he transformation of the phone camera has been in the improvement in the optics. Resolution has gone up to 3.2 megapixels and that helps, but the most important improvement has been in the lens.
Imaging has been trying two new phones -- the Nokia N80 ($1100) and the Sony Ericsson Cybershot K800i ($830). The Nokia has a 3 mp sensor and the Sony Ericsson has 3.2 -- an insignificant difference in resolution.
Where the two cameras differ most fundamentally is in their lenses. The Nokia uses the old technology of a fixed focus, extreme wide angle lens with a rough switch for selecting between macro and infinity modes. Although the N80 has a million more pixels than the much cheaper Nokia 6280 there is little to choose between them in picture quality.
The Sony Ericsson has a true auto-focus lens. The result of the added focussing mechanism is much sharper pictures which are also better exposed. In fact the output from the 800i is consistently outstanding.
Some new Nokia phones also have auto-focus lenses and we hope to test them in future but at the moment there is no contest between the N80 and the K800i.
Both phones have infra red transmitters and we were able to make prints directly on the Canon iP6700D (see the review) using Canon’s Photo Paper Pro and the results from the Sony Ericsson are very good indeed. The Nokia pictures, by comparison, lack sharpness and detail and are poorly exposed.
The next necessary development in phone camera technology is in true optical zoom lenses. At the moment phone cameras come with digital zooms which work by enlarging a small section of the image. An optical zoom exposes the whole sensor area but if it has a mechanical action it needs room in which to move and room inside a mobile phone is at a premium.
The Nokia N93 fits a 3x optical zoom and a 3.2mp sensor across the body width rather than through the body depth -- clever lateral thinking. The N93 is the true competitor for the K800i.
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