Published by Steve Litchfield at 6:36 UTC, November 6th 2017

You saw my shootout between the Lumia 950 XL and the Apple iPhone 8 Plus here , with the new iPhone not quite besting the champion. And only a month later we have another new iPhone, the controversial new 'X', with larger aperture and OIS on its second 2x optical zoom lens. Can this contender finally topple the 950 XL?





Notes:

The iPhone's shots are 12MP shooting at 4:3, which works out at roughly 9MP in 16:9, though the presence of the 2x zoom facility meant that I was mixing and matching resolutions on the 950 XL below in order to bring you meaningful comparisons below in Rafe's fancy interactive comparator, below.

The fields of view of the two phone cameras are slightly different, as usual, I've tried to centre crops on the same detail where possible, for ease of comparison.

All photos were taken on full 'auto' on both phones, unless stated otherwise.

Let's pit the results against each other, using our Famed Interactive Comparator (FIC). All 1:1 crops are at 900x500 for comparison, but see the links for full versions.

Note that the interactive comparator below uses javascript and does need to load each pair of images. Please be patient while this page loads, if you see a pair of images above each other than you've either not waited long enough or your browser isn't capable enough! You ideally need a powerful, large-screened tablet or a proper laptop or desktop. This comparator may not work in some browsers. Sorry about that. On Windows 10 Mobile, use the 'AAWP Universal' UWP app, which handles the comparator very competently (see the tips in the app's help screens).

Test 1: Sunny scene

Lit by the morning sun, a country church. Here is the whole scene, as presented by the Lumia 950 XL, here shooting in great light so in 16MP mode:





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

Different fields of view and resolutions, of course. Taken as-is, the Lumia 950 XL presents more detail here, naturally (e.g. in grass), not least 16MP versus an effective 9MP in 16:9. There's the usual Lumia yellow cast, mind you, and the iPhone does a better job of getting the colours spot on - for example, the stone work on the right of the crops.

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 9 pts; Apple iPhone X: 8 pts

Test 2: Sunny scene, zoomed

The same scene as above, but with the iPhone's 2x optical zoom engaged. The Lumia was left at 16MP, i.e. at full 1:1 sensor resolution. In case you want to grab the original image to do your own analysis, here it is, from the iPhone X, click the link to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

As expected then, significantly more detail from the 2x zoomed in shot. I'm a sucker for optical zoom and the iPhone X does this natively with a tap on the screen - very well done.

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 7 pts; Apple iPhone X: 10 pts

Test 3: Indoor detail

Our family clock in a well lit living room. Here is the whole scene, as presented by the Lumia 950 XL, here shooting in good light so in 16MP mode (and yes, apologies it's not straight, an obstacle meant that I was shooting with my arms at an angle!):





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

Beautiful rich detail from the Lumia 950 XL here, even without the benefit of the PureView oversampling, with the sharpening routines and less saturated colours on the iPhone photo not quite as satisfying.

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 10 pts; Apple iPhone X: 9 pts

Test 4: Tricky light extremes

Shot inside the church, lots of detail, plus relatively bright light coming through the stained glass windows. Here is the whole scene, as presented by the Lumia 950 XL, here shooting in oversampled 8MP mode, of course:





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

Both of these were 'full auto' snaps, but the 950 XL did a batter job with the auto-exposure in the difficult lighting - almost every object in the scene is clearer, purer and better lit in the Lumia photo. Sorry, Apple, but your new iPhone made a bit of a mess of this.

It's fair to say that a few minutes experimenting with different focus points and lighting/exposures would have improved the latter, but this feature was all about real world shots and the Lumia definitely delivered with no thought or set up. Out of interest, I was also shooting the same tests with the Google Pixel 2 XL and its photo had better handling of dunamic range than the Lumia's. But you've had enough of Lumia/Pixel tests here, I'm quite sure!

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 9 pts; Apple iPhone X: 6 pts

Test 5: Sunny macro

Precious few flowers about in November in the UK and precious little sun, but I found one such. I was after the central stems and I had to shoot at an angle so as not to shade the subject. In each case I went as close as the focussing could stand:





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

A tough call here, since I like the dreamy and pure nature of the Lumia's capture, but it has slightly overexposed the shot and, as a result, some of the flower detail has been lost. The iPhone X has used a lower exposure and, together with the extra sharpening algorithms, has meant that more detail has been captured. And, in a real world shot, the photo could then be enhanced further with brightness and saturation as needed?

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 8 pts; Apple iPhone X: 9 pts

Test 6: Floodlights

An attractive church - ok, the same one as above in test 1 - but from a different angle and at night, floodlit quite brightly. Again, challenging extremes of light and a tricky subject. Here is the whole scene, as presented by the Lumia 950 XL, here shooting in 8MP oversampled mode:





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

I'm not sure how to score this - the Lumia 950 XL opts for a lower exposure and minimal artificial enhancement, while the iPhone X goes for a full 1/4s exposure and oodles of sharpening. I'd normally plump for the former as better, but there is detail in the iPhone's image that is genuine and which isn't in the Lumia's, so...

I'm going to take the coward's option and score this equally, I think, but your comments welcome!

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 8 pts; Apple iPhone X: 8 pts

Test 7: Night time

Raining steadily, dark of night, lit only by a few street lamps, braving the cold and damp for AAWP! Yet lots of detail to examine. Here is the whole scene, as presented by the Lumia 950 XL, here shooting in oversampled 8MP mode, of course:





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

It's similar to the church at night example, in that there's genuine extra detail brought out in the iPhone X's shots, look at the elements on and by the door of the old police station, look at the road sign on the right of the crop. The Lumia 950 XL photo is definitely smoother and purer, yet some detail is 'lost' that the iPhone X seems to have somehow found.

Despite the noise and artefacts, I'm going to give the iPhone the win here. Though considering the appalling conditions (dark, rain), both phone cameras did a cracking job.

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 8 pts; Apple iPhone X: 9 pts

Test 8: Night time zoom

With the iPhone having the second 2x optically stabilised zoom lens, it's only fair that I give this a chance to shine in low light as well as sunlight. So here's an outrageous night time test, so much detail in the middle distance (about 100m) at night, but how much can be captured by each phone camera? For the 950 XL I simply went for 16MP resolution, i.e. at the maximum sensor res without straying into digital zoom territory, etc.:





In case you want to grab the original images to do your own analysis, here they are, from the Lumia 950 XL and iPhone X, click the links to download. And to look at the images in more detail, here are fairly central 1:1 crops, just wait to make sure the page has fully loaded and then use your mouse or trackpad pointer to compare the images:

It's the same story as in the other night time tests, but with a larger frame for the noisy detail from the iPhone. The Lumia's photo is amazingly clean (especially considering that there's no oversampling here), but the noisy, artefact-strewn output from the iPhone X's 2x zoom lens holds more genuine detail, as you'd expect in this case - look the 'West Cornwall Pasty' sign, for example. Or the red postbox in the centre of the crops.

The iPhone X has to win this zoom test then, but its photo is so noisy that it's not a landslide. In my opinion - your comments welcome here!

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: 9 pts; Apple iPhone X: 10 pts

Verdict

Adding up the points gives us:

Lumia 950 XL: 68/80

iPhone X: 69/80

So we get there at last. Factoring in the extra detail gathered, from both processing and the stabilised 2x zoom lens, the new iPhone X beats the mighty Lumia 950 XL here, albeit only by a single point. That the 2015 950 XL can even now compete so well remains a staggering feat, of course, and as I've said above, in low light there's a noisy, sharpened ugliness to iPhone X photos that I don't like as much as the Lumia's shots. But I can't ignore detail - you take photos to capture this, whether it's people, objects, pets, etc. And with detail you can crop in later to produce a new photo for sharing or printing.

I've gone to extreme lengths in terms of lighting and subject above - 99% of normal photos would be far, far easier for both phone cameras, of course. But when the going gets really tough, the iPhone X dips at the line and just squeezes out the champion.

Comments? Have I been too kind to the Lumia? To the iPhone?