Photo: Dan Bracaglia
In my defense, it was the beginning of a night of drinking when I dropped my phone in the toilet, not the end of the night. The humor isn`t lost on me: it was the same day we published my defense of small phones, specifically praising my iPhone SE for its ability to slip into my back pocket. That, unfortunately, was also its undoing.
I needed another phone quickly and ended up buying a Pixel 3a. Here were the primary factors that drove me to this decision:
The camera is very good
It`s only $400
It was in stock at Best Buy for same-day pickup, which meant minimal interaction with salespeople
Just like that, I became an Android user after almost a decade (!?) of owning Apple phones. But after using the iPhone 11, I`m not only comfortable declaring it my Gear of the Year - I`m also thinking of switching back. Here`s why.
Girls just wanna take wide-angle portraits
I have a pretty firm understanding of focal length and how it impacts your distance to a subject. I can even kind of explain equivalence. But for some reason I can never remember just how far the Pixel 3a crops in for portrait mode.
I find myself frequently sitting across the table from someone I want to photograph, pulling my phone up to take a picture and then realizing I`m way too close. I can either take an uncomfortably close photo of that person`s face, or stand up and move backward to get the framing I wanted in the first place. The iPhone 11 lets me take that across-the-table portrait without leaving my seat.
The ultra-wide lens is a draw for me too. I haven`t used the phone quite enough to decide whether its appeal would wear off, or if it would remain a feature I`d keep turning to. For now anyway, I`m into it.
No more crooked horizons
Some people can`t grasp the concept of a passing lane on the highway (looking at you, Washington drivers), just as some of us are prone to crooked horizons. It`s our lot in life, apparently. Thankf ...
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