Video recording features and capabilities are rapidly improving on cell phones, and the new iPhone 4S is the first iPhone from Apple to include a Full HD 1080p record mode. If you’re in the market for a new camcorder, going out and buying the iPhone 4S is probably not the brightest idea—the phone is way more of a monetary commitment than your average budget camcorder. But, if you already own the phone, it may be perfectly suited to fulfill all your video needs, thus making the purchase of an additional camcorder unnecessary.
This new camera sports an f/2.4 lens and improved sensor to capture more light. It also has video stabilization to steady those shaky shots.
Extreme Lighting
The iPhone 4S did a fantastic job of adjusting the exposure to bring in more light in the shade and less light in the sun.
Video Stabilization
The video stabilization performed best when panning the camera around.
Low Light
As a cellphone camera, the performance of iPhone 4S under low light was satisfactory. And what impressed people is that the camera was able to compensate for the lighting and choose a good white balance setting.
Macro
On larger items, like leaves, the iPhone 4S has no issue focusing, but with smaller, skinnier items like twigs and sticks, the camera really struggles with grabbing a focus and often times never does. It doesn’t seem to make a difference between direct sunlight, shade, or overcast light, the iPhone 4S seems to frequently have issues with focussing. This is a huge disappointment.
Conclusion
Overall, iPhone 4S handles the changes in harsh lighting, poor lighting, and movement quite well and also has great audio quality. The biggest disappointment is that the macro lens frequently has issues focusing. However, when the lens does focus, it looks amazing.