The iPhone 14 Pro has one of the best cameras on any phone. But could it ever replace a professional mirrorless camera?
For over a decade, professional photographers, enthusiasts and filmmakers have had a phone camera holy grail. What if you could have a truly large image sensor, like you’d find in a high-end mirrorless camera, and a lens mount that could attach to a phone? If that sounds familiar, it’s because everyone from Samsung, Panasonic, Motorola and Sony have in some way flirted with the idea. A month ago, Xiaomi, the world’s third-largest phone maker, rekindled the quest by showing off a prototype of a 12S Pro phone with a 1-inch camera sensor that also has a lens mount for Leica glass. But we should know better than to get our hopes up again.
00:00 iPhone 14 Series
01:27 Image Sensors
02:46 Computational Photography & Hardware
05:25 Xiaomi Prototype
06:54 Apple
08:27 Leica
08:58 A Decade Long Quest
Subscribe to CNET:
Never miss a deal again! See CNET’s browser extension 👉
Follow us on TikTok:
Follow us on Instagram:
Follow us on Twitter:
Like us on Facebook:
RICHARD LIM
December 23, 2022 at 1:11 pm
👍🏻😊🙏🏻
Ήτορ Ομάδα
December 23, 2022 at 1:26 pm
Camera phone which can fly. No half-measures!
bill duncan
December 23, 2022 at 1:27 pm
Problem solved don’t buy anything that Apple makes.
CF G
December 23, 2022 at 1:54 pm
If you want a product that appeals to 0.1% of the population.
LE HS
December 23, 2022 at 2:41 pm
Disagree.
Sam
December 23, 2022 at 9:44 pm
Cry about it
LE HS
December 23, 2022 at 9:57 pm
I promote US companies, which Apple is. None of these foreign made phones.
Bloom by Christine
December 23, 2022 at 1:54 pm
Lego brick as unit of measurement should be the new International standard😂
Moustafa
December 23, 2022 at 1:56 pm
I think bringing computational photography to more compact mirrorless cameras makes sense as a logical evolution in photography.
Antwan Owens
December 23, 2022 at 1:57 pm
Apple is not the kinda company that follows trends they sit bk take in all the landscape of other innovations and yrs later just make it better the Apple way😅
LoneLee Productions
December 23, 2022 at 1:58 pm
A while back Sony made a line of (DSC-DX) completely self contained camera sensor and lens off the phone. The phone was just the viewfinder and controls via NFC/Bluetooth.
It actually wasn’t a bad product, the product line were all zoom lenses with different zoom ranges, and different price points, but they were really designed as point and shoots rather than DSLR. It opened up possibilities for photography allowing people to take photos in places that a camera normally wouldn’t fit.
This could potentially be the way to create a larger camera sensor without making a larger phone.
Numbers&Letters
December 23, 2022 at 2:25 pm
I’ve been using the QX100 and QX1 since launch 😎.. I hope this brings back a wave of lens style cameras because it’s honestly the most fun
Erwin Iskandar
December 24, 2022 at 2:20 am
@Numbers&Letters at that time it’s laggy, because bluetooth connection is not as fast as today.
bobbyright2010
December 23, 2022 at 1:58 pm
Moral of the story… the android market fails at everything.
Yunior
December 23, 2022 at 2:07 pm
WU TANG WU TANG WU TANG
Jodat Seyal
December 23, 2022 at 2:31 pm
Hi, you mentioned Fujifilm x100. Try the Ricoh GR III (x). I love iPhone mini 13, for me the combination of iPhone mini and iPad mini (newer version) works better than a large and heavy iPhone. Therefore I have been using Ricoh GR III (28mm focal length) and now IIIx (40mm focal length). The software for iOS lets you download RAW files directly to your iPhone or iPad. The camera Han an APSC sized sensor and is much more compact than Fujifilm. In my humble opinion, Ricohs are true phone companion.
LE HS
December 23, 2022 at 2:40 pm
My vote: pro camera need to be more like phones.
Nadav Zohn
December 23, 2022 at 2:46 pm
You forgot to discuss the (missed) promise of the Light L16 and Nokia’s phone to follow:)
James Burwash
December 23, 2022 at 2:48 pm
Thanks for the history review. Yes indeed some amazing technology ten years ago. I personally think smart phones got their marketing 100 percent correct. If you see people using smart phone photography what are they using it for ? Selfies and people pictures, probably 90 percent of your pictures. So in that regards smart phones are perfect. As for scenery shots, I have taken some pretty cool pictures on my iPhone. So if I look at pocket cameras from 10 years ago, smart phones win hands down. As far as professional cameras. I do have one but it is bulky and heavy. Right now I am trying to up grade my iPhone experience with accessories. May not be as good as a professional camera but for 90 percent of the shots ? And one last point 40 years ago I was taking a picture and a person came up to me and said, don’t waste film unless someone special is in the frame. You will never get that perfect shot, so drum roll……buy postcards. Amazing advice. Cheers Vancouver Island Canada
Manbir Singh
December 23, 2022 at 2:52 pm
Nature made best camera and we call them eyes
A-DUB
December 23, 2022 at 3:07 pm
Damnit it every time I see people like you wearing that wu-tang shirt it makes me like mine a little. I knew once I saw wu-tang at target it would lower the brands appeal. Now their not so niche. Keep doing your thing though buddy. I enjoyed the video
Blaze Piffington
December 23, 2022 at 6:34 pm
Wouldn’t it be a better take to appreciate people getting more hip to the Wu, I mean, isn’t that the message
Putting more shine on the clan?
Wu-Tang Worldwide represent 🙌
Blaze Piffington
December 25, 2022 at 12:30 am
My bad, I read your comment wrong
I was/am high
Rich
December 23, 2022 at 3:07 pm
100% would purchase an Apple standalone pro camera. It’s been their missing product for many years, and would integrate so well into their ecosystem.
Rodrigo Leon
December 23, 2022 at 3:09 pm
I think you mean a single stud LEGO brick, bud.
The Communication Coach
December 23, 2022 at 3:14 pm
Like most people could tell the difference or even need anything but a regular camera; everyone thinks their Spielberg now, and it’s pretty irritating, TOO MANY EGOS out there as it is already.
Ameer Ali Ouarda
December 23, 2022 at 3:24 pm
I don’t want that massive thing on the back of my phone. I rather use the existing set up and a gimbal. A mount like that won’t be compatible with a gimbal.
At that point you might as well get a dedicated DSLR.
Rorisang Monaledi
December 23, 2022 at 5:05 pm
Why not make lenses in proportion to the smartphone camera like Moment lenses? It would be even better if the mounting system was standard across many devices/manufacturers.
I also wish Apple would create a dedicated “Pro” camera app for the iPad Pro and iPhone Pro.
Pasan Jayaweera
December 23, 2022 at 7:36 pm
the one time american measuring system works better than the rest of the worlds. (lego bricks)
dman7895
December 23, 2022 at 8:52 pm
oh snap just as i was about to type it he mentioned the galaxy cameras!
ondray29
December 24, 2022 at 1:43 am
This video was a complete waste of time. He literally took 10 minutes to tell me phone cameras have improved over time.
Tauqeer Shaikh
December 24, 2022 at 3:26 am
All i heard was apple this, apple that, apple apple apple….even though apple is not working on anything of this sort. Indirect marketing. Thumbs down.
Photos By Mike TM
December 24, 2022 at 10:44 am
I’ve been saying this very idea for several years.
I definitely would love to have a high end smartphone that can have a lens be mounted on the back of the phone to be able to take the best pictures with great zoom capabilities as well.
telëgram me 👉 CNET_122
December 25, 2022 at 12:11 am
✍️✍️✍️✍️ You won a surprise 🎁🎁 DM me on Telegram ☝️☝️☝️
Mo Mo
December 24, 2022 at 4:52 pm
No point. I shoot RAW with my DSLR. Photography is a dedicated work/hobby.
Edukasi Bnn
December 24, 2022 at 10:47 pm
Come back my friend🙏
telëgram me 👉 CNET_122
December 25, 2022 at 12:20 am
………you ⬆️won a surprise 🎉🎁 telegram me to claim ☝️☝️☝️
Kalpesh Patel
December 25, 2022 at 5:47 am
In a decade or so, computational photography would’ve mastered what a DSLR can deliver today. I know people who say phone cameras can never replace or even match the quality of a DSLR, but I beg to differ with them. A few years ago, portrait mode and cinematic mode was not possible. Now look at what Samsung and pixel offer when it comes to portrait mode and what iPhone delivers when it comes to cinematic mode. Hand-held Low light photography is already better on phones than on high end DSLRs which need a tripod for a 1 to 2 second shot. And come to think of it… night mode photography needs much more light to come in into the camera. Sensor size won’t matter once the software compensates for the size of the sensor.
Christopher
December 25, 2022 at 12:11 pm
I like using the moment case with the lens Mount on my iPhone for photography. Not to say that the camera 📷 on iPhones, aren’t good but the lenses offered by moment help to enhance once photography I think 🧐.
Dr Peter jones
December 25, 2022 at 3:47 pm
just review clip on lenses?
Secarianu Florentin Razvan
December 25, 2022 at 7:10 pm
You forgot about the Nokia Lumia 1020 and 808 way back in 2012 🙂