Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

pepsimax

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 18, 2019
3
1
I've been carefully pouring over every single image, video, and review that's come out, and something has struck me as especially odd. The ultrawide on the iPhone 11 (and Pro) doesn't just not support night mode, unlike comparable flagships - it looks absolutely terrible in even moderate lighting conditions.

Compare;

Main: https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/A5IpxpLYT9...9402/d264aef6-95a6-4647-bfbe-a12f023ce451.JPG

Ultrawide: https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/4VuZwOjDWO...9405/7e22ba0b-4f1d-4d93-9e0d-003ce97a8416.JPG

Main: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EEq-w6eXYAANvge?format=jpg&name=4096x4096

Ultrawide: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EEq-w6dXsAEeR4p?format=jpg&name=4096x4096

Ultrawide: https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/snjBZ3vC9Q...9477/a68e3d49-f898-4c7d-92f4-5429a007bd63.JPG

All of the ultrawide shots have noticeably awful noise:

What in the world happened here? How did this phone's landmark feature ship like this? I'm an Apple guy through and through, but the Galaxy S10's ultrawide from going on a year ago not only supports a great night mode, but also looks much better without any help. I really hope this is fixable via update...
 
  • Like
Reactions: ET iPhone Home
It seems that those are compressed images, not original ones. Half megabyte...

Nah, as I wrote in the comments of that video: Since the movie has been shot with the native camera app it has a terrible bitrate out of the box. On top of that the video is color graded, which makes the video footage completely fall apart. Basically every bit that's used for the native video is already utilised to its maximum, so any kind of modifications will make the lack of further information visible.

Youtubes compression algorithm is really bad, but its by far not that bad in 1080p (Why didnt they jump on the h.265 train, much better results for lower bitrates).
I really don't understand why Apple didn't give the option for higher bitrates on this phone (being a "Pro" phone). The video quality is kind of embarrassing given the impressive photo results. But at that point, I'm not even surprised anymore, it's Apple we're talking about... greedy mc greed ****ers. Probably going to unlock that "feature" next year per software selling it as "pro video" or something...
 
It seems that those are compressed images, not original ones. Half megabyte...
Yeah, but so are the main cam pictures, and those look absolutely fantastic. The ultrawide is a hazy travesty in anything even approaching dim light across every picture I've found :/
 
I’m certainly not trying be one of those crazy Apple apologists, but I think the pictures look fine for a smartphone. These are just casual snapshots people will take for fun and anyone who’s serious about wanting high IQ in ultra wide images will most likely resort to using a DSLR.

I’ve never checked out Samsung’s or Google’s UWA shots so I can’t speak to that, but hopefully by next year we’ll see a bigger aperture and the addition of night mide to that lens.
 
The Ultra Wide camera does without Optical Image Stabilisation, which the other two lenses have. The night mode is using long exposure, so wobble is an issue. That is why you get better results with the other lenses.
 
  • Like
Reactions: JohnnyChuttz
The Ultra Wide camera does without Optical Image Stabilisation, which the other two lenses have. The night mode is using long exposure, so wobble is an issue. That is why you get better results with the other lenses.
The ultrawide on the S10/Note 10 has no OIS either and does comparatively great in low light, either in standard or night sight modes. I'm not sure if it's an issue with the sensor Apple chose to use or an insanely aggressive de-noising preference the software has...
 
I don’t see what the problem is, the photos look just fine to me.

If UWA quality is important, there is always Samsung handsets to go to.
 
By the way, here is that same person shooting a movie with his XR last year


The footage was graded to be more contrasty but still. Look how much more detail there is, how much sharper it is. It was shot with filmic pro. Only goes to show how crappy the footage out of the native app still is. Looks like somebody dropped the phone into a soup. Heavily disappointed. So much for "pro" videography...
 
I've been carefully pouring over every single image, video, and review that's come out, and something has struck me as especially odd. The ultrawide on the iPhone 11 (and Pro) doesn't just not support night mode, unlike comparable flagships - it looks absolutely terrible in even moderate lighting conditions.

Compare;

Main: https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/A5IpxpLYT92wAozORPI7S9ncNRQ=/https://blueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/card/image/1049402/d264aef6-95a6-4647-bfbe-a12f023ce451.JPG

Ultrawide: https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/4VuZwOjDWOw0bERv1kNz695keQk=/https://blueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/card/image/1049405/7e22ba0b-4f1d-4d93-9e0d-003ce97a8416.JPG

Main: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EEq-w6eXYAANvge?format=jpg&name=4096x4096

Ultrawide: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EEq-w6dXsAEeR4p?format=jpg&name=4096x4096

Ultrawide: https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/snjBZ3vC9QDmzHGNx2HeYcFp_Uw=/https://blueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/card/image/1049477/a68e3d49-f898-4c7d-92f4-5429a007bd63.JPG

All of the ultrawide shots have noticeably awful noise:

What in the world happened here? How did this phone's landmark feature ship like this? I'm an Apple guy through and through, but the Galaxy S10's ultrawide from going on a year ago not only supports a great night mode, but also looks much better without any help. I really hope this is fixable via update...
The Ultrawide photos look distorted.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.