I don't think the quality is that bad, I have seen WAY worse cell phone pictures before, and even the cam's on some phones today are the same or worse. Most of the pictures I see on my facebook news feed are much worse than that, and some are about thumbnail size. I think the iPod touch 4 can definitely take a passable photo, not great or anything, but it is definitely very passable. It is definitely comparable to your average run of the mill cell phone picture of 2010, unless you spend $$$$$ for a decent phone and contract.