[BeyondSora]

I don't really get why so many people are upset about the fixed focus camera on 9900.

I used to own a Nokia 5800, which had auto-focus.
The phone did a great job at close ups, better than my 9900 for sure.

However, the camera on 5800 was extremely slow. 2 to 3 seconds for a photo taken was just not good.
In comparison, my 9900 takes a pic in less than half a second.
Most photos still look great.

I guess unless you take pic's of documents very often you'd have a reason to be angry at the fixed focus camera; otherwise I don't see how the loss of it is that much a big deal.

Btw, I don't often take pictures with my phone... At most one every other day or so...
So maybe it is a big deal if you use the camera very often.......

[woofer82]

People get hung up on the lack of things, like auto-focus, but if all you're doing is taking close up shots of things, then you have no business buying the phone.

I can live without it, I'm planning on getting a bold 9900 and will most likely hardly ever use the camera. I have an iPhone 4, and I've hardly ever used the camera.

[infinus]

it is just a fake effect...
since other vendors are offering AF camera and such a high end phone doesn't
in fact few of my friends use 88xx which doesn't even have camera.. but get work done for what BB is needed.
and their BB's are their primary phone.
...
it depends why you use BB.
i never use camera on my BB, so it really doesn't make a difference to me..
mobile camera is alternative not a photography solution..

[conker]

Again, old school and narrow minded thinking. This is why Jim and Mike lost their jobs. Glad you guys aren't.

[BeyondSora]

Also, I think the much faster cpu, bigger ram, and slimmer build justify at least parts of the loss of AF.
IMO, even if they did have AF, it would only make it better if it shoots photo faster than the current fixed focus one.

[DaNii1985]

Its a month with my 9900 and am still trying to find a good ocassion to take picture of mine to check the picture qualtiy but its not happening. Maybe people are asking more coz they pay more or less same price as iphone but then again iphone and BB are two different phones and we actually cannot compare them on everything. For this thinner and slick look, am happy with whatever camera I have on 9900

[sallenthornton]

Again, old school and narrow minded thinking. This is why Jim and Mike lost their jobs. Glad you guys aren't.

I agree. Who doesn't like the ability to take a nice, clear picture with their phone? I'm not sure if autofocus is a necessity for most, but I would rather have that option available. No matter how you spin it, RIM dropped the ball on the camera. It should have autofocus and there really is no excuse for leaving it out.

[Denny_Crane]

I don't give a rats @$$. If I want to take crystal clear pictures, then I'll take them with an SLR. For my use the camera on my phone is a novelty, and not much more. I'm kind of done with seeing every other thread complaining about the lack of auto-focus.

[sallenthornton]

I don't give a rats @$$. If I want to take crystal clear pictures, then I'll take them with an SLR. For my use the camera on my phone is a novelty, and not much more. I'm kind of done with seeing every other thread complaining about the lack of auto-focus.

I was wondering when the "I will just use my dslr" comment was going to pop up. A novelty? Lol! I thought I had heard everything, but you made me smile with that comment. What you call a novelty, I call standard for 2012.

[waukeshaberry]

I took these using my 9930 without a flash in low light. I just wanted to see how good, or bad the camera was. Turned out that the camera is pretty decent.

Smidgen and Morsels: Prosciutto and Onion Confit Wrap Salad with Garlic Ranch

[belfastdispatcher]

I was wondering when the "I will just use my dslr" comment was going to pop up. A novelty? Lol! I thought I had heard everything, but you made me smile with that comment. What you call a novelty, I call standard for 2012.

Autofocus or not, a phone camera will not replace a real camera until they come up with optical zoom.

In the mean time I dare you take a photo like this with your autofocus iphone 4 camera. My guess is you will find it impossible.

[Savannabreeze]

i agree, no mobile phone camera can generate a good photo with moving object like that, at least its very difficult IMO.

with autofocus or not the 9900 camera is still pretty decent, with some tricks it can even capture a close up document text clearly. But once again, it depends on how each user utilize the camera

[belfastdispatcher]

i agree, no mobile phone camera can generate a good photo with moving object like that, at least its very difficult IMO.

with autofocus or not the 9900 camera is still pretty decent, with some tricks it can even capture a close up document text clearly. But once again, it depends on how each user utilize the camera

That photo was taken with my 9900

[Daeve]

The camera in my 9900 does disappoint me - yes it's good for taking portraits/landscapes, beter than I imagined it would be (but then I'd use my real camera for shots like this, not a phone camera which is always a compromise). The phone itself is solid, useful, well made, if not exciting.

But...

I often use it to take photos at work of equipment I am taking apart (or faulty things I need to email photos of to the engineers), serial numbers on the back of things I can't get to, snapshots of documents rather than taking notes etc..

It is useless for that - and for any close work at all. I have to find someone with a decent camera phone (which to be honest is practically any other phone than a 9900 with this edof thingy).

[Savannabreeze]

That photo was taken with my 9900

Wooot??!! for real?? :O
how did you do that?? then your photo will probably change many opinion about 9900 camera

[belfastdispatcher]

Wooot??!! for real?? :O
how did you do that?? then your photo will probably change many opinion about 9900 camera

Just set it to sports mode and you'll at first find yourself taking the photo too soon rather then too late as you're preconditioned to think a second or two ahead from autofocus use, it's that fast.

I understand people's complaint about the lack of autofocus but they don't understand the benefits edof camera brings to the table. Personally, I would never go back to autofocus.

[VertuLion]

Yes it is important. Why should I be settled with a non-auto focus camera where the company which makes it advertises high megapixel photo and HD video shooting?

[soo007]

Having a descent camera has become a de facto standard on all smartphones.
Having a good camera has become a de facto requirement for high-end devices.
I am no photographer so i dont need a gaxillion gigapixel camera. But i do require and expect the best on a high-end device.
At first i didn't make a big deal from the lack of autofocus, but seeing how picture quality cannot even match the ones from my 9700 I feel that lazaridis has made a dumb compromise in design (a stupid compromise).

Ohhhhh don't get me started with the poor battery life or the poor design/location for the mini sd card slot.
I think i will switch to a 9810.

[Savannabreeze]

Just set it to sports mode and you'll at first find yourself taking the photo too soon rather then too late as you're preconditioned to think a second or two ahead from autofocus use, it's that fast.

I understand people's complaint about the lack of autofocus but they don't understand the benefits edof camera brings to the table. Personally, I would never go back to autofocus.

oh i see..so that's how it works, probably will try it sometimes soon thanks for the info

but yeah, at first the EDOF camera is disappointing for me as my previous 9700 is autofocus, its a matter of adaptation i guess. Also not everyone will bother adapting to the new camera.

[woofer82]

Autofocus or not, a phone camera will not replace a real camera until they come up with optical zoom.

In the mean time I dare you take a photo like this with your autofocus iphone 4 camera. My guess is you will find it impossible.

That's an amazing shot with your 9900.

I'm glad I'm buying one when m tax return comes in.

[belfastdispatcher]

oh i see..so that's how it works, probably will try it sometimes soon thanks for the info

but yeah, at first the EDOF camera is disappointing for me as my previous 9700 is autofocus, its a matter of adaptation i guess. Also not everyone will bother adapting to the new camera.

Anybody even remotely passioned about photography will not take pics on "auto" mode.

The scene modes on the 9900 make a huge difference, it would be really hard to take a blurry picture in sports mode and night mode turns night into day, just try it and you'll see.

[belfastdispatcher]

That's an amazing shot with your 9900.

I'm glad I'm buying one when m tax return comes in.

I have lots more taken that day, I'll post them later when I get home to prove it wasn't a one of.

[pfe1223]

If EDoF is the future for certain BB products, there is hope that users won't have to "settle" for the blurry photos (only see the imperfections upon zooming close). Over at All About Symbian, their photo expert is taking a look at the second generation of EDoF cameras Nokia will be shipping in their latest Belle handsets. This review shows that EDoF cameras can take better pictures at closer distances. Sure the pictures are still blurry, but the quality has improved.

[xXBLACKBERRYXx5]

That photo was taken with my 9900

daaaaaaaaaaammmmmmmmmnnnn hahaha. should i change from auto focus to continuous focus on my torch 9810 then? lolll

[Alex_Hong]

ok, a little off discussion, but just to share what i know. (i might not be 100% correct though)

camera phones have to make do with tiny lenses, which mean the amount of light that goes into the camera is lesser. aperture. Thus, forcing the the camera to open the "shutter" for a longer period of time to get the sufficient amount of lighting to get a picture taken. Which causes bad/blurry (even very very slight movement) photographs in low lighting condition. The result will be to bump up ISO, making the camera more sensitive to light, allowing you to take photo at a faster shutter speed, meaning less blurry shots in low light. But the sacrifice would be a more "noisy" image. Which i think most cameras on phone is doing even in decent lighting.

even a compact digital camera cant escape this. you can see my attachment. its a night shot without flash on a compact canon digital cam. that is what i mean by noise. i've zoomed in the image so you guys can see. and note that this is taken with a 6 seconds shutter speed. meaning opening the shutter for 6 seconds before taking the picture. imagine using the smaller camera on the phone.

--- back on topic,

What i just said may not make sense but in a nut shell, the camera on your phone is meant for spontaneous moments that you want to capture. As long as it is able to capture the subject, does it really matter if it is auto or continuous focus? does it matter if it is a 100megapixel? Does it matter if the picture is able to capture every little detail? Does it matter if it is slightly blurry and out of focus? For close-up of text as long as you can read it, does it really have to be crystal clear? Because if those are your concerns you're better off with a full fledge camera anyway. it is better to be able to have taken a lousy picture than to have not taken it at all and miss capturing the moment entirely.

to quote someone whom i cant remember, "the best camera is the one you have with you". So it doesn't make a difference if you could have taken a photo much better on your DSLR at home. The matter of fact is that you don't have it with you and you just have to make the best out of what you have. So IMO is auto-focus on a phone important? NO.