Samsung Galaxy S10+ camera test against iPhone XS, Pixel 3 and Nokia 9

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Last camera standing

Galaxy S10+ camera test against Nokia 9, iPhone XS and Pixel 3 | Last Cam Standing XVII

(15:36)

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In the latest episode of Last Cam Standing, Samsung's Galaxy S10+, Nokia 9 Pureview and Google's Pixel 3 take on the current smartphone camera champ: Apple's iPhone XS.

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Contents

The competition

Category 1: Color

Category 2: Clarity

Category 3: Exposure

Category4: Additional Features

Winner

In L'

previous episode

from Last Cam Standing, we saw the iPhone XS camera earn its second straight win over Huawei, Xiaomi, and Sony. In this match, Samsung steps into the ring with its S10+, Nokia pushes the envelope with the Nokia 9 Pureview, and Google's Pixel 3 is back for a rematch. Let's start this epic photo fight!

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Last Cam Standing is PCWorld's video series that determines the best phone camera for stills in a King-of-the-hill-style battle. Whichever phone wins will go up against the next contender, so subscribe to

PCWorld YouTube

Samsung Galaxy S10+ camera test against iPhone XS, Pixel 3 and Nokia 9

for future shootouts!

The competition

First, let's meet the competitors. Apple's iPhone XS has held the top spot for two rounds now, thanks to its computational photography chops. But now he faces fierce competition, so we'll see if he can stay on top.

Mentioned in this article

Apple iPhone XS

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Apple

The first challenger is Samsung and its Galaxy S10+. It has a triple camera system, with the primary lens retaining that “dual aperture” gimmick. Samsung has never done well in Last Cam Standing through aggressive processing, so hopefully that will be toned down somewhat.

Next in line for the title is Nokia. The Nokia 9 Pureview and its five camera lenses could be a game-changer for smartphone photography. Nokia has teamed up with Zeiss and Light to push the boundaries of what's possible. So let's see if it works well in our tests.

Last but not least is Google. The Pixel 3 lost to the iPhone XS

a few turns ago

, but since then it has been repaired and upgraded, so he is looking for a rematch!

As always, I'll focus primarily on each phone's standard camera, using them in automatic mode as they've been configured right out of the box. This allows for consistent testing and shows just how much each company puts its own flavor on camera processing.

Mentioned in this article

Samsung Galaxy S10+

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To have

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The tests will be divided into four categories: color, clarity, exposure and additional features. Additional features are where I dive into additional testing for things like portrait mode, additional lenses, and low-light modes. We hired the fabulous Natalie as a model for us. Don't forget to check out his page.

instagram

Category1: Color

But enough with the buildup, we have plenty of test results to pass! First, color: we'll look at things like color reproduction and white balance accuracy.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Starting with this first shot of Natalie relaxing on the bricks, let's note the differences in color temperature - exemplified primarily by the concrete. The iPhone is the hottest, followed by the Nokia. The Pixel is the coolest and the S10+ falls somewhere in between. The concrete in the S10+ photo is cool, but the house siding is the warmest of the lot. I'm going to give the Nokia the edge here, as it strikes a great balance.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Moving on to the next shot, Nokia steps up the warm tones way too far for my liking. The iPhone has the most saturated red shirt, as well as a reddish tint to its skin, typical of Apple. And sure, the Pixel is the coolest, but it's pretty awesome overall. I think the S10+ did the best here thanks to bright, warm colors that don't look overdone.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

I feel the same way about this photo from across the bay. . Photos from the S10+ just weren't as saturated as those from older Samsung phones, and that's a good thing. But the Nokia falls flat again and makes a very strange choice when it comes to white balance. I don't quite know what to think.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Against this wall of vines, the Nokia struggles yet again, coating the entire photo with an orange hue that isn't flattering. The rest of the phones look good, but again I would give the Pixel a slight edge.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Strangely, Nokia has done its best in this situation, thanks to the predominance of brown tones throughout most of the scene. It's not precise but it's nice, giving Natalie's skin a nice warm glow that's missing in the S10+ and Pixel photos. Her skin tone is way too red in the iPhone photo, an awful quality that Apple just can't shake.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Overall, Nokia has flashes of brilliance when it comes to color, but it's inconsistent and unpredictable. The iPhone heats up too often and I've never liked the way it handles skin tones. The Pixel won this category last time out and continues to impress with deep colors and pleasing tones even when it's the coolest of the bunch.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

But I was surprised how quiet the S10 was compared to older Samsung phones, performing well in almost any situation. I'm going to have to call the color category a link between the Google Pixel 3 and the Samsung Galaxy S10+.

Category2: Clarity

The next category is clarity. Here, we'll look at things like each camera's sharpness and how well they perform in low-light situations.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Starting with a few scenes that don't include anyone, let's zoom in on this building and focus on the bricks. Right off the bat, we can see Samsung's signature noise reduction in play, removing detail and smoothing out textures. Nokia's photo is quite clear but has jagged edges and doesn't really impress. The Pixel has the most definition in the bricks, but it's very sharp, which produces artifacts. The iPhone isn't too far off on this one, turning in a solid performance.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

At this closer distance, we see a striking amount of detail on the post and in the wood grain in Nokia's photo. I am impressed with the sharpness of this photo without looking too sharp. The Pixel is the only phone that comes close to this kind of clarity, but it's hampered by the sharpness style that produces that swirling pattern.

This S10+ photo is awful. Not only does this remove noise, but it also removes any chance of showing fine detail. The iPhone disappoints here too, but at least it's better than the S10+.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Moving on to my favorite building in San Francisco, I have to point out a glitch in some of the Nokia shots. Zooming in on the power lines, we notice a halo around these cables. But it's not just in this photo; it is also present in others. This halo occurs around edges with high contrast due to how sharpening works. This essentially increases edge contrast, causing edge pixels to become brighter when pushed too far. Like I said, this only shows up in photos that have contrasting edges, so it's not a big deal, but it does reveal what Nokia is doing in its software.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Looking at a few photos in that dark garage, we notice the S10+ is almost the brightest of the bunch, but zooming in reveals a fairly soft image. There are at least some details in the S10+'s photo, more than with the Nokia, which shoots into a blurry mess. Nokia's five cameras are supposed to bring in more light, but it doesn't seem like the system knows how to keep the shot sharp. The Pixel's photo has significant chroma noise in the darker parts of the image, which is really disappointing. The iPhone does its best here, especially in the corner.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Before I zoom in on that dark shot, I'll point out that when I was standing there filming, I couldn't even tell if the Nokia had captured anything because the screen was completely black. I thought I messed something up, but that's really how badly it worked - an absolute waste of a jpeg file.

Zooming in reveals pretty shitty performance across the board, each breaking down in its own way. Pixel noise is uncontrollable. The S10+ is super soft and lacks definition. The iPhone holds up the best, but it's still not something to get excited about. (If you're wondering how Night Mode shots work, stay in the extra features category.)

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Now for some examples with Natalie. For this larger shot, let's focus on the bricks as well as his face. The results are quite similar to what we've seen so far, especially on the S10+, where it smooths out details like strands of hair. Fortunately, the Nokia does very well here and remains a viable option in some cases.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Moving on to a close-up, I'm a bit concerned about some of these results. The Pixel's over-sharpening isn't very flattering to skin. The Nokia photo has the most background blur, suggesting it's applying blur even though it wasn't in portrait mode. The S10+'s shot is the most extreme, smoothing its skin to the point that it looks like a doll. Its noise reduction has been great this whole time, but the amount of smoothing on its face seems to exceed the basic noise reduction.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

Getting even closer, the effect on the S10+ is obvious. The detail of Natalie's iris and eyelashes are clearly accentuated, but the skin on her cheek and forehead is smoothed out and shows almost no detail. It's far too extreme in automatic mode. Seriously, this type of beautification should only be applied in dedicated beauty mode.

But what about that Nokia photo? He seems to be trying to replicate a DSLR with a shallow depth of field by bringing most of his face into focus, while blurring everything else. Again, it's not Portrait mode, it's Auto mode, and that's going too far for me. Of course, the Pixel doesn't flatter Natalie's skin, and it's the iPhone that looks the best in all the shots with her.

Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

This category has therefore been defined by extremes. The S10+ applies heavy amounts of noise reduction and seems to smooth out the skin. Nokia is random and tries to add depth to photos of people whether you like it or not. The Pixel may be the sharpest of the bunch, but uses sharpening to get there, which isn't flattering to the skin. So it's the iPhone that's consistent and performs well in almost any scenario. Apple's iPhone XS takes the clarity category.

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