Lumia 950 and Xperia 5 ii cameras
Let's start with a few specs:
| Lumia 950 XL (2015) | Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020) |
|
Dedicated two-stage shutter button/launch key 20 MP (oversampled to 8MP here), f/1.9, 1/2.4", PDAF, OIS |
Dedicated two-stage shutter button/launch key 12 MP, f/1.7, 1/1.7", 1.8µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS |
It's clear that the Lumia is outgunned, but as usual the PureView oversampling and (relatively) natural image processing should keep it competitive.
Notes:
- I've shot at 16:9 at the default output resolutions on each (leaving headroom for some lossless 'PureView' zoom into the 950's sensor and also getting the advantages of oversampling and noise reduction). The 12MP cameras in the Xperia work out at 9MP when the sensor is set to crop to 16:9, so the framing works out well in terms of comparisons.
- All photos were taken on full auto and handheld, as a regular user would do. No tripods or RAW editing sessions needed!
Let's pit the results against each other, using our Famed Interactive Comparator (FIC). All 1:1 crops are at 900x500 for comparison, though I've put up the originals on my own server, for you to download if you want to do your own analysis.
| Note that the interactive comparator below uses javascript and does need to load each pair of images. Please be patient while this page loads, if you see a pair of images above each other than you've either not waited long enough or your browser isn't capable enough! You ideally need a powerful, large-screened tablet or a proper laptop or desktop. This comparator may not work in some browsers. Sorry about that. On Windows 10 Mobile, use the 'AAWP Universal' UWP app, which handles the comparator very competently (see the tips in the app's help screens) |
Test 1: Sunny nature
The downfall of most phone camera systems - capturing the infinite detail in nature. Here is the overall scene:
You can grab the original photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
The usual story, of course - the Lumia 950 XL image looks realistic even at the pixel level, while Sony ups the edge enhancment and contrast in order to stand out more on the phone screen. It's not totally overdone - a la Samsung - but it doesn't look 'right' to my eyes. Both are fine at web resolution and on social media of course. But the Lumia wins this one for sheer purity.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 10 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 9 pts
Test 2: I could be in Hawaii(!)
More nature, set against a blue sky - in a rare spot of golden hour sun in November in the UK and with an even rarer palm tree! Here is the overall scene:
You can grab the original photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
It's all about colour here and, for once, I believe the Lumia - Sony has taken a more muted colour pallette here - I was after 'golden' greens from the sun, low in the sky, and I think the Lumia captured this best. Seen here in a 1:1 crop, the differences in edge enhancement aren't obvious, but the Lumia still wins this by a nose overall.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 10 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 9 pts
Test 3: Hawaii, zoomed x2
Let's take the same scene and zoom by 2x in the relevant camera UIs. In the Sony's case this means digital zoom (I'll come to the telephoto lens in a moment). You can grab the original 2x zoomed photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Two very imperfect images then. The Lumia's is crisper, having 1.5x PureView zoom available and then using just 0.5x digital, but the image ends up noisy and unsatisfying down at the pixel level. While the Sony has to do a full 2x digital zoom on its main sensor and everything's rather indistinct at the pixel level, understandably. Interestingly, although colours remain the same as in the unzoomed shots, the playing field is levelled by other imperfections here, so no winner.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 7 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 7 pts
Test 4: Hawaii, zoomed x3
The same scene again and zooming this time by 3x in the Sony's camera UI. This means 3x telephoto lens time, happily. I left the Lumia at 2x, since it was already blocky enough. You can grab the original zoomed photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Hmm.... Perhaps not as indistinct as telephoto results on the previous Xperia 1 ii, but the 3x telephoto on the Xperia 5 ii still delivers pixel level details that look as though they're 'unprocessed'. Having been used to a healthy degree of 'enhancement' for photos from its main lens, it seems as though Sony has completely forgotten to do any for its telephoto shots! To demonstrate this, here's a rough manual auto-enhance in an image editor by me, showing the same crop:
Quite a difference. And if I can do this in under 60 seconds with a free image application then I fail to see why Sony can't do this too in the phone. Disappointing for a fan of telephoto zoom like myself. The Sony still wins this test, but it should have been a slam dunk 10 points.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 7 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 8 pts
Test 5: Sunset suburbs
Ten minutes after the palm shots above, here's a shot of the road, typical UK suburbs, with the sun lighting the tops of the houses only and the rest in shade. Here is the overall scene:
You can grab the original photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
Yet another data point for how good Microsoft's (ex-Nokia) Lumia imaging engineers were at their job - the optics and PureView processing in the 950 XL are just perfect here. For this shot, I don't think ANY 2020 phone camera could beat it. And the Sony Xperia here has no chance - its details are muddier, its edges are uglier, there's simply no contest. PureView is... pure. And wins out in this comparison.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 10 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 7 pts
Test 6: Sunset suburbs, zoomed
The same scene, but zoomed. 2x on the Lumia and 3x using the telephoto on the Xperia. You can grab the original zoomed photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
The Sony's telephoto lens does indeed win out here, though again a lack of any processing worth mentioning means that its result isn't satisfying enough, even I, Mr PureView, wanted some sharpening, some crisping up! The 950 XL does its usual terrible job at post-PureView digital zoom. But I ended up not being that happy with either crop, yet again.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 6 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 8 pts
Test 7: Signage
Text should be easy to capture - and easy to see when image processing messes up! Here is the overall scene:
You can grab the original photos from the Lumia 950 XL and Xperia 5 ii (2020), for your own analysis.
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
I'd been so looking forward to trying the Xperia 5 ii - heck, at one point I was thinking of buying one. But from the telephoto issue (with no enhancement) we come yet again to muted colours and excessive enhancement on the main lens. Sony just cannot get its image processing right in its phone cameras. Year on year. Very frustrating.
Here you can see the orange of the sign (and the oranges themselves) are simply the wrong shade. The Reading buses in our area really ARE orange! Plus the text is slightly degraded by edge enhancement, to my eyes.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 10 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 8 pts
Test 8: Night time
At this stage I'd usually move into several low light tests, but the Xperia has already disappointed me so much that I'm just going to do a single night test. Here is the overall scene:
To look at the images in more detail here, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, from the Lumia 950 XL and then the Xperia 5 ii, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:
In fact, the Xperia 5 ii wins this by virtue of having a more modern sensor and slightly lower noise, slightly better colours, by its result is not 100% stabilised by modern standards. We're so used, on iPhones and Pixels, to night shots that look like day and which have no blur at all, that both shots here look somehow sub-standard. Yes, the 950 XL's result was class leading in 2015, but times have moved on and multi-exposure combination shots have emerged to produce the best 'night' results.
Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 8 pts; Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 9 pts
Verdict
For the record, the scores add up as:
- Lumia 950 XL (late 2015): 68 pts (/80)
- Sony Xperia 5 ii (2020): 65 pts
Which might look at first like AAWP bias, but it's really not. The mighty Lumia 950 XL has been bested in these pages in recent times by several iPhones and several Pixels. But the Xperia 5 ii is a notch back, especially in the 2020 hardware world. And, as usual, it's all down to Sony not caring about quality control in image processing. I'm quite sure that their main sensor and telephoto (and ultra-wide, not covered here) are splendid, but when zero care is taken over what happens to the images off the sensors then the result is the disappointing performance above. Sorry, Sony, please try harder.
PS. I've included some other recent camera head to heads on AAWP for your interest - have you seen them all?
- Camera head to head: Lumia 950 XL vs POCO X3
- Camera head to head: Lumia 950 XL vs Sony Xperia 1 mk II
- Camera head to head: Lumia 1020 vs OPPO Find X2 Pro vs iPhone 11 Pro
- Camera head to head: Lumia 950 vs iPhone SE (2020)
PPS. Watch this space next week for an imaging head to head with arguably the best all round camera phone the world has ever seen - the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Coming soon. Very soon!