With the world praising the imaging prowess of the new Google Pixel 2 phones, the quesion on everyone's my lips is whether we finally have a computationally-backed phone camera that can dethrone the mighty Lumia 950/XL pair? Using the traditional interactive comparator, I go hands on with the Pixel 2 and explore its err... pixels, specifically in low light, where only the very best camera phones survive.
Now here's a feature that requires a delicate preface if ever there was one. The whole point of AAWP was to write about Windows on phones, and I'm still fully believing in the idea of one OS on all form factors. Yet what if we change 'Windows' to 'Microsoft'? Given the company's lack of comittment in building their own phone hardware, Windows 10 Mobile is withering on the vine and so alternatives for people invested in the Microsoft ecosystem would seem a good bet for research. Now, guess what I've been doing for the last week?(!)
'Microsoft abandons the Lumia 640 range!' was one headline from the last couple of days. 'Windows 10 Mobile finally dead!' was another. They make good headlines for attracting clicks and traffic, but both headlines are highly misleading. I know we've been over this ground a few times in the last month, but just for the record, as a bit of a Friday rant, do grant me some license to repeat myself here...
Now, don't take the title too seriously, there are limitations here - not least that you usually want to preserve your phone's battery and not drain it. But I wanted to document that modern Windows 10 Mobile phones can act as a power source for accessories or anything small that charges via USB. With a special adapter!
As I proved last week, rumours of Windows 10 Mobile's death have been mightily exaggerated. As an OS and with updates provided, for many people we're looking at patches, updates and fixes to both OS and UWP applications for another two years (or 18 months for 'classic' phones) now. Having said all that, it's fair to say that 'retirement' is a good analogy and there are some serious caveats that we should all be aware of going forwards.
With another update for mid-October 2017, here's our directory of the very best of the Windows Phone and Windows 10 Mobile world, now split into two for logistics reasons. On this page are general, news, productivity, travel, time, and more. See this page for anything related to imaging or consuming media of any kind.
I've had so many emails in asking me to comment on Joe Belfiore's stream of tweets over the weekend (and the reaction to it on tech sites) that I felt I had to, at least, update my ever-extending and hopefully still clear Windows 10 chart, showing what's happening to the OS. In summary, there's nothing in Joe's tweets that's new. Nothing to see, back to your homes, etc.(!)
Here's the latest in my growing series of cameraphone 'tutorials', or at least explaining the thought behind various successful phone-shot photos. In this case, a look at using the Lumia 'panorama' mode in its Camera app to mimic the use of a wide angle lens.
I do, from time to time on AAWP, update older articles. This is what's happening here, because the smartphone world changes fast and context is everything - what I was proclaiming back in February 2017 to be 10 USPs (Unique Selling Points) are still as valid as ever, but the 'Selling' part of the acronym is proving more and more galling.
Possibly the premium camera-toting smartphone in the world right now, the Android-powered Galaxy Note 8 has twin OIS-equipped lenses, one of which is a genuine 2x telephoto. Sounds amazing, but can it finally be the phone to topple the two year old Windows 10 Mobile-powered Lumia 950 XL as king of phone imaging? Let's find out!
