Google's Upcoming 'Night Sight' Mode for Pixel Phones Captures Remarkable Low-Light Photos

[Abazigal]

The fact that you know all about these issues as an Apple only user would indicate that these issues are well known about.
These will be discussed at length on Android Central.
Are you complaining that there are not discussed at length on this forum?
As for the camera, I would suggest that Pixel cameras' praise is well merited and not at all "disproportionate".

It’s hard to overlook these matters when they keep popping up in my YouTube feed.

My point is that it’s a great camera attached to an arguably sub-par phone. It’s a package deal, and these drawbacks continue to accompany the user even when the camera is not in use. Unless you absolutely have to have the best smartphone camera on you and don’t mind having to deal with all the other drawbacks, it’s not a phone I see most people opting to use.

Make no mistake. The pixel 3xl is not a phone. It’s a camera running stock android.

And unless you plan to carry the pixel around as a second phone solely to use as a camera, most people will have just one phone on them, and I feel the numerous drawbacks far outweigh its one saving grace.

In this regard, it feels disingenuous to diss the iPhone for having a camera that isn’t as good (but still of high quality, given that most people likely can’t tell the difference in a blind photo comparison test anyways) without also considering the other areas it excels in. It’s easy to excel in one area if you choose to neglect everything else, that appears to be what google has done, and that is what Apple will never do.

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

It’s hard to overlook these matters when they keep popping up in my YouTube feed.

My point is that it’s a great camera attached to an arguably sub-par phone. It’s a package deal, and these drawbacks continue to accompany the user even when the camera is not in use. Unless you absolutely have to have the best smartphone camera on you and don’t mind having to deal with all the other drawbacks, it’s not a phone I see most people opting to use.

Make no mistake. The pixel 3xl is not a phone. It’s a camera running stock android.

And unless you plan to carry the pixel around as a second phone solely to use as a camera, most people will have just one phone on them, and I feel the numerous drawbacks far outweigh its one saving grace.

In this regard, it feels disingenuous to diss the iPhone for having a camera that isn’t as good (but still of high quality, given that most people likely can’t tell the difference in a blind photo comparison test anyways) without also considering the other areas it excels in. It’s easy to excel in one area if you choose to neglect everything else, that appears to be what google has done, and that is what Apple will never do.

Again, if these issues keep popping up on your YouTube feed, they are NOT being ignored.

Secondly, the Pixel 3 is not a phone? Seriously?
And btw, which phone is the one with a long thread about connectivity issues?

 

[Abazigal]

Again, if these issues keep popping up on your YouTube feed, they are NOT being ignored.

They seem to be given a free pass. I find it amusing that one YouTuber actually filmed herself scrubbing her pixel 3xl with a toothbrush under running water in an attempt to get rid of the scuffs, what more make it sound like a perfectly normal thing to do, because that it evidently something you would expect any self-respecting smartphone user to do on a regular basis.

Conversely, Apple has been raked through the coals for issues so minute I wouldn't even call them issues. Imagine if the same issue had affected the iPhone. I can just imagine this forum having a monumental meltdown.

Correct me if I am wrong. Every issue with anything to do with Apple, be it real or imagined, gets blown way out of proportion while every achievement or milestone is treated with great skepticism or the reception is extremely muted, as though celebrating Apple's success is a sin punishable by eternal damnation. Every issue with the competition gets downplayed while even the most minor accomplishment is held up as evidence that Apple is falling behind or otherwise losing the plot.

Like I said, just double standards all around.

Secondly, the Pixel 3 is not a phone? Seriously?
And btw, which phone is the one with a long thread about connectivity issues?

Given all the issues currently plaguing it, I can't really see myself using the pixel as a phone without being annoyed by the problems. If I ever did get one, it would be for use as a camera, nothing else.

Every news outlet has essentially reviewed the pixel as a camera first, while overlooking or downplaying every other aspect of, you know, a smartphone. It's like this is the only angle you can go to make the pixel not sound like a very bad device all round. Focus on the one thing it evidently does well, ignore everything else that makes it a bad phone.

I guess Google will eventually get round to solving these issues with software patches down the road. We shall see.

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

They seem to be given a free pass. I find it amusing that one YouTuber actually filmed herself scrubbing her pixel 3xl with a toothbrush under running water in an attempt to get rid of the scuffs, what more make it sound like a perfectly normal thing to do, because that it evidently something you would expect any self-respecting smartphone user to do on a regular basis.

Conversely, Apple has been raked through the coals for issues so minute I wouldn't even call them issues. Imagine if the same issue had affected the iPhone. I can just imagine this forum having a monumental meltdown.

Correct me if I am wrong. Every issue with anything to do with Apple, be it real or imagined, gets blown way out of proportion while every achievement or milestone is treated with great skepticism or the reception is extremely muted, as though celebrating Apple's success is a sin punishable by eternal damnation. Every issue with the competition gets downplayed while even the most minor accomplishment is held up as evidence that Apple is falling behind or otherwise losing the plot.

Like I said, just double standards all around.


Given all the issues currently plaguing it, I can't really see myself using the pixel as a phone without being annoyed by the problems. If I ever did get one, it would be for use as a camera, nothing else.

Every news outlet has essentially reviewed the pixel as a camera first, while overlooking or downplaying every other aspect of, you know, a smartphone. It's like this is the only angle you can go to make the pixel not sound like a very bad device all round. Focus on the one thing it evidently does well, ignore everything else that makes it a bad phone.

I guess Google will eventually get round to solving these issues with software patches down the road. We shall see.

Hyperbole much? EVERY news outlet?
And your cherry picked response to my post shows you are guilty of exactly what you claim about comments on the Pixel

 

[Abazigal]

Hyperbole much? EVERY news outlet?
And your cherry picked response to my post shows you are guilty of exactly what you claim about comments on the Pixel

What exactly did I cherry pick?

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

What exactly did I cherry pick?

I made two comments and you replied to one.
Ignored the connectivity issue. Pretty hard for a phone to be a phone when as a phone it doesn't reliably make calls.

 

[Abazigal]

I made two comments and you replied to one.
Ignored the connectivity issue. Pretty hard for a phone to be a phone when as a phone it doesn't reliably make calls.

I didn’t address it because you proved my point.

Like you mentioned, there’s one long thread on it. I mentioned that Apple is often held to task over every issue, real or imagined, and I don’t see anyone giving them a free pass over this matter.

Apple is being graded on a curve. My theory is that people just like a good underdog story, and Apple is no longer one. That and Apple is often misunderstood as a tech company when it is in reality a design company. As a result, there is an elevated amount of skepticism and cynicism being applied to Apple's actions which I don’t see being applied to other companies such as Samsung, Microsoft, google, amazon, even Tesla.

Apple is a polarizing company. The company will continue to face an outsized amount of skepticism and cynicism going forward. I don’t expect this to change anytime soon. I am simply amused that the same amount of criticism is not given to any other company claiming to be outperforming Apple.

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

I didn’t address it because you proved my point.

Like you mentioned, there’s one long thread on it. I mentioned that Apple is often held to task over every issue, real or imagined, and I don’t see anyone giving them a free pass over this matter.

Do you think Apple should get a free pass on this matter? Do you think users are unjustified in keeping raising this issue?Especially those who have reported getting replacements with the same issue?

 

[Abazigal]

Do you think Apple should get a free pass on this matter? Do you think users are unjustified in keeping raising this issue?Especially those who have reported getting replacements with the same issue?

It's one thing to raise attention to the issue, it's another to, well, raise a big honking fuss that is completely disproportionate with the scale the issue, and does little to elevate the conversation beyond being just another rant-fest.

I am reminded of the other two issues - beauty-gate and charge-gate. Not only were they grossly misrepresented by the media (for example, beauty-gate wasn't the iPhone trying to apply some sort of beauty filter at all, but it didn't stop people from outright spreading lies nonetheless in a bid to blow up the whole matter), but any thread on this matter just quickly (and predictably) devolved into a "Apple sucks / is doomed" cesspool.

Because it's just categorically cool to hate on Apple these days, and it never fails to draw the clicks and views online.

I am not saying the high standards applied to Apple should be lowered in a bid to quash criticism. If anything, I suppose Apple is getting all this criticism and scrutiny precisely because it's viewed as a leader in many fields and industries. However, if a company is said to be beating Apple in some area, that company deserves to be subject to just as much scrutiny, if not more. When it comes to underdogs, comments should not frame it as a tale of David slaying Goliath, but instead debate the challenges and risks found in going up against Apple. Let their problems be covered as closely as the initial stories once filled with hope and optimism.

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

It's one thing to raise attention to the issue, it's another to, well, raise a big honking fuss that is completely disproportionate with the scale the issue, and does little to elevate the conversation beyond being just another rant-fest.

I am reminded of the other two issues - beauty-gate and charge-gate. Not only were they grossly misrepresented by the media (for example, beauty-gate wasn't the iPhone trying to apply some sort of beauty filter at all, but it didn't stop people from outright spreading lies nonetheless in a bid to blow up the whole matter), but any thread on this matter just quickly (and predictably) devolved into a "Apple sucks / is doomed" cesspool.

Because it's just categorically cool to hate on Apple these days, and it never fails to draw the clicks and views online.

I am not saying the high standards applied to Apple should be lowered in a bid to quash criticism. If anything, I suppose Apple is getting all this criticism and scrutiny precisely because it's viewed as a leader in many fields and industries. However, if a company is said to be beating Apple in some area, that company deserves to be subject to just as much scrutiny, if not more. When it comes to underdogs, comments should not frame it as a tale of David slaying Goliath, but instead debate the challenges and risks found in going up against Apple. Let their problems be covered as closely as the initial stories once filled with hope and optimism.

Why does it matter to you if Apple get criticism? There are surely other things in life that matter more?
Anyway, I see you are back to your entertaining best. And keep those Apple tinted glasses on

 

[iMEric984]

Such as?

I mean the iPhone XS is "plagued" with issues as well. Charging issue (fixed), reception issue (lengthy thread on here about it), messed up selfie photos to name the big ones.

How about dead pixels in the display. The back of it scratches like nothing. Boot looping. Shipping without Android installed. Or how about the software added notch on the right side of the display.

I understand no product comes out perfect, but these issues show google is way over charging for this phone. Their QA sucks too.
[doublepost=1540736120][/doublepost]

It's one thing to raise attention to the issue, it's another to, well, raise a big honking fuss that is completely disproportionate with the scale the issue, and does little to elevate the conversation beyond being just another rant-fest.

I am reminded of the other two issues - beauty-gate and charge-gate. Not only were they grossly misrepresented by the media (for example, beauty-gate wasn't the iPhone trying to apply some sort of beauty filter at all, but it didn't stop people from outright spreading lies nonetheless in a bid to blow up the whole matter), but any thread on this matter just quickly (and predictably) devolved into a "Apple sucks / is doomed" cesspool.

Because it's just categorically cool to hate on Apple these days, and it never fails to draw the clicks and views online.

I am not saying the high standards applied to Apple should be lowered in a bid to quash criticism. If anything, I suppose Apple is getting all this criticism and scrutiny precisely because it's viewed as a leader in many fields and industries. However, if a company is said to be beating Apple in some area, that company deserves to be subject to just as much scrutiny, if not more. When it comes to underdogs, comments should not frame it as a tale of David slaying Goliath, but instead debate the challenges and risks found in going up against Apple. Let their problems be covered as closely as the initial stories once filled with hope and optimism.

It’s because we hold Apple to the highest standard. Even the haters know this. So when something comes out like a software issue it’s easy to blame and throw Apple under the bus.
[doublepost=1540736225][/doublepost]

Do you think Apple should get a free pass on this matter? Do you think users are unjustified in keeping raising this issue?Especially those who have reported getting replacements with the same issue?

So should google get a free pass for their laundry list of issues the pixel came out with??

 

[Abazigal]

Why does it matter to you if Apple get criticism? There are surely other things in life that matter more?
Anyway, I see you are back to your entertaining best. And keep those Apple tinted glasses on

It's not the criticism, it's the untruths and misconceptions and what they do to the entire mood of this forum.

For example, remember earlier this year when the rumours about the iPhone X supposedly not selling well reached fever pitch? Ironically, it was Appleinsider who correctly deduced that reports of declining sales of OLED screens at Samsung were due to Samsung's own phones not selling well, and not the iPhone. But again, it was just easier and more lucrative for the press to run away with the whole "See, the iPhone X isn't selling. I told you Apple was crazy for having the temerity to sell a $1k phone!", and the people here for most part were content to just give in to their baser natures of wanting to watch Apple burn, making the whole environment that much more toxic and acerbic, and making any sort of rational discussion practically impossible. And the only thing we could do was to wait for Apple's quarterly sales reports to show that the iPhone X was doing fairly well.

Look, Apple is not a very hard company to read. You would think that people would learn their lessons after getting it wrong once or twice, but no... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

How about dead pixels in the display. The back of it scratches like nothing. Boot looping. Shipping without Android installed. Or how about the software added notch on the right side of the display.

I understand no product comes out perfect, but these issues show google is way over charging for this phone. Their QA sucks too.
[doublepost=1540736120][/doublepost]
It’s because we hold Apple to the highest standard. Even the haters know this. So when something comes out like a software issue it’s easy to blame and throw Apple under the bus.
[doublepost=1540736225][/doublepost]
So should google get a free pass for their laundry list of issues the pixel came out with??

You will see Google getting plenty of criticism in Android forums for issues.

 

[Takeo]

This is great for landscape photography, but will be useless with capturing people in the moment without being "smeary." It seems like an easy software implementation to just tell the camera to keep the exposure open for 5 seconds just like any other mirrorless or DSLR camera.

Now if this works with "instant shutter" then I'll be blown away.

That’s not what it’s doing. It’s not shutter speed. It’s software. I’m no photographer or engineer but my understanding from the article is that software reads the colours and figures out what the colours would be in normal lighting and then modifies the image... or something like that?

 

[341328]

Those comparison photos can be faked so easily. I’ll wait to see the proof.

So is the lens just being kept open for longer to suck in more light?
[doublepost=1540764432][/doublepost]

Very impressive. I wonder what would happen if the items were not in somewhat predictable colors, instead of red fire extinguishers they were pink? Perhaps they use a very high ISO mode to get colors and details at expense of noise and the redo a lower ISO image based on the analysis of that image?

What? Some faked up comparisons. Please. I’ll get excited when I see real world usage.

 

[koruki]

can I get a close up of the image, I can just drag exposure up on the photos which is what software does. Innovation wow .. people cried when Apple made peoples skin a little nicer but crying cause they wont over process a night image with about 10 stops of exposure by default? Do they say what iso/shutter speeds these are shot at? The difference is too big, I can do the same on the iPhone if I wanted to.

 

[Baymowe335]

You might need an iPhone 11 to get this feature next year. Even the Pixel 1 will get this new Night mode. It's crazy that the iPhone X just a year ago don't have the latest camera features as the the iPhone XS. Of course the "A12" excuse is doing the work and yet Google is creating magic with even the Pixel 1 without any of these special hardware sauce.
[doublepost=1540669653][/doublepost]
It's so simple yet Apple hasn't added the feature. Or is it magical once they do? BTW I just tried what you said with my crappy LG G7 phone bumping the exposure to 3200 ISO and 5 seconds shutter. It's an utter mess for noise and blurriness. It's no where close to the Night mode from Google and Huawei P20.

There are other photo situations besides dark nights. The XS cameras are rated better than Pixel 1 and Pixel 2 and many reviews prefer XS Photos in various situations over even the Pixel 3. Video is far better on iPhone in general, microphone is better, dynamic range is better, etc.

Night shot is cool, but again, it ruins some photos and others look stupid and unrealistic. Most of the time, I would rather not have artificial highlights and blown out shadows.

If you think night shot is the holy grail of everything, enjoy it...but there are other aspects to the phones, including the cameras but also a wider range of things like software and design. The Pixel looks awful and it runs Android.

 

[bozzykid]

Unknown. Since presumably Google is uploading people's photos to their cloud and applying AI and then showing the updated image versus Apple's approach of privacy first where things are done locally on device.

No. This is all done on the phone locally on Pixel phones. Google doesn't use cloud based AI for it's camera app.

I wonder if night site involves being VERY still (read tripod) and VERY long exposure times?

Actually, it is using short exposure times so you probably don't need to be super still.

 

[ROGmaster]

cool. just edit your exposure settings and BAM, "night shot". doubt you'd want to brag about any of these night shot photos, the quality looks terrible

Yeah sure just hit edit and BAM, non existing detail is instantly added to a shot and noise will just disappear by magic.

[doublepost=1540797119][/doublepost]

I pretty much agree with that analysis. It could just be a gimmick that few people could duplicate with enough steadiness or without a stand, but if those are handheld shots, then Apple really missed something here.

Wow nobody read the article at The Verge.
Not only they are handheld buy the author said he didn't necessary tried to be as still as possible and images were still in focus and sharp.
[doublepost=1540797585][/doublepost]

You are confusing two things. Google already has an HDR feature that is comprable to Apple's and in some way's better, it's really good at preserving highlights.

Yeah, it's called HDR+ Enhanced.

 

[Bacillus]

Yeah sure just hit edit and BAM, non existing detail is instantly added to a shot and noise will just disappear by magic.

[doublepost=1540797119][/doublepost]
Wow nobody read the article at The Verge.
Not only they are handheld buy the author said he didn't necessary tried to be as still as possible and images were still in focus and sharp.

These pictures stirr the reality distortion field for some (the left being better as “closer to reality”)
that have become addicted to their own truth and dressed-up selfies.
Google has copied this night-feature - in advance, and when it’s mature enough it will return to Apple...

 

[ROGmaster]

I can do the same on the iPhone if I wanted to.

Yeah sure you can. Could you post some examples?
The funny part is you don't even understand how Nigh Sight works.

 

[MKevin3]

Can we please get a free Pixel 3 to every Bigfoot / Yeti / Loch Ness hunter? Man I would love to have those images cleared up! /s

 

[LordVic]

That’s not what it’s doing. It’s not shutter speed. It’s software. I’m no photographer or engineer but my understanding from the article is that software reads the colours and figures out what the colours would be in normal lighting and then modifies the image... or something like that?

All camera's, especially digital do this to an extent.

even in high light. They all take in light and use software to make a best guess at the scene's colour and light makup to generate an image.

as I said in a previous post: it's why you get slightly different looking photos based on what camera you use, even if the photos are taken under identical conditions. Even film had the same general principle.

Cameras / photography is a "best guess". the best cameras tend to be the closest, but even they tend to be slightly different than reality.

 

[bydandie]

Look, this is a great feature in certain scenarios. There's hopefully more to come from the Xs this year - given that the camera in the Xr (same sensor as the Xs) is reported to provide much better low light than the existing telephoto lens combo used in the Xs, then a lot of this is hardware-related.

Computational photography is part of the future, and Google are leading the way in some areas now. I also prefer a lot of features in the Google Photo app, available on iOS now, which I'd love in Photos (ability to change date/time and have the stylised photos are the two items I'd like to come across). Let's hope that Apple builds on this, and let's celebrate that Google and Apple are pushing each other forwards.

 

[LordVic]

can I get a close up of the image, I can just drag exposure up on the photos which is what software does. Innovation wow .. people cried when Apple made peoples skin a little nicer but crying cause they wont over process a night image with about 10 stops of exposure by default? Do they say what iso/shutter speeds these are shot at? The difference is too big, I can do the same on the iPhone if I wanted to.

To address a couple of your points:

"I can just drag exposure up on the photos which is what software does."

Incorrect. It is impossible once a photo has been taken to invent and fill in photographic data if it wasn't detected by the sensor (that's also why photographers capture in RAW mode, as there's more data overall ). there is only so much you can "brighten" a photo this way, as it also has the affect of blowing out the whites/highlights. to get a uniformity of picture that google's doing you would need some more advanced logic to be able to do the "lightening" either by region in the photo or down to a pixel by pixel level. if you were to take your run of the mill everyday photo and just crank the slide,r you would end up with a washed out photo with greys and blobs of white. if the photo was sufficiently dark where no data detected at the sensor, than you'd just get a grey mess.

"people cried when Apple made peoples skin a little nicer"

No, People are crying that Apple has dictated that all selfies need to be in this "beauty" mode with overly aggressive skin smoothing with zero capability of turning it off. Nightmode shown here is entirly optional and can be enabled/disabled by changing modes. Do not conflate the issue. The issue with Apple isn't the "Beauty Mode". it's the mandatory beauty mode because "Apple knows best"

"Do they say what iso/shutter speeds these are shot at? The difference is too big, I can do the same on the iPhone if I wanted to."

Like all claims. Prove it.