Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8

by Mike Macias on November 5, 2011 at 17:10 pm · 11 comments

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 n9 vs n8 camera

Here’s one for the ages! Which is better — The Nokia ___ or the Nokia ___? This time we have the Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 camera samples. I don’t need to tell you (or show you) that the N8 takes better photos… you already know that. But many ask me “how much better?”. People want this comparison to see how much is lost if they ditch the N8 and pick up the N9. Well… I’ll tell you right now, I’ve been using the N9 for 3 weeks and I’m happy with the camera. Not 100% happy — but it does the job. While I miss the N8 camera and xenon flash, the N9 can hold its own in most situations. I’m actually surprised to find that the N9 beats out the N8 in one situation — macro shots. And when you take the phones outside in the daytime you don’t see much a difference unless you zoom or crop.

The Nokia N9 has a 9MP camera and the N8 has 12MP. Both have a Carl Zeiss lens but the N8 has better camera specs under the hood that make it the best in the world. Before I keep blabbering on I’ll just let you have a look for yourself. Enjoy!

Nokia N9 (left) vs. Nokia N8 (right) Camera Samples

Images were cropped and combined to fit on page and bring things closer. Click the pair to see in your browser’s full-size. Original images can be downloaded at the end of the article.

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera8 670x418

Indoor, flash fired

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera5 670x418

Indoor, flash fired

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera9 670x418

Indoor, flash fired

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera121 670x418

No flash, plenty of color. Take a look at the blacks...

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera13 670x418

N9 had deeper colors, N8 more realistic

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera2 670x418

Flash not used

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera4 670x418

Indoor, flash fired

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera12 670x418

Both did well in macro-mode at a reasonable distance

Camera Faceoff: Nokia N9 vs. Nokia N8 N9 vs N8 camera6 670x418

N9 takes great macro shots. N8 focused, but not as sharp as I'd like.

What can we conclude? Here are my thoughts:

Daytime photos from N9 are “good enough”.
Macro shots from N9 are great.
Low-light photos from N9 looks worse than N8 (xenon vs. LED)
Medium-light photos from N9 are just fine.

If you are a hardcore N8 user you might be let down but overall I think the N9 held its own. The N9 is not sold as a camera-focused phone like the N8. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this comparison!

Click here to download the original batch of images.

Be sure to check out our Nokia N9 vs. Samsung Galaxy S2 camera samples.

Shop: The Nokia N9 and N8 are both available at Amazon.com.

Anonymous

Good job Mike, enjoyed the article, and the comparison pics are great and as always, the N8 rules, OK Never having owned the N8 I’m managing and enjoying the N9 fine at the moment though , keep up the good work !!
http://claimid.com/abcoates Anthony B. Coates

Is the N9 macro shot really sharper? The N9 is focussed on the front edge of the watch, so the markings on the outside are sharper on the front edge. The N8 is focussed on the centre of the watch, so the markings on the front edge are less in focus than in the N9 shot, but the markings on the far edge are more in focus than the N9 shot.

Did you have any other shots where the focus point is more equal?
Anonymous

It seems like the N8 has better contrast than the N9, but the N9 still seems to be pretty solid. What’s the sensor size in the N9?
http://www.themobilefanatics.com Mike Macias

I think the N9 image is sharper overall in terms of the colors and noise. But you are right, the N8 did focus in a different spot. I’ll get another sample for you when I get a chance.
http://www.themobilefanatics.com Mike Macias

Thanks buddy! The N8 will always have a special place in my phone collection but the N9 can be my main phone. Sadly, Nokia won’t support it much so I’ll be looking at their Windows Phones options next year.
Pingback: Nokia N9 available in the Philippines | The Mobile Fanatics
http://www.then82blog.com Aaron

I’ve been waiting for this. Thanks Mike! It’s good to see how the N9 performs when compared to the N8. And the N9 pretty did a very good job keeping up.

The Lumia 800, the N8 camera, the N8 belle, the N9 price: the main factors that hold me back from picking up the N9. But the N9 is really seductive. Especially now that it is finally available here in the philippines! Arghh, i must wait a few months more and see. I have my eye on you, N9.

And the nfc device that comes free with the N9 here, arghhh seduction!
frenchie

Great job! I’m awaiting a comparison between the N9 and Lumia, since they share almost teh same hardware, but different OS.

Regarding the macro pictures: It seems that you just focused on a different spot with the N8.
At least my own experience is tha the N8 can yield much much better macro pictures than what’s displayed.
frenchie

Mmmh. From what I’ve seen, it seems that the video experience of the Lumia is not on par with th N9, nor the N8.
I guess it’s because the instaleld Wphone OS isn’t customized yet for Nokia hardware, since Nokia engineers haven’t had time to tweak the internals yet. Maybe in the near future, we’ll see something better coming up from the colalboration.
Fabioedoardoluigialberto

it would be nice to have more low-light conditions without flash, because it is not fair to compare the flashes…
Fabioedoardoluigialberto

it would be nice to have more low-light conditions without flash, because it is not fair to compare the flashes…