It just sells well.

The iPhone SE 2016 would still be good enough for me (with a new battery in it), were it not for the camera. Better displays, better socs, 5g, and a higher max storage option, these are nice things, but I don’t see my iPhone 13 mini as a major upgrade in those areas (plus the disadvantage of bulkiness counteracts that as well). But the difference in camera quality is huge! Both are 12MP, but that’s where the similarities end.

I walk a lot (averaging 10km a day over the past year, according to my phone/smartwatch), with a lot of variance in my way, and I also travel quite a bit. Then you don’t want to carry a full camera with you. But I take a few shots almost every day and really enjoy the camera upgrade on my phone. They are not pictures that I sell or frame enlarged. I take these myself and display >95% on the phone (where a better screen is definitely a nice plus, but also not worth a lot of money). I also post something on Instagram every now and then, so my family and friends in other countries get a little bit of what I’m up against and experience, which sometimes makes for a nice phone call, eg..

I really appreciate the quality of the photos as well as the finesse. But I don’t understand the situation that only high-quality photos can be good photos. In the end it all comes down to what the image conveys, right?