Technologies

Your Old Phone Can Still Take Excellent Photos With These Pro Tips

Don’t count out the camera on your older phone. It can still take fantastic photos.

The iPhone 14 Pro, Google Pixel 7 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra are among the best camera phones you can buy in 2023. Packed with multiple lenses and amazing AI software, these phones can take shots that rival professional mirrorless cameras.

However, these top phones come with huge price tags that make them out of reach for many of us. Worry not. Even if you’ve got an older iPhone or Android phone or a budget-focused model without all the bells and whistles, there’s a lot you can do to still take beautiful images. After all, as any photographer will tell you, it’s not just the best camera that takes the best photos.

Still, you’ll need to put in some effort yourself to elevate your shots from simple «ho hum» snaps to «oh, wow!» pieces of art.

Here, then, are my top tips for how to get the best images from an older iPhone, Galaxy phone or any older Android phone.

In this shot, taken on the iPhone X, the road snaking its way into the frame helps to add a leading line that guides the eye up toward the cloudy mountains.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

Nail your composition

You can take a photo using the most advanced camera system on the planet, but if you’ve messed up your framing, you’ll still get a bad photo. After all, if you’re taking a photo of a lovely church and you manage to chop off the spire, no amount of editing will bring it back.

Don’t just snap away wildly at your photo location. Instead, slow down, walk around and consider the scene in front of you and how you want it to appear in your shot. Taking a landscape shot? Look for leading lines such as pathways or old stone walls that snake their way into the scene. Or perhaps there’s some interesting rocks or flowers that could add some interest in the foreground.

20190620-161930 — Taken on the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus. I used the curving rock face as foreground interest, shooting through the gap that points toward the reservoir in the distance.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

You can also turn on a «rule of thirds» grid overlay in the settings to help line up the different elements in your scene in a visually pleasing way — or simply to help keep your horizons straight.

If you’ve got multiple rear cameras that offer a zoomed-in or wide-angle view, experiment with these different options. Maybe zooming in can help eliminate distracting elements, or perhaps that wider view can capture more of the beautiful scene in front of you.

With no wide-angle lens on the iPhone 11 Pro, I used the panorama mode to capture a much wider scene here.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

If you don’t have a wide-angle view, try using the panorama mode to get a wider shot than the standard camera can achieve — or use clip-on lenses, as I discuss below.

Tell a story

The most impactful, iconic images through the years aren’t simply the ones taken with the best camera, but the ones that tell a particular story or capture a moment in time. And sure, maybe you’re not trying to win a photojournalism prize on your summer vacation, but thinking like a photojournalist can help you take images that you’ll want to look back on in years to come.

Perhaps you’re heading to the beautiful Italian coast this year. Of course, you’ll get a nice snap of the ocean from your hotel terrace, but keep in mind what else has made your trip so memorable; the plates of delicious food, the old, dusty streets, the musician playing in the square or the vibrant colors of the fruits and flower stands at the local market. All these elements will make for great photos that capture the heart of the location and tell a great visual story when you look back through them.

This beautiful, shaggy Highland cow wasn’t the reason I visited Scotland, but this was a great opportunity to capture an image of an iconic animal. And the shot really adds to the story told by the images I took on that trip. Taken on the iPhone 11 Pro.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

And it doesn’t have to be something you do only on a big family vacation. A weekend walk downtown to the street-food market will offer up great storytelling opportunities, from the graffiti art you see along the way to the plates of vibrant cuisine you choose on arrival. And none of these things require the latest camera hardware to capture beautifully.

Use the light to your advantage

Though today’s top phones can take great nighttime images, older models likely won’t have night modes. As a result, darkness won’t be your friend when you’re trying to get great images. If you’re heading to a viewpoint overlooking the city, try to get there during the day, perhaps when there’s a lovely blue sky sprinkled with fluffy clouds.

Though the middle of the day isn’t always a great time for landscape photos, you might capture moments of peace like this. Taken on the iPhone X.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

Middle-of-the-day photography is often avoided by landscape photographers because of its harsh quality, but if you’re exploring city streets, it can offer some great opportunities to look for contrast caused by shadows, which could make for dramatic images.

No multi-camera iPhone? Use clip-on lenses

Older iPhones might lack the multiple lenses found on the most recent models, but you don’t just have to make do. Companies like Moment and Olloclip make lenses that attach to your phone, providing wide-angle, telephoto and even macro views.

img-2269-copy — Using its standard lens (left) the iPhone X can only fit so much in frame. But with the Moment wide angle adapter (right) we get a much wider view.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

Sure, you have to carry an extra little item in your bag or pocket as you explore, but adding a clip-on lens is a great way to get a superwide view for those sweeping cityscapes without having to splash the cash in upgrading your phone.

Shoot in DNG raw, even on old phones

Apple’s ProRaw image format, introduced on the iPhone 12 Pro Max, uses computational imaging techniques like HDR but still provides you with a DNG raw file that’s much easier to edit in apps like Adobe Lightroom. It isn’t a function found on older iPhones, but those of you on older phones can still shoot in regular raw if you’re keen to do your own edits.

You can’t shoot in DNG raw in the standard camera mode, so you’ll need to use a third-party camera app that offers raw shooting. I usually use Lightroom itself, as its camera shoots in raw and automatically imports the images into your library. But I’ve also had good results with the Moment app.

img-2026-2-copy — By shooting in DNG raw, I had even more flexibility in Adobe Lightroom to make this portrait of my sweet bundle of beautiful wonder look even more heartacheingly gorgeous.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

Shooting in raw allows you more flexibility to adjust white balance and color tones while generally making it easier to tone down bright highlights or lighten up shadowy areas. Those of you looking to squeeze every ounce of quality from your phone camera should consider using raw — as long as you’re willing to spend the time editing.

Keep in mind, though, that raw files are larger than their JPEG counterparts, so you’ll quickly fill up your phone’s storage if you shoot everything you see in raw.

Get creative with editing apps

Taking your photo is only part of the process, and a keen eye in the editing stage can make all the difference in creating beautiful photographic art. If you want to maintain a more natural looking photograph, look toward apps like Lightroom or Google’s Snapseed. These raw image editors give you control over colors, exposure and contrast and let you fine-tune your images to suit your taste.

prisma-edit-app — Edited in Prisma, the abstract art style means it doesn’t matter if the original image isn’t amazing quality.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

Or you can take your creativity to a whole other level with apps like Prisma, which transforms your shots into often psychedelic-looking scenes, or Bazaart, which lets you easily create wild photo collages that can look really cool. You can check out my roundup of my favorite image editing apps for more inspiration.

The great thing with editing is that there’s no right or wrong way to do things, and you can always go back to your original image if you don’t like the changes you made. But using some of these techniques can turn an otherwise forgettable shot into something that really stands out. My advice is to make a cup of tea, settle into a comfy chair and play around with the sliders in your app of choice and see what you can come up with.

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for April 19, #1765

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle for April 19, No. 1,765.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Wordle puzzle has fairly common letters, so you might solve it right away. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has no repeated letters.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

Today’s Wordle answer has one vowel.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with S.

Wordle hint No. 4: Last letter

Today’s Wordle answer ends with D.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer can refer to maintaining an upright position on one’s feet. It’s also the main title word in a huge Stephen King novel.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is STAND.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, April 18, No. 1764, was TOADY.

Recent Wordle answers

April 14, No. 1760: CYCLE

April 15, No. 1761: BEGUN

April 16, No. 1762: CUBIT

April 17, No. 1763: BELLE

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for April 19, #573

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle No. 573 for Sunday, April 19.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition gets a bit wild in the blue and purple categories. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Play ball!

Green group hint: Gridiron roles.

Blue group hint: Like Ted Lasso.

Purple group hint: LA team that came from Brooklyn.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: AL East teams.

Green group: First words of football positions.

Blue group: Premier League managers.

Purple group: Nicknames for the Dodgers franchise, over time.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is AL East teams. The four answers are Blue Jays, Orioles, Rays and Yankees.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is first words of football positions. The four answers are defensive, running, tight and wide.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Premier League managers. The four answers are Emery, Guardiola, Moyes and Slot.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is nicknames for the Dodgers franchise, over time. The four answers are Bridegrooms, Dodgers, Robins and Superbas.

Technologies

Apple AirPods Max 2 vs. Sony WH-1000XM6: What’s the Best Choice for Apple Users?

How do the AirPods Max 2 stack up to Sony’s excellent WH-1000XM6 headphones? CNET’s audio expert David Carnoy gives you the full rundown.

When the AirPods Max 2 came out, I wrote an article comparing them to the original AirPods Max for Apple users who were considering upgrading. But some folks seemed more interested in my thoughts on how the Max 2 compare to Sony’s WH-1000XM6, which are among the very best noise-canceling headphones out there right now.

Both headphones earned CNET Editors’ Choice awards — and both are expensive. The AirPods Max’s high price was a source of contention when the original model launched in 2020, and the Max 2 also lists for $549. Pricing consumer headphones at more than $500 was a little shocking six years ago, but that didn’t stop people from buying the Max and setting a new benchmark for premium noise-canceling headphone prices, with top models from Bose, Sony and Bowers & Wilkins all receiving price hikes in recent years.

It’s a bit early for significant discounts on the Max 2, but later this year, they should settle in around $500 on Amazon, so you’re looking at about a $100 to $150 price bump to get them instead of the XM6, which retail for $450, but are typically discounted to around $400 in flash sales.

You can read my AirPods Max 2 review and Sony WH-1000XM6 review at those links.

Design

On the outside, anyway, the Max 2 are exactly the same as the Max USB-C, which came out in late 2024, and they’re available in the same five color options.

You can argue about which design is better and which model is more comfortable, but I’d have to give the Max 2 the advantage for pure build quality. These are headphones with a stainless steel frame, aluminum-clad earcups, smooth telescoping arms and swanky earpads that adhere magnetically and are easily replaceable. And then there’s that sweet digital crown to adjust volume and control playback.

Aside from their minimalist smart case, which I don’t love, the Max 2 have a more luxurious and durable design than the XM6. The Sonys are made primarily out of high-tech plastic and carbon-fiber composite, and their hinges aren’t immune to cracking despite their metal reinforcements, according to some user reports. The problem doesn’t seem nearly as prevalent as it was with some earlier Sony models, and I haven’t had any issues with my XM6. But online, you will find some photos of cracked or broken XM6 hinges and arms.

The trade-off for build quality is weight. The Max 2 weighs 386.2 grams or 13.6 ounces, while the XM6 weigh 254 grams or 9 ounces. The Max 2 are well-balanced and do a nice job distributing that extra weight on your head, with their breathable mesh knit canopy that spans the top of the headband. They don’t seem as heavy on your head as they feel in your hand. Most people will find both headphones quite comfortable, but you can’t get around the fact that the Max 2 are on the weightier side for headphones, and that may be a downside for some people, whether they’re on your head or in a bag, which you have to carry around with other things, such as a laptop.

It’s also not a good idea to drop the Max 2 on pavement because the aluminum can get dinged up or scratched. I’m pretty good about not dropping my headphones, but I put clear plastic earcup covers on my original Max as a precaution, especially after my daughter kept borrowing them from me. I should also note that the earpads and canopy can get a little stained and dirty if you’re not careful, especially the lighter colors. My kids don’t treat their headphones as well as I do, so I ended up having to replace the earpads for $69, though I did make my daughter pay for those replacements with her own money.

Winner: AirPods Max 2 win for build quality and durability, but the Sony WH-1000XM6 are well designed and will appeal to those looking for lighter headphones. The XM6 also have a dual-hinge design that allows them to fold up and flat (the Max 2 simply folds flat). I grade this a draw.

Features

The Max 2 have the edge in features as well, especially after Apple upgraded the Max 2 with the H2 chip, which essentially adds all the features found in the AirPods Pro 3 to the Max 2. These include Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness, Voice Isolation, Live Translation and Siri Interactions that allow you to use head gestures to answer and ignore calls or dismiss audio notifications. The Max 2 also support studio-quality audio recording and Apple’s camera remote feature using the digital crown. Both are useful for content creators.

The XM6 also offer a strong set of features, including Sony’s Speak-to-Chat feature, which preceded Apple’s Conversation Awareness feature. While they have different names, they both automatically lower the volume of the audio you’re listening to and shift the headphones from noise-canceling mode to transparency mode as soon as you start talking, letting you have a conversation without taking your headphones off.

But the AirPods Max 2 are designed to work with Apple products, and they automatically switch audio between devices on your iCloud account. Also, Apple’s spatial audio with head-tracking is arguably superior to Sony’s 360 Audio with head-tracking, which only works with Android devices, as Apple’s only works with Apple devices.

Now, if you’re an Android user, I’d be having a different conversation. Yeah, the AirPods Max 2 can be paired with Android devices, but they lose many of the Apple-exclusive features that set them apart. So if you’re an Android/Windows user and don’t have any Apple devices, you should opt for the XM6, which also support Sony’s high-quality LDAC audio codec if you pair them with an Android device. Or maybe Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra 2nd Gen or Bowers & Wilkins’ PX7 S3.

Winner: While the Sony WH-1000XM6 has a robust feature set available for Apple and Android devices, the AirPods Max 2 eke out a win on features for Apple users. The XM6 win for Android fans.

Noise canceling

With Apple’s H2 chip and software completely rewritten for it, both noise-canceling and voice-calling performance have improved with the Max 2. Apple says the noise canceling is 1.5x better, and you can definitely hear the difference compared to the ANC on the original Max. But the Sony XM6’s noise canceling is top-notch, and it’s hard to tell whether the XM6’s or the Max 2’s ANC is better. Ultimately, it’s very close, and both are quite impressive.

The Max 2 have a slight edge as far as their transparency mode goes. While Sony has improved its ambient sound mode that lets you hear the outside world, Apple’s transparency mode is still the gold standard, and stellar on the Max 2.

Winner: Tie

Voice-calling performance

Both have excellent voice-calling performance and do an impressive job of reducing background sound while isolating your voice. In my initial tests, I found the Sonys did a slightly better job in the noisy streets of New York, as callers said my voice sounded a little clearer and more consistent. But both headphones almost completely eliminated background noise during calls and are top-tier in the voice-calling department.

Winner: Tie

Sound quality

While both headphones sound superb for wireless headphones, they do sound different. Which one sounds better will likely depend on your personal tastes.

The Max 2 and Max 1 have a similar sound signature that’s balanced and pretty accurate. However, the Max 2’s upgraded dynamic range amplifier, coupled with Apple retuning its Adaptive EQ for the H2 chip, allows for a cleaner, more natural sound that’s nearly distortion-free.

The Max 2 do offer more clarity and dynamic sound, while the XM6 are a little warmer and more forgiving. My ears tend to gravitate toward more revealing headphones, such as the Max 2, but they can make badly recorded tracks sound even worse.

Without listening to the Max 2, you’d probably think the Sony’s sound is nicely detailed and accurate, with very good bass definition. But flipping back and forth between the two headphones, the Max 2 come across as more aggressive and intimate, while the XM6 are a little more laid back.

You can tweak the XM6’s equalizer settings in their companion app, which some people prefer. The Max 2, however, rely exclusively on their Adaptive EQ to optimize sound quality. The lack of flexible tuning bothers some people, but most don’t seem to mind the automatic tuning.

I didn’t notice that much of a change to the highs and mids between the Max 1 and Max 2. But whenever I hit a track with a harder bass line — or just more bass in general — the quality of the bass jumped out at me. Not only did it seem to hit harder, but it was tighter and more natural sounding.

The Max 2 sound a little more precise overall than the first-gen and have slightly better separation between instruments, so you can hear them a little more distinctly. That extra bit of precision helps with spatial audio, whether you’re listening to music or watching movies.

As I said, both the Max 2 and XM6 sound excellent in their own way. You can’t go wrong with either of these headphones for sound. But if you’re looking for a little more articulate headphones with slightly better clarity, the Max 2 have the edge in my book.

Winner: AirPods Max 2 win in a photo finish.

Wired listening

I’ll finish with a couple of smaller but still important items that may make a difference for some people. Note that the AirPods Max 2 have support for USB-C audio, which means you can plug the included USB-C cable into them and use them in wired mode with PCs, phones and tablets. The XM6 do not support USB-C audio.

However, the XM6 come with an analog headphone cable with a 3.5mm connector, so you can plug them into a headphone jack for wired mode (or use them with a USB-C-to-3.5mm adapter). This cable comes in handy when you need to plug into an in-flight entertainment system.

The Max 2, on the other hand, don’t include a USB-C-to-3.5mm cable for plane use, which is disappointing given their high price. You can buy the cable for around $35, but note that you have to use Apple’s official cable, not a generic USB-C-to-3.5mm cable.

Winner: The AirPods Max 2 technically have more robust wired-listening capabilities, but they get a points deduction for not including a USB-C-to-3.5mm cable, so I grade it a draw.

Battery life

Lastly, the XM6 do have the Max 2 beat on battery life. The Sonys are rated for up to 30 hours at moderate volume levels with noise canceling on, while the Max 2 are rated for up to 20 hours.

Winner: Sony WH-1000XM6

AirPods Max vs. Sony WH-1000XM6 final thoughts

Honestly, it’s hard to declare a true winner between these two great but expensive headphones. Each has some advantages and some small disadvantages.

Earlier this year, when the Max 2 hadn’t been released yet, I would have told you to get the XM6. But now that the Max 2 are here and the upgrades turn out to be a little more significant than I initially thought, it’s a tougher choice. They do offer some real advantages to Apple users from a features standpoint, so as long as you like the Max 2’s fit, they’re a pretty safe choice if you can afford them.