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iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro Hands-On: Much-Improved Cameras Within Unsightly Bump

Freida said:
So, in summary, the event was a disaster apart from the camera advancement.
So, our friend was spot on - Apple didn't really deliver anything amazing EXCEPT the camera on the iPhone. The rest = really terrible. Apple Watch is pretty much nothing.

The cam bump looks ugly but I understand why it has to be like this. In fact, the whole event was "saved" by the camera improvements on the Pro. Nothing else was good or innovative.
Pro (which they called professional and top) comes with 64GB - that is a joke. Pro should start at 128GB at least if not 256GB.

So overall, boring event that was saved by one feature but let me tell you, that advancement in the camera is indeed amazing. Having ability to shoot all 3 lenses together will make for amazing video content for those that want to be very creative and the low light capability looks amazing. If real world usage shows the same then I might finally upgrade my iPhone 6. :)
Although I'm tempted to get iPhone 8 as that price is super cheap. The cost on 11 Pro in Canada is insane. Almost $1600 before tax - wtf is that?
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2020 is the upgrade year for a lot of devices, not only iPhones :)
 
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Camera bump over hunch back, now its even more easy to bend when phone lies flat on table. Just saying.
100% recycled aluminium also didn't last so long on last time it was tested.
 
I think it looks ok but just why have a bump in the first place? If part is going to stick out anyway just make it all flush and the extra thickness of the rest can give everyone a few extra hours of battery life. *facepalm*

Maybe I'm grumpy because I didn't sleep well enough, but no point buying an Apple watch that'll monitor my sleep cuz that'll then go flat during the day as I wouldn't be charging it at night! :p

The greatest products in the world are useless when the battery is dead.
 
It would have looked a hell of a lot cleaner and far more attractive if they would have just found a way to integrate the lenses into the glass itself.

Would that have been so hard?
 
Complaining about the "camera bump" is one of the most contrived tech memes out there.
 
Seanm87 said:
How would you have done it? Just curious
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Make the frame thicker I guess?

Use the extra space for something (if not just a mesh-structure to make the phone more crash-resistant?

I think the camera bump is annoying - and what is even more disturbing is to have a 1000+ device in your pocket that nearly has no chance of survival when falling out of that same pocket.

Did I mention having a Nokia/Microsoft Lumia 930 falling down the stairs like straight 3 meters down? Yes, dents in the enclosure but no cracks on the screen.
 
Piplodocus said:
I think it looks ok but just why have a bump in the first place? If part is going to stick out anyway just make it all flush and the extra thickness of the rest can give everyone a few extra hours of battery life. *facepalm*

Maybe I'm grumpy because I didn't sleep well enough, but no point buying an Apple watch that'll monitor my sleep cuz that'll then go flat during the day as I wouldn't be charging it at night! :p

The greatest products in the world are useless when the battery is dead.
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I'm a big battery hound as well, the more the better. Before this launch, i.e. based on the life of my XS, I was of the opinion that doubling the battery life would get Apple to the point where I would probably stop wanting more (although I'd still take more if on offer with no penalties elsewhere in the design).

Maybe the problem with making the overall thickness be enough to remove the camera bump might be weight. I strongly suspect that as some point Apple did mock-up a dummy phone at that bigger thickness, weighted it so that it weighed as much as it would if the extra volume was all used for more battery, and got selected people/employees or even just the design team to try it out for a while to get feedback. Perhaps the consensus was that doing that might, while silencing some battery complaints, have pushed the weight over the edge and started generating way more "this thing is so heavy" complaints.

It's all a trade off until we finally get to the point (please!!!!) when one of these revolutionary new battery technologies that we keep hearing about finally turns out to be practical to manufacture reliably at volume for an acceptable price. Even then the trade off will probably be cost in the early days because that new technology is likely to command some premium over more traditional battery technology at least for a while.
 
actinide said:
It appears most people are only interested in the camera features.
You can get a DSLR Camera (with lens) or Action Camera for half or a third of the price. On top of that most Cameras automatically sync with your phone.
As an amateur photographer, i always walk around with my Gopro Hero.
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You can't get a very good camera or lens for a half the price of an iPhone 11. I'm not even sure you can get a body without a lens for $350. The T7i starts at 800 dollars. The Nikon equivalent a little bit cheaper. On top of that, they're gigantic and heavy and don't fit in your pocket.

People want better photos from a multiple-use device... they don't want to wear a backpack and carry 50 items to do the same things 1 item can do.

...and the iPhone X is both a better camera and a better video recorder than the Hero 6, forcing you into a 7 for better stabilization and the same worse still photos. So, I'm not sure where we're going by flexing a Hero here.
 
Chloros said:
Feels like the movies service was a fail and they decided to make it free if you keep buying ipads and iphones or maybe that was the whole intention. Not really to compete with Disney or Netflix since i dont see people leaving them for what apple has to offer.
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How can it have failed before it’s even launched? Or has it failed like the Watch and Apple Music failed?

Why do people have to leave Netflix or Disney to subscribe to Apple TV? Some of shows definitely look worth a watch, so at $5 it’s a no brainer really.
 
I fail to understand the lens setup of the iphone11. A ultra wide lens to zoom out?? Who needs that.

Looks like I’ll be sticking to my ip7+ for another gen, the 2x zoom lens is invaluable often needing to shoot further rather than closer. E.g sports from the stand.

It’s beyond baffling.
 
Muzzakus said:
I fail to understand the lens setup of the iphone11. A ultra wide lens to zoom out?? Who needs that.

Looks like I’ll be sticking to my ip7+ for another gen, the 2x zoom lens is invaluable often needing to shoot further rather than closer. E.g sports from the stand.

It’s beyond baffling.
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Ultra wide lens for family selfies... easy to fit in now. Though rear camera! :(
 
The camera reminds me of this.
 

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It's been a bizarre rant from people about this camera bump. All I see is some incredible innovation in smartphone camera tech. If you don't see that then you don't really need to buy the phone.

You can't have better IQ AND smaller phones. The laws of physics wont allow it. A camera has to have lenses. Those lenses need to go somewhere. If you make them smaller they lose their quality.

No, it wont replace a cinema camera. It's not meant to but it's going to enable some excellent talent to produce some great stuff.

If you are happy with the absolutely turgid quality of GoPro's - fine.. use one. They have limited manual control and one FOV. Plus their image quality is below par these days.

The reason Apple are talking about the cameras more is because it's an insanely clever innovation. Multiple lenses - multiple recording streams.. in your pockets!! Think about that for a second. If you don't appreciate how incredible that is.. and you're obsessing about the bump in the case of this device then this isn't the product for you.
 
Seanm87 said:
How would you have done it? Just curious
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hey just curious, well, i'm a big fan, long time, of apple, so.. i'm not just bashing. i always think they do deep due diligence in making design/function trade-off decisions, so.. i'm sure they did in this case. i, personally, just don't want all that lump plastered on my phone. i, personally, am not going to get this one, and i've stayed up with the models, almost all of them, from standing on line for the first one in 2007 to the X in my pocket as we speak.. but i'm sitting this one out, and i sat last year out.. because... well. i'm good with the X. i can deal with that little bump. and the camera is good enough for me atm, i have fancy real cameras that i grab when that's what i'm doing. for one in my pocket, this one on the X is pretty good. i'd be happy for a snappier SoC, and gladly have a brighter screen, but... not worth the design trade off for me. the clincher for me is that the new one (i'd get the 11Pro if anything) is a minute bit bigger - not enough to notice, but also a bit heavier - probably enough to notice. and, for me, personally, no thanks. the portability and fit in my hand is just on the verge for me with the X...

i was making a snarky comment about the triple lens cluster cause... meh, don't like it. and i thought jony wouldn't've either. ymmv.

but to actually answer your question, i think they've probably done it the most effective way - assuming: a) you have 3 lenses, they have to be nodally relevant to each other, so they need to be placed in a cluster; and, b) the depth of the physical cameras is greater than the rest of the phone desires, for optical zoom and flange-focal distance, etc, then.. yeah, put some bumps on there. perhaps one large hillock rather than three mounds would be nicer, but.. i'm sure they looked at that, too.... *shrug*
 
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The square camera bump is ungodly ugly. I know most people will slap a case on their device, but I typically use my iPhone naked (with AC+). I just cannot get on board with the 11 models. I typically upgrade every year as I'm on IUP, but I'll definitely be sticking with my Xs -- although I'm also considering going down to an iPhone 8.

The only thing that caught my attention yesterday was the $4.99/month price for Apple TV+ service -- and iOS 13 release date. The new iPhone's and Apple Watch did nothing for me.
 
How can the "journalists" tell the cameras are "much improved" under controlled conditions in a single well lit environment, the phone having low resolution displays, and with the Deep Fusion presentation being faked because it won't be available until after launch?
 
Muzzakus said:
I fail to understand the lens setup of the iphone11. A ultra wide lens to zoom out?? Who needs that.

Looks like I’ll be sticking to my ip7+ for another gen, the 2x zoom lens is invaluable often needing to shoot further rather than closer. E.g sports from the stand.

It’s beyond baffling.
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Wide lenses baffle you?

This isn't the phone for you.

the 2x on the 7+ is good for sports? ok then!
 
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