[Saint Michael]

I understand that Carl Zeiss lenses are "quality" in brand. But what does having a Carl Zeiss lens do for the Nokias? How is the lenses different from say Samsung's GS3 lenses, or/and Apple's "saphfire" lenses...

[George Ponder]

Well... you have a major optics manufacturers scaling things down to the smartphone camera level.... it would almost be at the same level as if Canon or Nikon designed the camera itself.
Zeiss lenses have a reputation for not only the quality material used but also the quality in the element design and placement within the lens.

It's to the camera as Dolby was in the old days to audio or maybe Beats is to audio today?

[Mark Rozanski]

Beats is nothing more than a marketing term. No real technology behind it, unlike Dolby. Zeiss optics are far superior to what other phones use for their optics. That's why Instagram(and yes, there IS an Instagram probram for WP8) is so popular, you can put a nice dress and makeup on a pig, but it's still a pig! It's like listening to people say they LOVE their Blows (oops...Bose) speakers for home theatre. Remember, "No highs, no lows ... must be Bose".

[Saint Michael]

But what specifically does it improve? Sharpness? More natural coloring? I mean does the GS3 have a plastic lens? What does it effect?
I want to be able to promote the fact that the Nokias have it, but atm all I can say is: "and it has a Carl Zeiss lens. Which is good"... If they ask why it's good, I got nothing...
I remember Damian saying the lens on the 808 was 5times the quality of dslr lenses or something. But in what way are they of this superior quality?? It's driving me nuts. I mean it's on awesome cameras like n8, 808, 920... But also on the none top of class cameras like 900, n9, 800 etc

[George Ponder]

Missing the connection between Zeiss lenses and Instagram....

[tonyk79]

Zeiss lens are a high quality premium brand lens which often cost £1000's for a dslr camera. The glass used on the lens will be of a high quality and have special coatings to reduce flare, chromatic abrasion etc. The 808 is a good camera but will in no way compare to a dslr due to sensor size.

[gtbuzz]

I think you're asking pretty much the same question as what does Canon L (their pro stuff) glass get you over some crummy 3rd party lens (ie what does a good lens get you over a bad lens). Generally speaking, you're getting improvements in things like sharpness, distortion, chromatic abberation (purple fringing), contrast, etc etc. Like others have pointed out, Zeiss is usually very high quality glass that exhibits those traits, however it's a comparitive measure, so compared to what? That's where it becomes difficult to quanity, especially on non-interchangeable lens cameras.

Another thing that makes it difficult to really quantify is that the sensor is the other half of the equation and not all sensors are created equal. If you put a decent lens in front of a crummy sensor or a crummy lens in front of a decent sensor, results could still be wanting. Without being able to compare the Zeiss lens to anything else, exactly what you get is kind of up in the air, but that's where markting and name recognition comes in. Is it possible that the Zeiss lens is crap and we just don't know it? Sure, but it's not likely based on their heritage. All things being equal, i'd put my money on their stuff over an unknown plastic lens.

[conanheath]

Marketing. That's all it is.