Apple iPhone 5 Experience and Video Test

The Apple iPhone 5 launch day was just three weeks shy of a calendar year since the release of the previous Apple iPhone 4S. Did almost a year make a world of difference? Consider the new Apple iPhone 5 more of an evolution than a revolution to the more advanced average consumer, nowadays.
My Apple iPhone preorder days are over. Ever since the two previous Apple iPhone launches, I learned a valuable lesson about supply and demand in the Apple world. Avoid the demand online and head to the supply with no wait at your local AT&T Store like this one at International Plaza in Tampa, Florida. No lines, no chaos and no headache!
Faster, lighter, slimmer and sharper describes the new Apple iPhone 5 smartphone. A faster A6 processor cranks out the new features of iOS 6. A new design with lighter materials gives a near weightless and slim form factor than the previous Apple iPhone 4S. The longer screen gives way to a sharper "Retina" display of 4 inches instead of 3.5. The crystal clear 1136x640 resolution screen is now a native 16x9 aspect ratio. Hooray for the video filmmakers! I can go on and on about the new features of the Apple iPhone 5 but I am really interested in the photography and video capabilities. Read on...
The 8 megapixel iSight camera with f/2.4 lens touts a wider field of view and better low light capability with improved noise reduction for both stills and HD video. The slightly wider angle glass lens helps the already amazing picture quality in daytime and nighttime.
Although this new Blogger interface does not give this Apple iPhone 5 Panoramic photo at ISO 3200 justice, the low light performance and noise reduction makes a world of difference. This ISO 3200 is comparable to my Canon Powershot ELPH 300 HS. This impressive caveat combined with the new iOS 6 Panorama feature gives a new meaning to "Smartphone". Minus the optical zoom of the Canon ELPH 300 HS, the Apple iPhone 5 is really a camera with a phone built in...

The improved iSight camera features spill over to the amazing 1080p Full HD video capture of the Apple iPhone 5. The wider angle f/2.4 glass lens, improved noise reduction in low light and better in camera image stabilization makes this iPhone 5 an impressive filmmaker's tool. My Apple iPhone 5 verdict? The photo and video capabilities are a night and day difference with the previous iPhone 4S. The physical attributes of the iPhone 5 are simply beautiful. A great piece of Apple machinery! Now for the bad stuff! The Apple Lightning connector is great on paper but horrible for the rest of the world with a plethora of previous dock connectors. It is just another Apple product to consume with our money. The Google iMap application is now replaced with a Apple designed Map app powered by Tom Tom. Why change something that is not broken? My quick solution to this problem is to download the free Google Chrome App. Bookmark the built in Google Map tab in the Chrome browser and your Google Map problems are solved. Hurry and download the Chrome App before Apple pulls the plug! To view more photos and videos in full resolution shot with the Apple iPhone 5, you can see them all in my Apple iPhone 5 Experience and Video Test Gallery. Stay updated with the latest camera gear by Becoming a Fan on my Facebook Fan Page and following me on Twitter!

Apple iPhone 4S Experience and Video Test

Where did everybody go? The Apple iPhone 4S launch day did not have the crowds, lines and chaos like last year. My early morning trip discovered a vast empty wasteland at the AT&T store. I walked in and was immediately helped by a salesperson to my long awaited Apple iPhone 4S. No line, no wait and no chaos.



The record one million Apple iPhone 4S online preorders may have sucked all the potential Apple mobs from retail stores including the local Apple Store. My failed online preorder at the Apple website forced my iPhone 4S purchase at AT&T. My pleasant AT&T store experience was in stark contrast to last year's 3 hour and 45 minute wait at the Apple Store for the previous iPhone 4 release.



What is all the buzz about? The new Apple iPhone 4S with the new iOS 5 operating system has over 200 new features. The new iPhone 4S has the new dual core A5 processor like the iPad 2. For photographers, the new iPhone 4S sports a 8 megapixel camera with a f/2.4 lens. On top of that, the dual core A5 chip with iOS 5 enables an amazing camera one half second recycle rate. I know it is not 10 fps but for all those Facebook photographers, it is a welcome new feature. For HD DSLR purists, the new iPhone 4S features 1080p video with built in image stabilization.



There are more Apple employees than customers on launch day. Apple prepared this year for the onslaught of questions of all the new iPhone 4S features like the virtual assistant "Siri". I even looked around the corner of the Apple Store for a waiting hidden crowd but I just saw vast emptiness. The Apple store went through the early morning crowd of at least 100 people very quickly. Kudos!



Now for the good stuff. I manage to capture some quick images and video clips with the new Apple iPhone 4S today. I wanted to try the new f/2.4 lens and the 8 megapixel resolution for still pictures. Completely handheld for all the shots, I wanted to test the new built in "image stabilization" feature for 1080p video as well.



The Apple iPhone 4S 8 megapixel camera verdict on image quality is quite amazing to say the least. The color, sharpness and resolution are all there in my test shots. I was expecting soft, excessive color fringing on highlights and not so great phone pictures. The Apple iPhone 4S still images are equal to or better than budget point and shoot digital cameras. You will be impressed.



As for my Apple iPhone 4S video verdict, I give a thumbs up on 1080p video quality but a disappointing thumbs down on the new "image stabilization" feature. I was expecting stabilization like in my Canon ELPH 300 HS point and shoot but all I got was a very minimal stabilizing effect on my Apple iPhone 4S video capture. I already ordered a $20 Apple iPhone 4S tripod mount to solve this problem.



Despite the lack of considerable in camera stabilization for video, the 1080p video quality is breathtaking. The 1080p video above was shot completely handheld with the Apple iPhone 4S at 30fps and edited with Apple iMovie'09. I used Quicktime to compress a 600mb h264 video file for Youtube. I apologize for the shakiness but as soon as my iPhone 4S tripod mount comes in, I will shoot a better video.



You can view more pictures and videos for yourself in my Apple iPhone 4S Experience and Video Test Gallery. You can be the judge whether the new Apple iPhone 4S is worth your coin. The 1080p video and 8 megapixel images got me sold.



Stay updated with the latest gear like the new Apple iPhone 4S by becoming a Fan on my Facebook Fan Page and following me on Twitter!