God awful camera on Z5 premium...

[Alienangie]

Ok. So "upgraded" from my Note 3 to is piece of crap, because of all the marketing calling this the best camera phone on the market. And I use my phone camera a lot. 

On 23mp, manual and auto mode I cannot focus. Close up or macro images are blurry. All images have a soft edge and lack definition when enlarged. It looks like I've downgraded rather than upgraded! I have reset the cache and cleared it. Even done a factory reset. There is no case or dirt over the lens. No camera wobble. I have the latest software update.

if I can't resolve this, I'm selling it and waiting for the Note 5, which the only reason I didn't go with was the lack of SD card. With the Z5 I feel I've taken a MASSIVE step backward in tech. The UI isn't as friendly as Samsung, it's not as pretty, and the camera is just plain crap. 2 days of ownership and so far I hate it. 

I need some redeeming features for this phone, so please tell me how to fix it. I'm an amateur photographer and I e won competitions with pictures taken on the Note. This, so far, is useless to me.

[G94N]

I feel you man! Exactly! I wish I could've experienced a real Lumia cameraphone myself When compared, even to a couple of years old phones, Sony is struggling 😕

[aboodmushtary]

after MM update also before that sony phones could not defeat anyone in the competition z2 z3 z5 x xp they all struggle to beat anyone heck they are beaten by huawei and oppo and they use sonys sensors omg sony would you do something about your camera 

[JohnNimrod]

I bought mine 2 weeks ago as an upgrade from a Xperia Z3 phone. Generally love this phone other than videos and photos which are absolutely terrible. How jumping two models can they be so much worse than my 2 yr old Z3? !!! Considering taking back for a refund but will first check with store. I am doing everything right but in mid or dark light autofocus takes ages and picture quality is awful. Reminisent of the Nokia I had 12 years ago!!!!

I just pray its just a software upgrade needed as this poor a camera on a phone marketed for it 4000k video is not of a quality that should ever go on sale.

Other features OK or good but this will make me move permanently away from the Sony brand if it persists.

[Anamon2]

I was also disappointed with the camera, seeing as the pictures I take with my Z5 Compact now are noticeably worse than those I took with my old Z1 Compact.

It's almost squarely a software issue, though. The exaggerated over-processing that the Sony Camera app does is just horrible and unnecessary. If you use a different app, such as Google Camera or VSCO, your pictures will immediately look much better defined.

It's sad that we can't turn off this counter-productive post-processing in the Sony app, and using a third-party app has major disadvantages. For instance, Sony's firmware doesn't unlock the full resolution for third-party apps (it's limited to 8.3MP), and you can't access the camera from the shutter button.

[Renz2azone]

Having the same issues on my xperia z5 premium. I have been taking photos of my pets. I often take macro shots of them and the z5p is just horrible. My previous driver was HTC one M8 this z5p purchase is the worst decision that I made in regards with phones. I will stop purchasing xperia phones because of this

[TheBodo]

Just a terrible camera and I'm doubtful as to whether I will persist with these phones.

[tooold]

I've had my z5 compact for almost a year now. Compared to the last 3 Samsungs, and especially the HTC before that, it's been remarkably stable and I really appreciate that, BUT..... the camera !!!!!

It's not so much the quality of the pictures, not that they are very good, far from it, but the LAG when using the camera makes it all but completely useless. Over the past year this is i think the third time that I'm scrolling through forums hoping to find some sort of fix, but alas, so far I've not come across anything. Particulary when using the recording mode it takes between 2 and 3 seconds after pressing the button before actual recording starts. My girlfriend had a Z3 compact for a little over 1 year, and although the phone was still looking and working well, she has now switched to an Iphone (despite it being expensive as for her), mainly because of exactly the same issue. Having a few seconds lag time on a camera makes it completely worthless. Like many people I feel cheated by Sony marketing, since the camera blabla was a very big part of the reason for me to get these phones. I guess this is a classic marketing example of: "sell your bugs as features".

[Gaulpo]

I have to AGREE with everyone here. I have the z5 compact and it's a PIECE  I wish I never bought it. The camera is useless unless you have a nice bright day and then it's acceptable. My Nokia 808 Pureview craps all over this phone for camera performance and stability. Sorely disappointed and as soon as I can get my hands on a 40mp phone camera,I'll be buying it and selling this crap.  SONY has no idea about customer service and they are no longer a reputable company to deal with . They are just a RIP OFF