1. Autofocus - This is necessary as it makes the camera focus directly on the the object of your choice and can help prevent blurred shots. No matter how many megapixels your phone has, the image will look horrible without autofocus. You would be surprised by how many phones don't have autofocus, so make sure yours does.
2. Dual LED or Xenon Flash - Since most photos are taken in low light conditions or dark environments, a high quality flash is essential. Standard LED flashes won't do as they direct less light at the image than shown on your screen. Xenon is the best type of flash as it produces a brighter outburst of light, creating an enhanced image, even in the dark. The only problem with this is that it takes time to reset between shots. There is also another option availabe, known as the Dual LED flash. It is a compromise between the Xenon Flash and the LED Flash. It is twice as bright as the normal LED Flash but 1/1000 that of the Xenon. It capable of running continuously, can be used for videos and is also cheaper.
- Xenon Flash: Pros- Brightest, best quality images, less blurred photos. Cons- Expensive, not great videos, reset takes time.
- Dual LED Flash: Pros- Cheaper than Xenon, better videos, good low light images, twice as bright as standard images. Cons- moving image photos can be blurred.
- Single LED Flash: Pros- Cheap. Cons- Useless!
3. White Balance, Exposure and Preset Scene Modes - If you take photos in the bright sunshine outside, then you will need a camera phone that let's you tweak the white balance or exposure settings. Over-exposed shots will look completely washed out and the blue skies will appear white. Being able to control white balance will reduce the effect. To get good quality results, your phone should have a range of presets. The more presets there are, the easier it will be to capture better quality photos. At the very least, your camera phone should have the following: - Cloudy
- Sunny
- Incandescent-use indoors with tungsten filament bulbs
- Fluroscent-use indoors when fluroscent lighting is being used
4. Image Stabilization - Just like autofocus, image stabilization is essential in order for your pictures to not be blurred. Camera Phones produce low quality results because they are placed on a tripod or the person taking the image most probably has a shaky hand. Camera phones are only capable of reducing the blur but not removing them completely. If you want good quality pictures, ensure that there is some form of image stabilization is listed.
5. Moblie Phone Gizmos - The camera phone is also a phone, not just a camera so you are capable of sharing you pictures on social network sites such as Facebook. For this to work though, you need three key features: - Fast Internet Connection
- Built-in support for image sharing Websites
- An easy to use user interface
You might also want automatic geo-tagging, which stamps the location, date and time of the shot but this is only if you have particular need of it.
6. Megapixels - A good quality 3 megapixel camera with the essentials listed above will produce a better picture than an 8 megapixel camera without the essentials. However you should look for a 5 megapixel camera becasue any smaller than that and the pisture will not have enough detail. If you find a 5 megapixel camera without the five essentials then simply avoid it. As the years have passed by, camera phones with 12 megapixels have been invented to get pictures with the utmost detail and perfection.
So these are the minimum set of features you need for a great camera phone:- 8 Megapixels
- Autofocus
- Imgae Stabilization
- Range of Preset Scene Modes
- Xenon or Dual LED Flash
- Good Quality Optics
- Fast Internet Connection
- Easy to use Interface
- Sony Ericsson Satio
- Samsung Pixon 12
- Nokia N86
- LG Viewty Smart
- Samsung Tocca Ultra
