Phone makers and devs at cross purposes

[Ceverol]

Photo apps are used at least twice as often in landscape mode than in portrait mode. When they are used in landscape mode the flashlight, next to the lens on the back of the phone, is very often BELOW the lens. Lighting the subject from (slightly) below. That is unnatural lighting. Natural light comes from above. So why do phone makers keep placing the flash on the wrong side of the lens? OR why do the devs keep designing their apps in such a way that when tilting the phone into landscape mode the flashlight always lights from BELOW???

 

[zuben el genub]

They aren't really into photography, just convenience.
Here's a pic of the Nokia N8. Notice the light.
Nokia N8-00 - Smartphone with 12MP Camera - Nokia - USA

I had a 5mp Nokia phone and now the Nexus S. The Nokia camera was far better.
I am surprised that Sony hasn't done something in this line. Sony does make cameras - from DSLR to point and shoot.

 

[Ceverol]

They aren't really into photography, just convenience.
Here's a pic of the Nokia N8. Notice the light.
Nokia N8-00 - Smartphone with 12MP Camera - Nokia - USA

I had a 5mp Nokia phone and now the Nexus S. The Nokia camera was far better.
I am surprised that Sony hasn't done something in this line. Sony does make cameras - from DSLR to point and shoot.

Of course putting hi-res sensors in 'cameras' that are held at arm's length is completely ridiculous in any case: shooting at arm's length can never result in a sharp/focused image because of permanent 'camera' movement. Just peruse your phone's images closely in full screen on a large monitor. They are always out of focus! No amount of hi-res is going to change that. So paying for hi-res capability in a phonecam is really simply a waste of money.

 

[zuben el genub]

The cameras have image stabilization. It works quite well in good conditions. DSLRs have it, and if not the camera, you can buy lenses that do. If you have a steady hand, it can be 3 f-stops difference.

Your original gripe was about the placement of the flash. That is a legitimate gripe. Most of these photos and videos are not going to be entered in a show, or printed out. The users get a decent photo for a memory or illustration. They are not going to blow it up on a large screen. A decent clear lens and good lighting would be a benefit to those users.

A good photographer can take almost any tool, including an old box Brownie and get a superlative picture. They have the eye, and they understand how to work the medium. I've been looking at some phone pics on camera forums. We have a few members here that have taken very good pics with phone cams.

I prefer a DSLR with an optical viewfinder. I am not a fan of excess megapixels. If I can print a decent cropped 8x10, I'm happy. I'm not in the business and will please myself. The phone is good for something I wish to send SMS or email. My bridge camera will do Eyefi, the 20D will not.