What really sets the Nokia N82 apart from other devices on the market is it’s camera. A 5 megapixel camera module with autofocus and Carl Zeiss optics, it sure sounds good on paper! But didn’t the N95 have the same???
Yes it does, but the N82 takes it one step further with a Xenon flash replacing the standard LED on previous models. But does it make a difference to the photographs taken???
With the camera really being the focus of the N82, Nokia have concentrated in making it their best ever! The 5 megapixel sensor produces images that are the same quality as the N95 series in normal conditions, it is when you are in low-light/dark condition that photos taken with the N82 really shines above the rest.
The device uses the same camera UI as other models in the Nseries range (see my post on the N81 8GB’s camera for screenshots of the Nseries UI)
http://talkaboutnseries.com/2008/03/03/nokia-n81-8gb-camera-part-5/
Don’t think this is a bad thing at all because the UI is fantastic and is definately one of the best I have seen on a device. You are given a wide range of options, some of which you wouldn’t expect to find on a standalone digital camera. Plenty enough to keep a keen photographer happy! I would be lying if I said it wasn’t comepletely untouched… there have been lots of performance improvements to the camera and it’s UI over previous devices.
Many complained with the original N95 that the camera took too long to start up and take a picture which would mean that they would loose the moment they were trying to capture. Another common issue was that once you had captured an image, it took too long to process/store the image and get ready for the next shot. The speed of the camera has been dramatically improved on the N82 - and also on the N95 8GB which make the user experience of the camera so much better!
As you can see from the above video, the camera takes about 4 seconds to starup after a fresh boot, approximately the same amount of time to focus and take a picture and about a second to be ready to take the next. A total of 9 seconds which is comparable to my digital camera!!!
Note that these times are after a fresh boot up which is where it will be at its longest. Starting the camera after use takes approximately 2 seconds.
The photos taken with the Nokia N82 are outstanding , and you wouldn’t believe to look at that they were taken with (sorry Nokia!) a mobile phone!
Here are a selection of sample photos taken with the Nokia N82:
Garden Centre 2 (Flower - Macro Mode)
Rabbit and Guinea Pig (Ollie and Alfie)
Prawn Cocktail Crisps (Macro Mode)
To show just how good the Xenon flash of the Nokia N82 is compared to the standard LED flash, I have taken two comparison shots - one with my N95 8GB and one with the N82 in low light (left) and total darkness - no light at all (right).
N95 8GB:
N82:
Needless to say, the videos that are taken with the N82 are also great! Videos are taken at a VGA resolution of 640×480 at 30fps (frames per second) which Nokia compare to DVD quality (they really are good).
The Nokia N82 doesn’t have a video light so videos in the dark will be in the dark! This would also be impossible to implement in a firmware release because of it’s Xenon flash.
The N95 8GB, allthough it has an LED flash (and could be possible) also does not use its flash as a video light.
To complete the package there is also a basic image and video editor built-in to the phone to keep you busy with what you have captured!!!
A new feature that should be implemented soon in a new N82 firmware update is Location Tagging. Location Tagging implements the GPS chip in the handset to store the co-ordinates of your location within the photographs image details. I was hoping that the firmware would be released before the N82 had to go 
.
By uploading pictures using the Share Online feature of the N82 to services such as Flickr which support GEO tagging, your pictures are pinpointed on a map to show the exact spot the picture was taken in.
For now though, it is possible to use Location Tagging by using the ‘Location Tagger’ which is downloadable from Nokia Beta Labs. You can also use this on other Nseries devices that have an internal/external GPS unit. You MUST also have Share Online 3.0 installed on your device!
Location Tagging is a fantastic way to share your location with people around the world and be able to track where you have been on your travels and be able to photograph exactly what you can see from that position on the globe and place it onto a map!
Currently, it is not an ideal solution (using Location Tagger) as you have to open the application seperately from the camera and have it running in the background, but I can’t wait for it to be implemented well into a firmware update for the N82 and also be implemented in the FP2 devices on the way!
I’m really impressed with just how good the camera is on the Nokia N82, especially at how bright the Xenon flash actually is and how much better photos look in low light because of it. I really hope that Nokia implement Xenon flashes into some flagship devices in the future…
Filed under: Technology | Tagged: Review
I like the Nokia N82 very much… This is a good phone that really looks like a phone
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The Nokia N82 was launched in November 2007, and after that there was a lot of hue and cry for this phone. Everybody was wonder struck to find a phone so reliable and so beautiful in looks. It was launched in two colors - silver and black, of which the black took the major market share.