful about the hype going forward...
You could try switching the scene optimiser off if you don't like the enhanced look of the images. Switching to the expert raw app at 50 mega pixel is another way of getting good, unfiltered images.It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
I think there was a controversy about this recently. Samsung was showing off a picture of the Moon taken with the S23 Ultra. It looked amazing...and turned out to be a bit misleading. Technically it was a picture of the Moon taken on that phone, so they did not outright lie, but the actual optical quality was not great; the result was mostly done with an AI that had been trained on pictures of the Moon.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/15/23641069/samsun...
Many years ago there was the Nokia PureView, but that is long gone. It would be interesting if Leica or Hasselblad produced something more like a high end camera with a phone attached. There might be a big enough market for that.
Still I am keeping my S23 Ultra because I needed a new phone anyway. But I will be more careful about the hype going forward...
My OnePlus 8 Pro has a severely smashed screen.
Tempted by the Samsung S23 Ultra. Although I am a bit put off by the size and cost actually. My OnePlus is big too, and I had thought about going down to something smaller. I WFH and most of what I do on the phone, I do through the computer (e.g. whatsapp, google photos etc).
Anyone found the size an issue in the S23U? It does look really good.
Tempted by the Samsung S23 Ultra. Although I am a bit put off by the size and cost actually. My OnePlus is big too, and I had thought about going down to something smaller. I WFH and most of what I do on the phone, I do through the computer (e.g. whatsapp, google photos etc).
Anyone found the size an issue in the S23U? It does look really good.
I'm an advocate for small phones because I have the Tab S8 Ultra for around the house stuff, but I bought the S23 Ultra.
I got it because it's only about 4mm wider than the S20+ I had before, about the same length and a little thicker, it's big, but so is everything else. If you like small the S23 is quite small, but it's still a good chunk of change and wasn't really any better than my S20+. I figured better to spend a bit more and get an actual upgrade.
I got it because it's only about 4mm wider than the S20+ I had before, about the same length and a little thicker, it's big, but so is everything else. If you like small the S23 is quite small, but it's still a good chunk of change and wasn't really any better than my S20+. I figured better to spend a bit more and get an actual upgrade.
AmitG said:
Agree with a lot of that. The pictures from the S23 Ultra are nice but not as ground breaking as I was hoping.
It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
I can forgive the moon stuff as long as they're open about it. It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
Elsewhere not so much.
I remember what I think was a Panasonic phone with a full blown travel zoom lens on the back. Or rather a phone stuck on a camera.
Can't imagine any major manufacturer will sacrifice sleekosity for that but maybe one outlier will.
However the rest of the functionality might be terrible.
The Ultra does of course take many a great pic, it's the extra outlay vs improvement and how they've gone about it that doesn't work for me.
Edited by bloomen on Friday 14th April 11:13
bloomen said:
AmitG said:
Agree with a lot of that. The pictures from the S23 Ultra are nice but not as ground breaking as I was hoping.
It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
I can forgive the moon stuff as long as they're open about it. It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
Elsewhere not so much.
I remember what I think was a Panasonic phone with a full blown travel zoom lens on the back. Or rather a phone stuck on a camera.
Can't imagine any major manufacturer will sacrifice sleekosity for that but maybe one outlier will.
However the rest of the functionality might be terrible.
The Ultra does of course take many a great pic, it's the extra outlay vs improvement and how they've gone about it that doesn't work for me.
Edited by bloomen on Friday 14th April 11:13
BlueJazz said:
Samsung did what you described a while back with the S4 zoom. Didn't sell that well, a full compact camera and phone: https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s4_zoom-54...
Had one of those for a bit. Photos no better than the S4.bloomen said:
I guess the idea is toast then.
I'll have to make my own. If conglomerates can do it then so can I.
You can already buy one better than you can make. There's quite a few cases out there that let you screw on various lenses.I'll have to make my own. If conglomerates can do it then so can I.
The problem is that all the processing that the phone does is based on the lenses Samsung put on there, so I'm not sure how well the camera will work. There's probably loads of YouiTube that can give you an idea on whether it works or not.
AmitG said:
Agree with a lot of that. The pictures from the S23 Ultra are nice but not as ground breaking as I was hoping.
It seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
I think there was a controversy about this recently. Samsung was showing off a picture of the Moon taken with the S23 Ultra. It looked amazing...and turned out to be a bit misleading. Technically it was a picture of the Moon taken on that phone, so they did not outright lie, but the actual optical quality was not great; the result was mostly done with an AI that had been trained on pictures of the Moon.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/15/23641069/samsun...
Many years ago there was the Nokia PureView, but that is long gone. It would be interesting if Leica or Hasselblad produced something more like a high end camera with a phone attached. There might be a big enough market for that.
Still I am keeping my S23 Ultra because I needed a new phone anyway. But I will be more careful about the hype going forward...
Here is one https://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_pro_i-11174.p... with none or very little computational photographyIt seems that computational photography and AI are the new buzzwords, probably because it allows phones to be thin (which is what the mainstream wants) and it's cheaper than installing good lenses.
I think there was a controversy about this recently. Samsung was showing off a picture of the Moon taken with the S23 Ultra. It looked amazing...and turned out to be a bit misleading. Technically it was a picture of the Moon taken on that phone, so they did not outright lie, but the actual optical quality was not great; the result was mostly done with an AI that had been trained on pictures of the Moon.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/15/23641069/samsun...
Many years ago there was the Nokia PureView, but that is long gone. It would be interesting if Leica or Hasselblad produced something more like a high end camera with a phone attached. There might be a big enough market for that.
Still I am keeping my S23 Ultra because I needed a new phone anyway. But I will be more careful about the hype going forward...
Or there are a few Chinese phones with big lenses
redrabbit29 said:
My OnePlus 8 Pro has a severely smashed screen.
Tempted by the Samsung S23 Ultra. Although I am a bit put off by the size and cost actually. My OnePlus is big too, and I had thought about going down to something smaller. I WFH and most of what I do on the phone, I do through the computer (e.g. whatsapp, google photos etc).
Anyone found the size an issue in the S23U? It does look really good.
I had a OP8 Pro, went to S22 Ultra (then to S23 Ultra), it is quite a lot larger than the OP 8 Pro but doesn't bother me at all - used to it nowTempted by the Samsung S23 Ultra. Although I am a bit put off by the size and cost actually. My OnePlus is big too, and I had thought about going down to something smaller. I WFH and most of what I do on the phone, I do through the computer (e.g. whatsapp, google photos etc).
Anyone found the size an issue in the S23U? It does look really good.
Not sure if helpful to anyone, or you already know. In the volume settings there's a feature to turn on Dolby Atmos (Settings > sound and vibration > sound quality and effects). If you're an audiophile you can also mess with the Equalizer settings from there.
It seems to improve the sound playing through the speaker.
I did find the volume was pretty low on a call - even with it turned up to the max. It's possible my signal was weak, but it's a bit concerning if i'm taking a call out in the street and that's as loud as it goes. Anyone else had any issues with the volume of calls being a bit on the low side?
It seems to improve the sound playing through the speaker.
I did find the volume was pretty low on a call - even with it turned up to the max. It's possible my signal was weak, but it's a bit concerning if i'm taking a call out in the street and that's as loud as it goes. Anyone else had any issues with the volume of calls being a bit on the low side?
redrabbit29 said:
Shiv_P said:
I had a OP8 Pro, went to S22 Ultra (then to S23 Ultra), it is quite a lot larger than the OP 8 Pro but doesn't bother me at all - used to it now
Was it worth the upgrade? Are you blown away and entirely satisfied or is it a bit much to justify such a big leap?Shiv_P said:
I miss the alert slider still, but overall it is slicker
Yea I absolutely love the alert slider.When I left iPhone about 5 years ago to the One Plus 6T (amazing phone), I just assumed all Androids had the slider. Can't believe more don't, it's such a good and handy feature. Can do it in your pocket or without looking in an instant.
redrabbit29 said:
Shiv_P said:
I miss the alert slider still, but overall it is slicker
Yea I absolutely love the alert slider.When I left iPhone about 5 years ago to the One Plus 6T (amazing phone), I just assumed all Androids had the slider. Can't believe more don't, it's such a good and handy feature. Can do it in your pocket or without looking in an instant.
BigMon said:
I had my Note 8 for 5 years and felt like I well overdue an update!
I got my S23 Ultra when Samsung had all the deals on and I'm chuffed to bits with it tbh. It's everything I could have hoped for.
What deals please? Im from Leeds and obvs #yorkshire values mean a lot I got my S23 Ultra when Samsung had all the deals on and I'm chuffed to bits with it tbh. It's everything I could have hoped for.
Im slightly late to the S23 thread however have a need to upgrade my current phone for boring reasons and havent found many banging S23 deals - naff all on Quidco, I have utterly no need for a £300 Adidas voucher and having recently cleared out the man drawer dont have any tat to PX although could easily find an S3 on local Facebook for £150
Cheers
Arrrghhhh, in no need of a new phone but am now tempted
512GB Ultra direct from Samsung for £1119 using the wifes Bluelight card, plus £150 for an ancient phone festering in the man drawer (have triple checked eligibility and is all good) and £300 to spend at Adidas which isnt spectacularly useful but I could certainly make use of it for some new running kit.......
Thats less than 700 quid with man maths and my current phone is worth 2-300 quid second hand too
If the £300 voucher was with another retailer other than Adidas Id be in like a shot, shell suits are cool again yeah??
Cheers
512GB Ultra direct from Samsung for £1119 using the wifes Bluelight card, plus £150 for an ancient phone festering in the man drawer (have triple checked eligibility and is all good) and £300 to spend at Adidas which isnt spectacularly useful but I could certainly make use of it for some new running kit.......
Thats less than 700 quid with man maths and my current phone is worth 2-300 quid second hand too
If the £300 voucher was with another retailer other than Adidas Id be in like a shot, shell suits are cool again yeah??
Cheers
Maybe I'm just a skinflint but the prices that Samsung are looking to achieve for their latest Galaxy phones (eg the S23) are just too high.
I'm quite happy to buy one gen back, sim-free, but even S22 phones are overpriced, especially the 256gig model which, given they don't support MicroSD, is essential IMO.
Still sticking with the S10e for the forseeable future even though the years are taking their toll in wear and tear.
I'm quite happy to buy one gen back, sim-free, but even S22 phones are overpriced, especially the 256gig model which, given they don't support MicroSD, is essential IMO.
Still sticking with the S10e for the forseeable future even though the years are taking their toll in wear and tear.
Lucas Ayde said:
Maybe I'm just a skinflint but the prices that Samsung are looking to achieve for their latest Galaxy phones (eg the S23) are just too high.
I'm quite happy to buy one gen back, sim-free, but even S22 phones are overpriced, especially the 256gig model which, given they don't support MicroSD, is essential IMO.
Still sticking with the S10e for the forseeable future even though the years are taking their toll in wear and tear.
Just picked up an unused z fold 2 for £465. There are plenty of other options out thereI'm quite happy to buy one gen back, sim-free, but even S22 phones are overpriced, especially the 256gig model which, given they don't support MicroSD, is essential IMO.
Still sticking with the S10e for the forseeable future even though the years are taking their toll in wear and tear.
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