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I don't think this is a great comparison. Supercars are prohibitively expensive and incredibly limited, focused entirely on their appearance and hypothetical pe

I don't think this is a great comparison. Supercars are prohibitively expensive and incredibly limited, focused entirely on their appearance and hypothetical performance. Completely affordable cameras go above and beyond smartphone photographic capabilities and over time an owner will likely explore the entirety of its features. Comparing a supercar to a $20,000 lens would be more accurate. If a smartphone camera is a Toyota Corolla, a nice camera is a basic luxury sedan for Sunday drives. It does everything a little better, but it's a bit pricier for less use. That being said, it's really for people who just like to drive.

braythwayt 7y ago
A nice camera is NOT a luxury sedan in the context of this metaphor. The reason being that the extra affordances of carrying the driver plus four or more passengers, having a trunk/boot that can carry a full load of groceries/luggage and so forth are all characteristics of a general-purpose vehicle. As I see it, the phone is a general-purpose device that also takes pictures, just as a sedan is a general-purpose vehicle, whether luxurious or not. Whereas, a camera just does one thing (two if you count video separately.) Thus, to me, a dedicated camera at any price is like a two-seater sports car with hardly any trunk room. You can buy cheaper sports cars, sure, but they still lack the affordances of a sedan. To me, a “luxury sedan” corresponds to a high-end phone. — That being said, all metaphors/similes are leaky, so you are probably “not wrong.”
- AwesomeFaic 7y ago
  Fair enough, I think the semantics of metaphors (especially in technology) is a challenge. Your point makes sense when the full functionality of the phone is taken into account. I was viewing the argument as phone camera vs dedicated camera. There's a whole other rabbit hole when you get into the discussion of whether the camera or the lens is the primary driver of good photography.
- dkarl 7y ago
  Another way to look at it is the phone camera is like a folding scooter you carry on your backpack. It doesn't do much, but it's always there, and you can make it work for most things. If you need to buy groceries, you might buy a few days' worth when you'd rather get a week's worth, and if you want to go a long distance, it won't feel as nice, and sometimes it's a little embarrassing when you compare your experience to your friends', but you can get by. Beyond the scooter, there's an entire range of transportation options which are all better but are bigger and more expensive and require extra attention: where do I put it, should I take it with me or will I not need it, do I really want to bother with it today? If I buy something, will I always leave it at home and never have it when it would be useful? 95% of the time you're happy you just have your scooter with you, but the other five percent of the time, you may be disappointed or downright helpless compared to somebody with better equipment. Say you and your friends decide impromptu to go to a music show twenty miles away, the concert starts in two hours, and public transit will get you there at approximately noon tomorrow. Your scooter is useless, and you have to ask for a ride. This is analogous to when you see a coyote in your neighborhood (let's assume that's a rare and interesting occurrence in your neighborhood) and you're pointing to a blurry dog-shaped dot on your phone saying "Look! It's a coyote!" and your neighbor is ordering a 2' by 3' print showing the reflections in its eyes and the steamy breath coming out of its mouth. Situations like that are frustrating, but each person will feel differently about whether it's worth embracing the expense and daily hassle of traveling with a bigger piece of equipment.
TulliusCicero 7y ago
Your analogy is probably better, yes, except that a luxury sedan is more than just 'a bit' pricier compared to a Corolla. I'm not a car expert, but it looks like BMW's entry level 3 series is about double the cost of a Corolla.
- vetinari 7y ago
  BMW 3er is not a sedan either; it is a "compact executive", a bit smaller. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice car, and bigger than subcompact, but if you wanted something sedan-sized, pick something else. 5er is sedan-sized (and entirely elsewhere price-wise).
  - TulliusCicero 7y ago
    You must be using different terminology from me. It's definitely a sedan in US English, sedan implies form factor rather than specific size. Anyway it's irrelevant since I was just picking something similarly sized to the Corolla that had been brought up.
the-pigeon 7y ago
Sure but the comparison isn't about that. It's about that everything that 99% of people need the Corolla does. So, there's no motivator to spend money on the better car for most people.

braythwayt 7y ago

A nice camera is NOT a luxury sedan in the context of this metaphor. The reason being that the extra affordances of carrying the driver plus four or more passengers, having a trunk/boot that can carry a full load of groceries/luggage and so forth are all characteristics of a general-purpose vehicle. As I see it, the phone is a general-purpose device that also takes pictures, just as a sedan is a general-purpose vehicle, whether luxurious or not. Whereas, a camera just does one thing (two if you count video separately.) Thus, to me, a dedicated camera at any price is like a two-seater sports car with hardly any trunk room. You can buy cheaper sports cars, sure, but they still lack the affordances of a sedan. To me, a “luxury sedan” corresponds to a high-end phone. — That being said, all metaphors/similes are leaky, so you are probably “not wrong.”

AwesomeFaic 7y ago
Fair enough, I think the semantics of metaphors (especially in technology) is a challenge. Your point makes sense when the full functionality of the phone is taken into account. I was viewing the argument as phone camera vs dedicated camera. There's a whole other rabbit hole when you get into the discussion of whether the camera or the lens is the primary driver of good photography.
dkarl 7y ago
Another way to look at it is the phone camera is like a folding scooter you carry on your backpack. It doesn't do much, but it's always there, and you can make it work for most things. If you need to buy groceries, you might buy a few days' worth when you'd rather get a week's worth, and if you want to go a long distance, it won't feel as nice, and sometimes it's a little embarrassing when you compare your experience to your friends', but you can get by. Beyond the scooter, there's an entire range of transportation options which are all better but are bigger and more expensive and require extra attention: where do I put it, should I take it with me or will I not need it, do I really want to bother with it today? If I buy something, will I always leave it at home and never have it when it would be useful? 95% of the time you're happy you just have your scooter with you, but the other five percent of the time, you may be disappointed or downright helpless compared to somebody with better equipment. Say you and your friends decide impromptu to go to a music show twenty miles away, the concert starts in two hours, and public transit will get you there at approximately noon tomorrow. Your scooter is useless, and you have to ask for a ride. This is analogous to when you see a coyote in your neighborhood (let's assume that's a rare and interesting occurrence in your neighborhood) and you're pointing to a blurry dog-shaped dot on your phone saying "Look! It's a coyote!" and your neighbor is ordering a 2' by 3' print showing the reflections in its eyes and the steamy breath coming out of its mouth. Situations like that are frustrating, but each person will feel differently about whether it's worth embracing the expense and daily hassle of traveling with a bigger piece of equipment.

TulliusCicero 7y ago

Your analogy is probably better, yes, except that a luxury sedan is more than just 'a bit' pricier compared to a Corolla. I'm not a car expert, but it looks like BMW's entry level 3 series is about double the cost of a Corolla.

vetinari 7y ago
BMW 3er is not a sedan either; it is a "compact executive", a bit smaller. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice car, and bigger than subcompact, but if you wanted something sedan-sized, pick something else. 5er is sedan-sized (and entirely elsewhere price-wise).
- TulliusCicero 7y ago
  You must be using different terminology from me. It's definitely a sedan in US English, sedan implies form factor rather than specific size. Anyway it's irrelevant since I was just picking something similarly sized to the Corolla that had been brought up.

the-pigeon 7y ago

Sure but the comparison isn't about that. It's about that everything that 99% of people need the Corolla does. So, there's no motivator to spend money on the better car for most people.