Samsung Galaxy Nexus cam vs. iPhone 4S vs. HTC Vivid vs. Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket

CNET takes newcomer Samsung Galaxy Nexus on a head-to-head photo test with other great camera phones.

Jessica Dolcourt Senior Director, Commerce & Content Operations

Jessica Dolcourt is a passionate content strategist and veteran leader of CNET coverage. As Senior Director of Commerce & Content Operations, she leads a number of teams, including Commerce, How-To and Performance Optimization. Her CNET career began in 2006, testing desktop and mobile software for Download.com and CNET, including the first iPhone and Android apps and operating systems. She continued to review, report on and write a wide range of commentary and analysis on all things phones, with an emphasis on iPhone and Samsung. Jessica was one of the first people in the world to test, review and report on foldable phones and 5G wireless speeds. Jessica began leading CNET's How-To section for tips and FAQs in 2019, guiding coverage of topics ranging from personal finance to phones and home. She holds an MA with Distinction from the University of Warwick (UK).

Expertise Content strategy, team leadership, audience engagement, iPhone, Samsung, Android, iOS, tips and FAQs.

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Jessica Dolcourt

Nov. 22, 2011 4:17 p.m. PT

2 min read

Smartphones with great cameras are mushrooming up all over the market, delighting phone owners everywhere. Who doesn't want a fantastic smartphone camera that could replace a point-and-shoot? Easier said than done. Megapixel math is incomplete if you're not accounting for variables like light sensors, auto-focus, flash, and the camera's own rendering software.

Plus, photos are more likely to look terrific on a smaller smartphone display than on a larger laptop or TV screen. That's why we periodically grab up the best camera phones we have on us at the time and shoot a couple of indoor and outdoor shots for comparison. I limited it to four shots on four cameras to keep the length of this post manageable, but you can look here for an additional gallery of the Galaxy Nexus' shots.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus photo test

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This time, I took several indoor and outdoor shots with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the iPhone 4S, the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket, and the HTC Vivid. I know what you're thinking: this is hardly fair, since the Galaxy Nexus has a 5-megapixel camera and the rest have 8-megapixel lenses. True, but Samsung has also made some really high-performing 5-megapixel shooters. When the phone was first launched, we all wondered how the camera would stack up against the other greats. Well, here it is. At any rate, view this comparison as a guide rather than as the final word on camera phones.

One note on process: I transferred photos to my computer and resized each image so it will fit in your browser, but otherwise I left the photos untouched.

Flowers: These pretty petals were taken outdoors in even lighting.