[shipnil]

Originally Posted by mayankk

Reading the last few posts, is the Motorola 50 ultra really as good, or comparable?
As good as the 8/8 Pro? Close enough to the 9/9 pro maybe ?

Quite often, when we are considering Pixels along with others, we miss the point that the photograpy prowess of a Pixel lies in Google's post processing. Very few OEM apps are able to match it. Granted, you can install modded Gcam app on the other OEM phones, but the app doesn't always work flawlessly. In my previous phone, the modded Gcam used to capture photos but for videos, it used to crash.

[tbppjpr]

Originally Posted by mayankk

My primary requirement is the camera,

And that can only be fulfilled by a dedicated camera, not with these tiny camera sensors packed in the mobiles phones which rely on software to get the acceptable results. I have used many pictures and videos from all type of top level phone cameras and never could find them worthy enough to mix in my main camera footages during editing.

Buy a camera, develop the habit of using it, even an APSC will keep you happier for a decade or even more whereas you will keep feeling the pinch of upgrading to new mobile phone every year expecting better cameras over the existing one. You can get far greater quality camera in the price of one high end phone.

Mobile photos are only good as long as you look them on the tiny mobile screens, the moment you take them onto a good quality monitor and compare with the dedicated camera photos, the difference is notice immediately.

Mobile companies have cracked the code of enjoying large profits by making people believe that their newly launched mobile model is leaps ahead over the previous one. They just make few changes here and there in the cameras and software, rest of the support they get from the OS department by rendering the existing devices 'insecure' and 'unsupported' by stopping the software updates.

it should be good enough, doesn't have to out of this world even.

If you are not keen on manual photography functions then Pixels do decent job during the click-n-snap scenarios out of the box, far better than iPhones. But they don't allow much of customizations, even the third party apps are very restricted. Things have improved in Pixel 8 and 9 but still not good enough for me to reconsider the Pixels again for the price point they have started selling.

Mobile photography is all about the software and less about the camera hardware these days. 70% of the job is done in the software by taking multiple exposures at the same time and then mixing them in HDR. Many times its much easier for a normal joy to get proper exposure in tricky situations using a mobile camera over the real camera. You don't need to learn anything with the mobile photography but there is steep learning curve to use a dedicated camera to get better results.

Google camera app got better in the last decade but its getting inferior since last one year or so in the usability and customization department.

Motorola stock camera apps have been bad traditionally which make people think that their cameras are bad. Recently they started focusing on the camera app and getting some improvements. Though I could manage to get much better results of my liking using third party apps in the past.

Even once I had very budget oriented Motorola One Power (Part of Android One program) which I bought for additional battery backup since I was traveling a lot those days. That mobile had some OmniVision sensors, which seems to be a Motorola preferred brand for their budget mobiles in the past. Camera in that mobile did not have image stabilization for videos, even very few mobiles used to have stabilization in those days. But I could manage to get stabilization on in Open Camera app and also managed to get video footages in the log color profile which I am unable to get in my Pixel 6 even by today after two years of trying out different apps including Blackmagic camera app.

Photos using modded Google camera app also used to be very good. That time features and capability of Google camera app made me convince to try out Pixel phone so I bought the Pixel 6 but ended up getting the experience I shared above and in the previous posts.

Now whenever I look back at those photos taken on that cheap Motorola phone and compare with the Pixel 6, I do not see any improvement which is claimed by the manufacturer or by the YouTubers who just read the spec sheet in the name of reviews.

All I see is just more prominent black outlines over the edges of small objects like grass and pebbles which result into messed up colors, details and realism compared to that old cheap Motorola.

The images come out of the Pixel is typical of what we have traditionally been getting in the Samsungs or iPhones which I always hated. Whereas that old Motorola One Power combined with the Google camera app used to produce photos like camera.

Let me put some comparisons here, download these on your computer or laptop and check:

Here is a photo captured on cheap Motorola One Power (12 MP OmniVision Sensor) using old modded Google Camera app, red outline is the cropped area attached below:




Below is the cropped area with 400% zoom. Observe the colors, details and realistic softness in the grass, pebbles and big stones, this is similar to the photos I get on my DSLR and Mirroless cameras:




Here is a snap captured on my Pixel 6 (50 MP Samsung camera Sensor) using stock Google Camera app, red outline is the cropped area attached below:



Now observe the ugly black outlines on the edges of the foliage and stones in the 400% zoomed image of the cropped area:




This is an image captured on iPhone 14 Pro which has some godly camera sensor and technology came out of this world as claimed by everyone these days. Red outline is the cropped area attached below:



Cropped area in 400% zoom as previous two, I don't have any words to say:




The new generation of the 50 megapixel, 100 or 200 megapixel sensors make the things worst for software processing compared to an actual 12 megapixel sensor. But since mobile manufacturers and the buyers have already jumped into the race of high megapixel count, there looks like no way back to the senses.

We are just getting few more tricks in the software with every iteration of new mobile launches, some are even using the AI which alter the images drastically but looks like this is the key of making people happy and convince to buy new mobile models.

is the Motorola 50 ultra really as good

Strangely the Edge 50 and Edge 50 Fusion have some new Sony Lytia camera sensor but the 50 Ultra doesn't. I feel the other two are better over the Ultra and and cheaper as well, especially the Edge 50 looks better with the MIL grade rating for such a slim phone with curved display. I don't have first hand experience with any of these models so would refrain from making any further claims.

You must look at the camera image compare page on the GSM Arena to compare different mobile cameras, but they test the cameras only using the stock camera app.

So another better way is to find some community page on forums like XDA or mobile model specific groups in telegram where they test and post the modded GCam apps and results.

[y448]

Any users of Samsung S21 FE (SD888 variant) here?

I am thinking of getting it for my wife during next sale and wanted to know if the latest software updates have actually downgraded the camera performance and brought back heating/battery issues as claimed by some of the tech youtubers?

[mukeshgoel]

Originally Posted by y448

Any users of Samsung S21 FE (SD888 variant) here?

I am thinking of getting it for my wife during next sale and wanted to know if the latest software updates have actually downgraded the camera performance and brought back heating/battery issues as claimed by some of the tech Youtubers?

I (and my wife) have S21FE888.

This is absolutely great for its price. Battery is slightly poor like most Samsung mobiles. But I have overcome that. I have disabled fast charging and charge it overnight irrespective of what experts say and that has improved battery life significantly.

Camera is great too. See the attached pic I clicked in June'24.

[9216]

I have a few years old Lenovo TB-605L tab with 2GB RAM and 16GB storage. It has become slow, probably due to software and ROM becoming more demanding with respect to hardware. It is still physically in mint condition and provides exceptional battery life for a 10" tab. Since no hardware enhancement is possible, I was wondering if I can flash the original stock ROM based on Android 8 to speed things up a bit. Problem is I can't locate a reliable source to get it from. It will be very useful if anyone can point me to a good source.

[dragonfire]

Originally Posted by ashvek3141

+1
The highlight point of the 9 series is the hardware which has been appreciated by many reviewers.

Originally Posted by nibedk

The only gripe Google was pretty cost effective for flagship phones till Pixel 7 series. Post series 8 they more or less cost similar to the Samsung and the Apple.

After a week with the Pixel 9, I can't stress enough how it looks like the iPhone 15 (pro) that is in my other pocket. When they are lying face up, it is difficult to say which is which. They literally copied the flat sides and the corner radius seems to be the exact number. I got the wintergreen color, which is a very subtle green - they seem to have tried to copy the colors of the vanilla iPhone 15s.

But although they have successfully copied the looks, the feel seems to be missing here. The Pixel feels noticeably bulky and heavy than the iPhone. The camera bump is an eyesore. A little bit of taper or champher would have gone a long way in making it look less protruding.

On the software side, the phone is fast and fluid and almost matches the fluidity levels of the iPhone. Stock Android is spartan, but I'd take it any day than any customisable skin. It has to be seen whether it is able to maintain the fluidity when Android 15 update arrives. Actually Google seems to have cheated us here by launching it a few months ahead of Android 15. Now they have to provide only 6 Android "updates" instead of 7. Anyway I don't see myself keeping it for 6 years - my average is 1.5 years.

Phone setup was fairly easy - I chose to copy from my Motorola Edge 20 and every app and data was copied onto the new phone. Yet not as seamless as it was with the iPhone. Apart from the google apps, I had to relogin to most of the other apps. Once the number was ported and phone activated, the eSim was automatically pushed to the phone.

After using face unlock in the iPhone and the side mounted fingerprint on the Motorola, the in-display fingerprint on the Pixel is feeling like a chore to operate. I don't know whether it is the tempered glass, but I always have to press my finger firmly and for half a second before the screen unlocks. The side mounted one on the Motorola is instantaneous. Face unlock is present in the pixel, but is hopeless. As much as wearing a headphone is enough for the phone to doubt that it is me.

The thing now weighs 250 grams with a magsafe case and tempered glass on. The iPhone pro is 220g with a hard case and tempered glass. Due the heft I carry the Pixel in my bag. Have to find a lighter clear case for it. With the magsafe case, it is able to charge using the iPhone's magsafe charger but it takes ages to charge. Meanwhile it charges appreciably fas with a non-descript magsafe charger that was lying around, but the back of the phone quickly heated up.

Overall it is a reasonably good buy, and as a free phone it is a no brainer. Yet I'd have liked to have a lighter second phone - similar to the 165g Motorola. But then since it mostly stays in the bag am not complaining.

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by dragonfire

.
Overall it is a reasonably good buy, and as a free phone it is a no brainer. Yet I'd have liked to have a lighter second phone - similar to the 165g Motorola. But then since it mostly stays in the bag am not complaining.

Thank you for your honest review of the Pixel and comparison with iphone. Google seems to be improving their devices but with maximum focus on their camera only. My grouse they have started charging iphone money for something which is not yet at par with an iPhone.

[Thad E Ginathom]

I think that Pixel 7 and 7a are now more or less the same price. I'm waiting for the 9 effect to trickle down and/or the next sale.

But, due to a hardware failure, I have had to order a replacement for Mrs N's tablet, so no new phone for me in September anyway!

I have a Lenovo M10 5g on order, which should (in Amazon language that now means might) arrive today. It is Android 13: can I expect a utility to transfer apps/data from her old tablet? And if not, is there a recommended general Android app to do this?

(the power button no longer works on the old tab. If it doesn't turn off, it probably wouldn't ever turn on again if it shuts itself down. So I wanted to replace urgently before that happens. It's a shame: it's quite an old M8, and we have had a cracked screen replaced and a new battery within this year)

[Vikash Kumawat]

Guys, Iam the one who always criticizes Samsung coz their phones become laggy after 2-3 years of usage and their UI is not my kind of, although I have used their J series phones which were superhit between 2016 - 2019. It was the J series which made me hate Samsung.
Though Iam again on the boat to consider a Samsung's premium smartphone The Galaxy s23 ( Because of good camera and 8 Gen 2 Processor )on the upcoming Flipkart's BBD and Amazon's GIF sale. Avoiding S24 because of the infamous Exynos processor, I currently have a Realme 6i and Realme 8 ( 4+128, Helio G95 ), surprisingly Realme 6i( 6+64, Helio G90T ) is 2 years old than the Realme 8, but the 6i still works like a charm, it almost works like new, whereas my primary phone Realme 8 has totally become garbage, it hangs like everything, it doesn't even hold YouTube in the background, sometimes while making payment, if I switch from Amazon or Flipkart to Messages to read the OTP it restarts the app, which is too much annoying. My primary needs - Camera and Pure Performance
Considered options ( Budget around 35k ) -
1. OnePlus 12, 12R ( Green Line Issue)
2. Pixel 8 ( Overpriced and Sluggish Tensor G3 )
3. iPhone 15 ( if budget allows )
4. Galaxy S23 ( Perfect for me but the battery? )
5. iPhone 14 & 13 ( Not considered coz of lightning port and they are now old )
I make videos for YouTube, and the iPhone is undefeated champion in the videography segment, because iPhone can shoot same quality of video with all cameras, only the main lens can shoot good videos in the night ( which is not necessary for me ), in short I mainly use the ultrawide cam to shoot the videos, Samsung and other companies only focus on the main lens unlike Apple, stability in videos is another thing makes iPhones king of videography.
So guys, my question is, Should I consider getting S23 ? What about the battery life ( 3900 MaH ) ? Any major issues after updates ? Your insights will be appreciated

[PatienceWins]

Originally Posted by Vikash Kumawat

Should I consider getting S23 ? What about the battery life ( 3900 MaH ) ? Any major issues after updates ? Your insights will be appreciated

On my S23 ultra, as per the recommendation on this forum disabled fast charging to prolong battery life. I think it is giving me more battery time per charge too. With moderate usage, the phone is lasting 1.5 days easily where as earlier I had to charge by next day morning.

Agree with you that Apple is much better on photo/ video, especially on the front camera selfies. For a youtuber, Apple definitely makes sense. For me, the size was the main factor for selecting S23 ultra.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by dragonfire

After a week with the Pixel 9, I can't stress enough how it looks like the iPhone 15 (pro) that is in my other pocket. When they are lying face up, it is difficult to say which is which. They literally copied the flat sides and the corner radius seems to be the exact number. I got the wintergreen color, which is a very subtle green - they seem to have tried to copy the colors of the vanilla iPhone 15s.

But although they have successfully copied the looks, the feel seems to be missing here. The Pixel feels noticeably bulky and heavy than the iPhone. The camera bump is an eyesore.

I have a different opinion; got the Pixel 9 Pro XL – the first XL (or Max) phone after the awesome Pixel 2XL, which I had until the beginning of 2020 (I did try the 15 Pro Max for a month or so, only to replace with the 15 Pro). Yes, the 9 series looks like a copy of the iPhone (I feel even the S24/S24+) have iPhone styling cues, but in my opinion Google made a better looking iPhone than Apple

Unlike the previous iterations with the camera bar, I liked the implementation of the camera island in the 9 series. For the first time, a Pixel is looking like a proper flagship. After a series of iPhones (11 Pro, 12 & 13 mini, 15 Pro) and Samsungs (S22 & S23), I am getting re-calibrated to the muted (some say real) camera experience of the Pixel phones. And its only the third day with the new phone – need to see how this one goes.

Originally Posted by ashis89

Thank you for your honest review of the Pixel and comparison with iPhone. Google seems to be improving their devices but with maximum focus on their camera only. My grouse they have started charging iPhone money for something which is not yet at par with an iPhone.

I feel Google has done the hardware part right this time. The phone feel proper premium, and its still far from iPhone money. I got it for a price cheaper than the regular iPhone 15 with the same amount of storage (256 GB).

The Pixel Pro XL and iPhone 15 Pro – side by side

[GTO]

Once you get used to a Flip phone's compact size, it is hard to get back to a regular rectangular phone. My Samsung Flip 3 was 3 years old; while the phone was working perfectly fine, it was looking terribly outdated. So upgraded to the Flip 6 in the Silver Shadow colour. Wow, the new phone looks fantastic & is extremely stylish .

Got a fair deal. Listed price was 1.10 lakhs. Went to a Poorvika brand store (they are huge in smartphone retail!) and got the following deductions:

15000 - HDFC Credit Card discount
14000 - For my 3-year old Flip 3 with a few battle scars
4000 - Additional discount

Net billing = Rs. 77000.

Company GST benefits are another 16000 instantly, so the net cost to me is Rs. 61000.

Always loved how easy it is to switch from old to new Windows laptops (thanks to image backups) and Apple Products (including Macbooks & iPhones). I was disappointed with Android for not offering something similar on unrooted devices. Read up a bit on Reddit and used 'Samsung Smart Switch' eventually. Connected the old & new phones via a USB C cable, fired up Samsung Smart Switch on both phones and the transfer of 140 GB (including music & pictures) took about an hour. What's remarkable is that the phone is 90% set up like my old phone. Just need to login to some apps again and go through their settings. For WhatsApp, I had to use its own backup to restore old messages.

Very happy with the new phone, net price and easy transfer of data / settings. That being said, today's phones provide an incremental upgrade at best. My 2021 Flip 3's performance is comparable to the new Flip 6 (old phone wasn't laggy at all). Of course, the new phone's battery life, camera etc. are better, but the difference isn't big. I upgraded purely because of the age and how old the Flip 3 had started to look (am a sucker for vanity).

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by GTO

Always loved how easy it is to switch from old to new Windows laptops (thanks to image backups) and Apple Products (including Macbooks & iPhones). I was disappointed with Android for not offering something similar on unrooted devices.

But it is there! One can do it by restoring from Android backup on google, or by wire/wifi.

Did my my new phone from old phone in February and it worked well.
Doing it for wife's new tablet at the moment. Basic process has worked well, but there is more tidying up to do.

I'm talking about the basic Android process: Samsung, as you mention, has its own utility. I don't know if it is rebranded Android or an actually-improved system?

PS...

Whatsapp has it's own system for getting its data from the old device.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by GTO

Connected the old & new phones via a USB C cable, fired up Samsung Smart Switch on both phones and the transfer of 140 GB (including music & pictures) took about an hour. What's remarkable is that the phone is 90% set up like my old phone. Just need to login to some apps again and go through their settings. For WhatsApp, I had to use its own backup to restore old messages.

Even WhatsApp messages/data can be transferred using Smart Switch, I moved all my Apps (including WhatsApp) from iPhone to S24 Ultra (for my wife) and it was a seamless process. Just that it add another hour or so into the transfer process (depending on how big your chat history is). But since you were moving from Android to Android, WhatsApp restore from the backup is the easiest/fastest way.

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

I'm talking about the basic Android process: Samsung, as you mention, has its own utility. I don't know if it is rebranded Android or an actually-improved system?

Smart Switch is pretty brilliant (as GTO mentioned), it almost create a replica of the old device, including Apps placement, folders etc. I did a similar move from my iPhone to Pixel last week, the standard Android process was similar to how it was with Samsung Smart Switch (including WhatsApp), but I had to arrange all the apps and folders individually after the transfer.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by GTO

Very happy with the new phone, net price and easy transfer of data / settings. That being said, today's phones provide an incremental upgrade at best. My 2021 Flip 3's performance is comparable to the new Flip 6 (old phone wasn't laggy at all). Of course, the new phone's battery life, camera etc. are better, but the difference isn't big. I upgraded purely because of the age and how old the Flip 3 had started to look (am a sucker for vanity).

I recently shifted (again) my primary number from iOS to Samsung, earlier, I used to have a paid App for WhatsApp transfers, this time, the Smart Switch paired with a type C to lightning has taken care of all data, messages, call logs, just everything. WhatsApp messages are there from year 2021 onwards which is decent IMO.

Just that you have to log-in on most financial / banking Apps (but obvious).

Very happy with the purchase and now, the network issues, plus some Apps are working better on the Android, few Apps are Android specific (I was always using a secondary phone & this has eliminated it, I still carry one, but it's in the iPad sleeve instead of my pocket). The phone (S24 U) is a bit large though, but got it for better camera and battery.

Originally Posted by vb-saan

Even WhatsApp messages/data can be transferred using Smart Switch, I moved all my Apps (including WhatsApp) from iPhone to S24 Ultra (for my wife) and it was a seamless process. Just that it add another hour or so into the transfer process (depending on how big your chat history is). But since you were moving from Android to Android, WhatsApp restore from the backup is the easiest/fastest way.