Category: Apple

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Should You Buy a “Real” Camera in 2025?

A Guide for the Smartphone Generation

In an era when the latest iPhones produce stunning images instantly, many people wonder if investing in a dedicated camera still makes sense. As someone who’s worked extensively with both smartphones and traditional cameras, I want to help you figure out when a dedicated camera is worth it—and when your smartphone might actually be the smarter tool.

What Makes a “Real” Camera Different?

The biggest difference between phones and dedicated cameras is sensor size. Think of a sensor like a solar panel: the bigger it is, the more light it captures.

While the iPhone 16 Pro’s sensor is about 0.4 x 0.3 inches (roughly the size of a pinky nail), full-frame cameras from companies like Sony, Canon, and Nikon use sensors around 1.4 x 0.9 inches. That size difference can have a dramatic impact on image quality.

Bokeh: Real vs. Artificial Blur

One of the most visible differences is in how background blur—or “bokeh” (bo-keh)—is created.

Phones simulate this effect using AI in Portrait mode, while dedicated cameras achieve it optically through wide-aperture lenses. The difference can be subtle but important: artificial bokeh often struggles with hair or complex shapes, creating unnatural edges or blurring the outer part of the hair.

Where Phones Win: Computational Photography

In many everyday situations, your phone might actually outperform a “real” camera—thanks to computational photography.

Modern phones use features like HDR (High Dynamic Range) and Night Mode to merge multiple exposures and enhance detail and color instantly. While powerful, this computational approach can also make images look overly sharp or unnatural. The classic aesthetic of a traditional photo can get lost in the process.

The computational nature of phones can also be a negative. The images are criticized for being too sharp, and illuminating everything with HDR can look unnatural. While you can gain detail with computational photography, you can lose the classic look of a “real” photo.

Workflows

Traditional cameras do require more complex workflows. When you take a photo with an iPhone, it goes into the Photos app automatically. On a big camera, you need to transfer the photos to your computer or phone, and you will typically want to do some editing of the photos. This takes significantly more time and effort than simply shooting and sharing with a phone.

When a Dedicated Camera Makes Sense

You should consider a dedicated camera if you:

  • You want manual control over focus, exposure, and lenses.
  • You shoot often in low light and dislike the “Night Mode” look.
  • You prefer the natural bokeh from optics over AI-generated blur.
  • You enjoy photography as a craft or professional pursuit.
  • You have time for editing and managing photos.

In-Between Option

Some cameras use an APS-C sensor—an in-between size that offers many of the benefits of full-frame without the bulk. Most Fujifilm models use this format. The Ricoh GRIII and GRIIIx are compact APS-C cameras ideal for street photography or situations where a larger camera feels intrusive.

So… Should You Buy One?

It depends on your goals.

If you primarily shoot for social media, your phone is a top-tier imaging device that fits in your pocket. But if you’re passionate about photography, want to grow your skills, or need capabilities phones can’t yet match, a dedicated camera can be a rewarding upgrade.

Test the Waters First

Before committing to a new camera system:

  1. Borrow or rent a camera for a weekend trip.
  2. Take a basic photo class to learn how manual shooting feels.
  3. Review your current photos—do you see limitations a new camera would fix?

Ultimately, the best camera is the one you’ll actually use.

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Stolen Device Protection

Highly recommended: All iPhone users should turn on Stolen Device Protection. This will help against someone “shoulder surfing“ you and then stealing your phone and taking all your money.

As explained by Apple, you can turn on Stolen Device Protection in Settings:

  1. Go to Settings, then tap Face ID & Passcode.
  2. Enter your device passcode.
  3. Tap to turn Stolen Device Protection on or off. 
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Apple Vision Pro

I first used virtual reality goggles in 1994, when Sega set up a demo in Boulder, Colorado. It was very rudimentary. I virtually ran around for 20 minutes while vector-drawn teradactyls tried to attack me from above. I was disoriented, but fascinated. Apple has made a huge leap with the launch of the Vision Pro today. But I remain unconvinced that this is something most people will want to regularly use.

After using the Vision Pro for a week, I’m super impressed by the technology. It really feels like an amazing new interface. For Apple users, it’s both completely new and intuitive. Being able to place apps all around you is fun. Seeing immersive 3d videos and games is captivating.

But I don’t think many people will want to spend a lot of time with a headset on. The downsides are obviously weight and comfort. Even when that is improved, you’re still not in the real world. And the real world is great. There’s zero video jitter. You can make eye contact with people around you. There’s nothing smushed against your face.

I’ve ready many reviews saying that the Vision Pro is great, but that it’s really a preview of what’s coming in a few years. Just wait, they say, and the kinks will be ironed out. There will be more apps and we’ll find out how people really want to use this. I hope this is true. But I wonder if people are ever going to want to wear something on their head and live inside this for more than an hour at a time.

Like an immersive ride at Walt Disney World, it’s a lot of fun. I suggest signing up for a free demo at the Apple stores. These last about 20 minutes, and it really is a blast. But also like a Disney ride, you wouldn’t want it to last hours.

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Personal Voice

Apple has a new feature called Personal Voice. This allows you to type and have your iPhone speak your words using your own voice, or a close facsimile to it. It’s quite amazing and I recommend playing with it, even if you don’t anticipate losing your voice.

You can reach the feature through Settings – Accessibility – Personal Voice. Setup requires around a half hour for you to read 150 sentences. Once you’re done, it takes a day or two to analyze your recordings and create the voice. You can then enable it with Live Speech (Accessibility – Live Speech). Then you triple tap the power button to launch the box to enter your text to speak.

It’s fascinating to consider that you could use this if you somehow lost your voice. You could even do this for a kid who is old enough to speak the sentences so that you have their voice at a particular moment in time.

This is something that you hopefully never need, but it is free and can be quite fun.

And here is a video on how to set it up:

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Using Apple Configurator for Printers

Apple devices typically use a service called Bonjour to look for AirPrint printers. Printers can be anywhere on your network and the service typically works to find out where (what IP address the printer is using). But if this doesn’t work for you, there can be a more reliable to connect to printers.

To set a particular printer to be accessed by an IP address, first you need to make that printer have a static IP (so that the IP address doesn’t change). This can be done through the printer itself or your router.

Then you need to make a profile using Apple Configurator (available through the Mac App Store). Make a new profile and name it something like “Printers.” Then add the printer(s) to the profile and put in the IP address(es). This profile can then be loaded on any Apple device (Mac OS or iOS).

By the way, this also helps if you want to print remotely while logged in through a VPN. Many VPN’s don’t play nicely with Bonjour, while using this direct approach works.