Apple’s iPhone X has one of the best cameras available in a smartphone.
But we’re barely into 2018, and Samsung has released what they’re calling a ‘reimagined’
camera system in their Galaxy S9+.
So let’s see how the iPhone X holds up against one of Android’s best in a camera shootout.
First lets cover specs.
By this point everyone is familiar with the setup on the iPhone X.
It’s Apples best camera system to date, and can take impressive photos.
But Samsung is the first manufacturer to release a dual aperture system.
It switches from f/2.4 to f/1.5 in low light conditions, and is supposed to help you get
the best photo possible regardless of where you’re shooting.
I’ll mention here that I’m testing these cameras the way most people use them, in auto
mode.
That means straight out of the pocket, using the stock camera app.
We also hired Victoria to model for us -- be sure to check out her Instagram.
I’m breaking the results into 3 categories: color, clarity, and exposure.
We’ll be digging deep into each example to see how the cameras are tuned.
Now to the testing!
The first category is color and we’ll be looking at the white balance and color reproduction
of each camera.
This first shot of Victoria is a simple one, but makes something very clear: the white
balance on the iPhone leans heavy into warmer tones.
Not only is her skin a nice golden color compared to the S9, so is everything else.
The S9 feels cooler and more muted in comparison, but it’s actually more accurate.
This street scene gives us similar results, pumping up the warm street lights in the iPhone
X shot.
And that’s really what it boils down to in all these examples -- would you rather
have a pumped up, wamer version of the world from the iPhone X, or a more muted slightly
cooler version from the S9+?
When it comes to photos of Victoria, I almost always prefer the iPhones images, since Apple
adds warmth and life to the shots.
I say almost always because there’s one photo I still can’t get over.
Against this colorful wall, the iPhone just goes too far into the unnatrual territory,
presenting a neon eyesore.
Yes, the S9 is cooler, but it’s so much more natural.
So I’m going to go with whats more accurate, knowing that I can add warmth and contrast
later in Instagram or Photoshop if needed.
Color preferences are very subjective, but the iPhone pushes warm tones too far too often
for my tastes and professional needs.
So I’m going to give the Samsung Galaxy S9+ the edge in color.
The next category is clarity.
Here we’ll look at the sharpness of the photos and how well they stay sharp in dark
situations.
In this first brightly lit street scene, there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference
between the two phones.
But zooming in reveals sublte nuances.
A combination of sharpening and compression results in a jagged jaw line in the iPhone’s
photo.
The S9’s photo is cleaner but lacks some of the fine details caught by the iPhone.
At a greater distance, the S9+ fairs a bit better, with the building revealing more detail
compared to what the iPhone produced.
Looking at a darker part of the frame, we see that the S9 is still the cleaner shot.
This closer capture of Victoria is shaper on the S9, even before we zoom in.
And once we do we see the traditional Samsung overshapening on her jeans.
Despite that the S9’s photo still more favorable compared to the iPhones.
Moving to a darker street scene, Samsung opens it’s aperture to f/1.5.
Zooming in reveals that the iPhone is still the noiser of the two, but it keeps up with
the S9+ for now.
In an even darker scene, the S9+ pulls away even farther.
The iPhone’s shot isn’t bad, but the S9+ is easily one of the best low light camera’s
I’ve used.
So, in most situations the S9+ delivers a cleaner, sharper photo -- and the Clarity
category goes to Samsung.
The final category is exposure.
This one covers dynamic range and how each camera chooses to expose for a scene.
So I’ll get this out of the way right now: Each camera did a great job at exposing for
complex scenes.
Overall, I don’t have any punishing notes about missed or odd exposures.
But both phones had a habit of blowing out highlights, with the iPhone tending to blow
out skin.
Bringing up some photos we covered earlier, I was very upset with how often the iPhone
ruined faces.
There were also odd instances where the iPhone’s HDR just didn’t kick in strong enough, resulting
in harsh bright spots.
The S9 on the other hand struggled with the sky.
Lost in these shots are any hints of blue skies or clouds.
These street shots are less harsh, but still exhibit this problem.
This category really comes down to a nit pick, and I’d rather have blown out skies than
skin.
So the Samsung Galaxy S9+ takes the exposure category.
Even though the S9+ wins all 3 categories, it’s not by much.
If you prefer warmer skin tones and more contrast, then the iPhone X is worth considering.
But the S9+ has a flatter, cleaner image which lends itself to more flexibility when editing
in your favorite apps and desktop programs.
Wanna see some more iPhone X testing?
Check out the Last Cam Standing series from PCWorld to see even deeper looks at all the
top smartphones.