For most people, you read the megapixel number and go \u201cYes, that\u2019s higher than last year, this camera is better\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cAh, 4K video at 60fps, I need that\u201d is another line you are likely to hear.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, most smartphone buyers have no clue what they are getting when they read a camera\u2019s specifications \u2013 which is understandable, considering how many elements there are.<\/p>\n
Understanding your camera<\/strong><\/p>\n The first step to understanding your camera is to understand the terms used by smartphone makers.<\/p>\n A good resource is DxOMark<\/a>, which ranks the performance of smartphone cameras using a numerical score.<\/p>\n The site\u2019s glossary also lists many terms used to describe the abilities of cameras, including those used by smartphone makers.<\/p>\n Below are several of the key terms you are likely to encounter.<\/p>\n Aperture<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cRatio of effective focal length and entrance pupil diameter of a lens; same as F-number. The smaller the aperture, the faster (brighter) the lens.\u201d<\/p>\n The aperture is shown as f\/1.8 in the example above. The smaller the f-stop number, the wider the opening of the lens.<\/p>\n This lets in more light and produces better low-light pictures, and produces less noise. Additionally, the lower the aperture number, the shutter speed time required for a set amount of light capture is reduced. This reduces blurring.<\/p>\n Resolution<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cResolution describes the ability of a camera to resolve fine details. Both the lens and the sensor have an impact on resolution.\u201d<\/p>\n Resolution on smartphone cameras is defined in megapixels \u2013 MP \u2013 and refers to what it can capture. (1MP is one million pixels.)<\/p>\n While a higher resolution means more pixels \u2013 which is usually indicative of higher quality \u2013 it is not as straightforward with cameras.<\/p>\n Former Apple software engineer Nikhil Bhogal told Time<\/a> that pixel quality matters more than the number of pixels.<\/p>\n If a camera has good pixel quality, which can mean making individual pixels larger, it can improve photo quality.<\/p>\n In short, a higher MP count does not always mean a better camera. Super-high MP stats are also not always necessary \u2013 For example, a still from a 4K video is 8MP.<\/p>\n
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