Wesley's Tool-Box

One of the key improvements of iPhone 5S over previous generations would be the camera's performance. In this segment I'll look at the speed at which it can operate - namely, how fast the video and still photos are recorded.

1. Video

iPhone 5S introduces the "slo-mo" mode with 120fps capture at 720p (1280x720). What it actually does is that the phone records the video at 120fps fully. Then, when you view the video in the camera roll via the Camera or Photos app, a portion of the video is played in slow motion by reducing the playback speed to 30fps.


This results in playback at 1/4 the speed for the selected "zone". You can adjust where the slow motion starts and ends by moving the sliders just below the frame strip. One drawback is that you can't set two or more zones. You'll need a separate editor or app to achieve this.

Also, there are some interesting consequences when exporting the video clips.

UPDATE (Sept. 25, 2014): There has been some changes in activating LTE devices from overseas in Korea. [Read the related iPhone 6 Plus review.]

When my friend Andy lined up to get the new iPhone 5S, the Apple Store had specific supplies of the phone for each of the four major U.S. carriers. If three of the carriers supposedly use the same model as seen in Apple's website, it might seem strange that this division existed. It turns out that each of the phones have a SIM card for the designated carrier, as well as some specific device status configured (SIM lock, CDMA enable). As you can see, Andy got me an AT&T version of the iPhone 5S with model number A1533, with the AT&T NanoSIM as a proof.

Now, Apple mentions that the model number of the iPhone 5S planned to be released in Korea is A1530, which forgoes the AWS and 700MHz bands used in North America and instead supports TD-LTE bands used in places like China. Interestingly, both models (as a matter of fact, all models) support LTE bands currently active in Korea, so it seemed likely that A1533 iPhone 5S would be able to hop onto LTE networks in Korea. This was the reason I risked buying A1533 outright instead of trying to get A1530 from Hong Kong or wait for official Korean release. It turns out my hunch was correct, but it's not completely plug-and-play. Read on to minimize the chances of bumping into problems.

As my Twitter followers are already aware, my iPhone 5S arrived in the mail just before noon last Friday, September 27. My second daughter immediately had an early "hand-on" with the package. Since the device was released just 7 days before to only a handful of countries, this is no doubt one of the first iPhone 5S to land in Korea. No date has been set for Korean release yet - past experiences indicate November-December timeframe - so I'm going to be using this shiny new toy on behalf of other Koreans to see if this is something to wait for.

This particular phone was meant to be used on AT&T network in the United States. But my excellent friend Andy, who lives there, kindly picked it up along with his after lining up at an Apple Store on the morning of the launch day. It then crossed Pacific Ocean again to come into my hands. Naturally, this raises several questions - how well does it work in Korea, how different is it from the previous model, and so on. For this segment, I'll give my first impressions.

Two weeks ago, I bought a Baader Moon & Skyglow filter that supposedly cuts light pollution and enhances contrast of the planets. This was attached to my Canon SX50 HS camera using a 58mm-28mm step-down ring. You can see how this looks like on the left. The filter is relatively inexpensive as far as telescope filters go, but it's still quite a bit of money, so I got a 1.25" one (fits like 28.5mm) instead of getting a 2" one (fits like 48mm) which cost almost twice as much. The 0.5mm difference between the step-down ring and the filter meant that it would not screw on completely, but it works okay.

At dawn today, I tested out its performance by taking the photos of the Jovian system. While it did noticeably cut the background light pollution, the contrast of Jupiter received a modest boost, as compared to my previous non-filtered shots. One thing to note is that, by CalSky's calculations, the Great Red Spot was supposed to be facing the Earth, so I would be able to see it on the lower right area of Jupiter's surface. But apparently, SX50 HS isn't quite powerful enough to bring that detail out clearly at the current distance. A couple of folks suggest that it might be the darker area at the right edge of the lower band - further sessions are needed to verify this. Jupiter should look bigger every day until when it's about 30% bigger on January next year, so that's my best hope for now.

Jupiter: 1200mm (w/ 2x DTC*) - ISO 80 - 1/80s - 22 photos stacked
Moons: 1200mm (w/ 2x DTC) - ISO 1250 - 1/10s - 117 photos stacked
*DTC = Digital Teleconverter. Stacked using RegiStax 6.1.0.8.

Time: 2013-09-04 04:30 KST
Location: Suwon, Korea

Tonight's clear skies gave me a great opportunity to photograph the International Space Station outright. I didn't know what settings to use, however, so I made a guess. It was okay when it was streaking across the western sky with magnitude of around -2. As it went south, it became brighter, and the shots came out a bit too bright.

At least I got a handful of useful glimpses out of it early while using the tripod to stabilize the camera and trying hard to track it with hand. In the end, the trademark solar arrays and the central area where the astronauts are staying were visible - you can see it as something similar to H.

Settings: Canon SX50 HS - 1200mm - ISO 250 - 1/400s
Processing: 5 photos stacked with RegiStax 6.1.0.8
Time: 2013-08-26 20:03 KST