I lot of really good pro photographers working today totally disagree with you. For example, watch this interview by the great David Allen Harvey:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKv1rATlQnE
(jump to 1:30 in the video where he talks about shooting with his iPhone). Likewise, other pro photogs that I admire, such as Zack Arias, Jim Richardson, etc. all talk enthusiastically about shooting great photos with their iPhones. Here’s Jim Richardson’s Instagram gallery, mostly shot with his iPhone:
http://instagram.com/jimrichardsonng
The reality is that today’s smartphones produce very good quality, and it’s a very good exercise to get good at shooting great images with these devices because it’s really photography at its purist: a single focal length, a composition, the light, and shoot!
Another collection of images worth looking at:
Still think a smartphone isn’t a “real camera”? Well, the problem is really in your head.
Started out doing photography at the age of 6 using an uncle's old 1940 kodak brownie box camera. At 15 years of age, I decided to buy my very own 1975 Praktica SLR camera. I now shoot with a Nikon D850. I do unpaid TFP and commercial paid work.