I remember the day when a mobile phone was simply that, a phone. Then came the introduction of coloured screens, and eventually came the integrated camera. Over the past 15 years mobile phones have evolved drastically, and are now a huge part of our everyday life. One feature of the mobile phone that has continued to evolve and innovate are the cameras.
But what is the best Camera Phone on the market today? This post will look at 5 of the best camera phones available today and explore their pro’s and con’s.
1. HTC One X
The HTC One X has two cameras, a rear facing 8 Megapixel lens and a front facing 1.3 Megapixel lens. The handset itself is rather large and this can cause problems when trying to operate and hold the camera steady for a shot. The One X is extremely user friendly, allowing you to quickly get the hang of taking pictures and editing them. It also comes equipped with a number of shooting options such as panorama, High Dynamic Range (HDR), auto shooting as well as a large number of preset effect filters similar to those found on the popular App Instagram. You can chose from a range of image resolutions, as well as the ability to manually adjust the ISO and white balance. Photos are crystal clear and pack a lot of punch in terms of colour and vibrancy.
2. Samsung Galaxy S3
The Samsung Galaxy 3S, like many of its competitors has an 8 Megapixel camera and is a similar shape and size to that of the HTC One X. Two features I liked about the Galaxy S3 were the best shot feature, which allows you to choose the best of 8 rapidly shot photos, and the face recognition feature, which can recognise faces using your contacts list, this is a great feature for those that share a lot of photos on social media channels. The handset boasts one of the largess screens out there, ideal for composition and shot review. It also features a wide range of built in effects that are fun and easy to edit. However the Galaxy’s screen is extremely sensitive and this can lead to selecting settings by accident.
3. Nokia 808 PureView
The Nokia 808 PureView literally blows all camera phones out the water in terms of amount of Megapixels, boasting a whopping 41 Megapixels! The handset itself is shaped more like that of a compact digital camera making it very comfortable to hold and shoot with. On a downside the PureView is a little clumsy to operate when navigating the various features and shooting options. That said the quality of the photos once downloaded to a desktop computer are up there with decent compact cameras. Colours are rich and sharp giving the photos a true to life appearance.
4. i-Phone 5
So there was a lot of hype surrounding Apples new i-Phone 5, but has it lived up to it? The i-Phone 5 is the thinnest and lightest of the series so far, and benefits from an 8 Megapixel isight camera. The most noticeable difference is the 4-inch Retina screen which delivers an outstandingly bright, crystal-clear screen resolution. Photos look good, and video can be shot fluently in HD. Like other phones, the i-Phone 5 features face recognition and auto focus functions. Downsides include a more basic range of camera options that its rivals, and battery life is dramatically affected when taking or reviewing photos.
5. Sony Xperia S
The Sony Xperia S boasts a 12.1 Megapixel camera, which is more than the average pixel count among smartphones which is 8 Megapixels. Two features that stand out on the Xperia S is the sweep panorama shooting mode which allows you to create impressive panoramic photos simply by sweeping the phone along your scene in one shot. The second feature is the touch shutter function, which allows you to direct the cameras focus and capture certain subjects simply by tapping the screen on it. A downside is that the display screen is cropped by the functions tool bar, limiting the amount of your subject that you can see in real time, also we found that the placement of the camera makes it very easy for finger tips to spoil photos.
Best Camera Phone of 2013
The best Camera Phone of 2013 is the Nokia 808 PureView. The quality of photo that you can produce with the cameras extremely large 41 Megapixel sensor are incredible. The handset itself is compact and comfortable to hold, making shooting an effortless task. If you are buying a smart phone on the basis of its camera then look no further, the Nokia 808 PureView is the phone for you!
Home Alone is without a doubt one of the most “Christmasy” films in existence. From the second John Williams magical score begins with those iconic jingle bells, a warm wave of child-like excitement and joy overcomes me. I know both these films inside and out, I must have seen them both over 40 times in my lifespan, yet they never lose their appeal. The casting is genius, the plot is simple yet engaging and the musical score is sublime. I will never tire of watching young Kevin subjecting his blundering foes to a barrage of booby traps, most of which would be better suited in a medieval torture chamber. Yet if you strip away the, at times sadistic, slap stick moments at the core of both films is the heart-warming message that Christmas without Family isn’t worth having at all.
As a child I used to hate when my Dad would stick on “It’s a Wonderful Life”. It was old, filmed in black and white, the cheesy American accents annoyed me and there wasn’t enough paint-cans-to-the-face moments; I just wasn’t interested. However, the older I got the more I started to connect with this film and the more I saw it for what it is, not only as a great Christmas film, but one of cinemas all time classics.
My next entry is not only one of my favourite Christmas films, but is also one of my overall favourite films of all time. Tim Burton’s “Edward Scissorhands” is a masterpiece. I could talk endlessly about the casting, the story, the direction and photography but for me there is one element that truly defines Scissorhands and that is Danny Elfman’s phenomenal score.
Ok I got a bit deep with the last two entries so let’s pick things up again with one of Christmases best comedies, National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. From the moment the film begins to the word “The End” hit the screen, you will laugh harder and more often than you ever have before. There are just too many “best moments” in this film; the oversized Christmas tree, the house lights, the sledging, the squirrel, the dog and all the relatives. Christmas Vacation is a master-class in comedy; it contains all forms of comedy and beautifully blends them to create a film that will have you laughing so uncontrollably hard, that you will probably crack a rib or two.
There are so many great versions of this story on offer; my favourites include “The Muppets Christmas Carol” and the recent Jim Carrey CGI version. However there is one adaptation that truly stands out for me and that is “Scrooged”. In Scrooged the utterly brilliant Bill Murray plays Frank Cross who excellently portrays the role of “Scrooge”. It’s the classic Dickens story yet it is so much more and there really is only one reason for this and that’s the character that Bill Murray brings to life. Bill Murray is one of the greatest comedy actors to ever have existed and Scrooged was filmed during the prime of his career. If you want that classic story but with more edge and a lot more laughs, then Scrooged is the version you should watch.
If theres one gift guaranteed to put a smile on any mans face its a Playstation 3. Earlier this year the wonderful people at Sony released a new version of their epic gaming machine, the Playstation 3 Slim. The new slim version is more than half the size of the original Playstation 3, and up to 25% smaller than the current version. But do not for a second think that this means less features and less power, because this little box is a beast! Despite being a lot smaller, the new slim Playstation actually has the largest built in memory of any Playstation to date with a whopping 500Gb of storage. Other features include, one HDMI port, 2 USB 2.0 ports, one Digital Audio (optical out) built in WiFi and Bluetooth and the all important Blu Ray player.
Every Christmas Apple top the wish list with their range of top must have gadgets. This year at the top of those wish lists is the I-Pad Mini is a smaller, more compact version of the hugely popular I-Pad. It offers all the same functionality but at a fraction of the price, so lets see why it has the men of Britain frothing at the mouths.
So you got your man that Playstation, or perhaps he’s engrossed in his new game or addicted to his new I-Pad Mini, but he’s making a lot of noise…….solution? Headphones!
Laugh until your sides hurt in this quirky comedy as Mark Wahlberg plays John Bennett, who’s best friend is a talking Teddy Bear called Ted. Their relationship is tested as Johns girlfriend demands more from her and Johns relationship.
Every year Apple lead the way in the latest, hot, must have gadget. This year its the I-Pod Mini, a smaller, more compact and more importantly, cheaper alternative to the I-Pad. So what does the I-Pod Mini offer?
Gucci
Burberry by Burberry 
Instagram, heard of it? Ok, ok of course you have, to not have heard about Instagram would mean you’ve been living under a rock for the last year. However, despite the fact that Instagram has taken the world by storm, there are many who do not know much about this revolutionary App. Here at 
3rd Prize
Graham Tosh McIntosh – Graham told us that this was a “totally unplanned shot with an iPhone, whilst the DSLR lay at home”; sometimes thats how you get the best photo’s!
