pocket size camera with phone

synature

I've been doing a lot of walk around photos in my garden with a Samsung Note 3 phone. A bit more than half of the photos come out ok or better in terms of online display. Maybe 10% are also good enough to print, up to 8x10 or so. The reviews indicate the newer Apple and Samsung phones have very good cameras -- for cell phones.

However, I don't have very many pockets that will hold these 5" and bigger displays. I don't need or use most of the other smart phone features and don't need to play videos or show off my photos on the phone itself. I just want a device that works good as basic smart phone and has a good camera and actually fits in my shirt pocket comfortably.

DPreview looked at this area recently
http://connect.dpreview.com/post/7285707615/dpreview-recommends-best-smartphone-cameras

Does anyone have experience with the Lumix or the motorola?

NikonsandVstroms

The link you have there is a bit outdated, the Galaxy S7 was the top one last I checked.

As for the Motorola's as phones I like them the best by far, it's an almost stock Android build but they add a few things like active notifications and shaking your phone to turn on the camera from sleep (it sounds a bit weird but can be a really quick thing as you take it out of your pocket, a few twists of the wrist an it's on by the time you're ready to take the shot) that I like. Their built in camera also is pretty good for quick work, I especially like the layout of the exposure compensation. Otherwise though it doesn't have much in the way of manual controls so you'd likely get a third party app.

I can't comment on the new 21 MP camera on the Moto X and other Droids (available if you have Verizon) but from the reports I've seen it's solid just not the best out there...though the Moto X/Droid Maxx 2 are about 2/3 the price of top tier phones.

Lumix is just Panasonic so they know what they're doing image wise. I'm not a huge fan of their JPEG engine's colors personally but I'm a few generations back in my experience now and that phone shoots RAW so you can do whatever you'd like to with em. My concern would be how it acts as a phone and how quickly that larger sensor will drain the battery.

For the best camera/size ratio the iPhone SE wins hands down since it's just a 4" screen though coming from a note 3 that likely would be very small for you and even compared to my Droid Maxx's 5" screen it feels weird going down to my 5s which has essentially the same body/screen as the new phone.

synature

NikonsandVstroms wrote: »

The link you have there is a bit outdated, the Galaxy S7 was the top one last I checked.

As for the Motorola's as phones I like them the best by far, it's an almost stock Android build but they add a few things like active notifications and shaking your phone to turn on the camera from sleep (it sounds a bit weird but can be a really quick thing as you take it out of your pocket, a few twists of the wrist an it's on by the time you're ready to take the shot) that I like. Their built in camera also is pretty good for quick work, I especially like the layout of the exposure compensation. Otherwise though it doesn't have much in the way of manual controls so you'd likely get a third party app.

I can't comment on the new 21 MP camera on the Moto X and other Droids (available if you have Verizon) but from the reports I've seen it's solid just not the best out there...though the Moto X/Droid Maxx 2 are about 2/3 the price of top tier phones.

Lumix is just Panasonic so they know what they're doing image wise. I'm not a huge fan of their JPEG engine's colors personally but I'm a few generations back in my experience now and that phone shoots RAW so you can do whatever you'd like to with em. My concern would be how it acts as a phone and how quickly that larger sensor will drain the battery.

For the best camera/size ratio the iPhone SE wins hands down since it's just a 4" screen though coming from a note 3 that likely would be very small for you and even compared to my Droid Maxx's 5" screen it feels weird going down to my 5s which has essentially the same body/screen as the new phone.

I want something smaller than the note 3. I've gotten used to it, but would prefer something smaller that I might be able to operate with one hand.

The Lumix sure does look interesting, but it's also a bit on the pricey side. I hope it does well enough to get others interested in making a quality pocket camera with minimal smart phone features.

Brett1000

synature wrote: »

I want something smaller than the note 3. I've gotten used to it, but would prefer something smaller that I might be able to operate with one hand.

The Lumix sure does look interesting, but it's also a bit on the pricey side. I hope it does well enough to get others interested in making a quality pocket camera with minimal smart phone features.

look at the mirrorless cameras with 'pancake' lens - pocket size but packs a wallop !

www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless

synature

Brett1000 wrote: »

look at the mirrorless cameras with 'pancake' lens - pocket size but packs a wallop !

www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless

The Sony A6300 certainly sounds impressive, though I have no desire to have to hunt through 17 screens of menu items every time I need to use the menu. In any case the size and weight appear to be about right, but it doesn't have the phone and that is essential to what I am looking for. A single device with the emphasis on camera, but a fully functional smart phone, preferably without a lot of bloat.

Brett1000

synature wrote: »

The Sony A6300 certainly sounds impressive, though I have no desire to have to hunt through 17 screens of menu items every time I need to use the menu. In any case the size and weight appear to be about right, but it doesn't have the phone and that is essential to what I am looking for. A single device with the emphasis on camera, but a fully functional smart phone, preferably without a lot of bloat.

here ya go -


Untitled by c w, on Flickr

ziggy53

Brett1000 wrote: »

here ya go -

Fixed!

synature

Brett1000 wrote: »

here ya go -


Untitled by c w, on Flickr

A bit too thick for my pocket, but nice, :-)

I ended up getting an iphone 6, the compact version. When the lighting conditions are good for the subject , I sometimes get excellent images, for internet display.

Brett1000

synature wrote: »

A bit too thick for my pocket, but nice, :-)

I ended up getting an iphone 6, the compact version. When the lighting conditions are good for the subject , I sometimes get excellent images, for internet display.

that will work
maybe you can also use it for phone and apps

www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless