5-megapixel GSM Cameraphone Comparison Q4 2007

Do you have a pocket digital camera? You may not need one if you have any of the top cameraphones on the market, advertised by their 5-megapixel resolution, advanced features, branded lenses and Xenon flashes. Or at least this is what the phone manufacturers claim…
We’ve collected the 5-megapixel phones that are available on the market and have taken a large set of photos, to see how they perform. In this test you will be able to see images taken outdoors during the day or the night and indoors, to see the flash performance. Additionally there is also an indoor test for the “macro”, or close-up photos with the flash on or off.

In our comparison, we have total of six (6) phones with five megapixel resolution, from all major manufacturers but Motorola, who don’t have phone in that class:

• Nokia N82 (Review)
• Nokia N95 8GB (Review)
• Sony Ericsson K850 (Review)
• Samsung G800 (Review)
• Samsung G600 (Review)
• LG Viewty (Preview)
• And we’ve also added the pocket 6-megapixel camera Canon SD630 for reference.

In each of the test situations we will rate the phones and based on their results position obtain the Overall result. Keep in mind, this means that for the test, each situation is equivalently important, but for most of you it will not be so. Decide for yourself which phone you like most, and use our images just to base your opinion on them.



The best phone in each situation is based on the overall quality of the images in it. We do not rate just one or two images, but each one.

We tried to use the camera’s Automatic settings whenever possible, but for night images we did use the Night modes. In each category we have placed a 100% crop image at the top of the page, which clearly the camera’s differences, both in term of color representation and detail. It helps you to easily compare the performance, seeing the same object reproduced by different devices side-by-side. We then show all cameraphones images at full resolution, followed by a ranking of 1st to 6th place.

Test 1: Pictures, taken in the open, in broad daylight

In this test there is plenty of light, which is what a camera needs to produce high-quality images. All phones exposed the scene in similar way, which is pretty close to the Canon camera, but each has its own “temper”, with typical for it color representation and detail. The latter is still problem even for the best - although there is lots of light, still once the image is previewed in full size it is visible that the detail is blurred and noise is present. This is very important test, as the majority of images are taken in similar lightning conditions, during the day.



Here surprisingly for us, the Samsung G600 behaved as a phone from a higher class and in almost any situation was way better than the competition. Its images are sharper, with better detail and less noise. We think it is the clear winner in this test! It is not so about the next on the list: the N82, N95, K850 and G800 all have different performance, but as a whole there overall quality is very similar. In some scenes the one is better, in other the second, etc. What is clear is that the Viewty is on the bottom of the list, with less than ideal colors and detail.

Cameraphone comparison samples. Scroll below for our category rating.



1. G600: It has sharp image and very good detail.

We don’t have clearly defined 2nd to 5th place. Look at the Sample images and decide for yourself.

6. The Viewty is on the bottom of the list.

Test 2: NightTime Pictures

This demonstrates how the camera behaves at night when using a longer exposure to gather in as much light as possible. The images are taken using the night mode of the phones, from hand. If we noticed that there is significant blur due to our hand shake, we retook the image to correct that. Still blurred images can be expected due to the low speeds.


In this test the clear winner is the Nokia N82, with best color reproduction and detail, although the noise reduction. Surprisingly, the Viewty jumps to the second place, giving a hope to its fans that not everything is over. Third comes the winner in the previous test, the G600, followed by the bigger G800 and the N95 in last place, due to the lack of auto-focus in this mode.

Cameraphone comparison samples. Scroll below for our category rating.



1. N82: The new Nokia has accurate colors and good exposure.
2. Viewty: The LG phone clear the shame from the previous test.
3. G600: the G600 is once again among the winners.
4. K850: The colors are not always what you’d expect.
5. G800: It is not good for such type of photos.
6. N95 8GB: It is ridiculous to turn off the auto-focus.

Overall Ratings and Conclusion:

In each of the categories we gave all six phones a different rating. The first place brings 6 points, 5 points for the second place, 4 points for third etc.

1. N82: With very good performance during the day, the best in night scenes, and excellent flash performance, the N82 is the winner in our competition for 5-megapixel cameraphones. Additionally it also has a very good macro mode!

2. G600: Although it has smaller model number than the G800, the G600 is the best phone for shooting during the day and has a good overall image quality.

3. K850: While we are not really fans of the Sony Ericsson phone, its overall quality is good, compared to the competition.

4. N95 8GB: The N95 is good during the day, but it’s ridiculous that it turns the focus off in night mode, and the LED flash performs poorly.

5. G800: The G800 is very good during the day as well, also with optical zoom, but its overall performance doesn’t place it in the winners’ circle.

6. Viewty: Although the LG Viewty has lots of options and features, its camera quality is mediocre next to the competition.

Miscellaneous:

Although it does not influence the quality of the pictures directly, the operational time of the camera is rather important for its use.

#	Phone	Starting	Focusing	Saving
1)	Nokia N82	3 sec	2 sec	4 sec
2)	Samsung G600	2 sec	2-4 sec	5-6 sec
3)	Sony Ericsson K850	3sec	3 sec	6-7 sec
4)	Nokia N95 8GB	3 sec	2-3 sec	5 sec
5)	Samsung G800	3 sec	1-2 sec	5 sec.
6)	LG Viewty	3-4 sec	3 sec	5 sec

We’ve also captured some Video clips with each phone, at the highest possible quality. Below are links to download:

• Nokia N82: Video 1 | Video 2
• Samsung G600: Video 1
• Sony Ericsson K850: Video 1 | Video 2
• Nokia N95 8GB: Video 1 | Video 2
• Samsung G800: Video 1 | Video 2
• LG Viewty: Video 1