Is it possible to upgrade FaceTime camera? (iPhone SE)

[TantalizedMind]

I want an iPhone SE but the one single thing it's missing is the 5MP FaceTime camera.

Any way to buy a new/refurbished iPhone 6S camera part and have someone at an Apple Store or mall kiosk install it? Would it even fit inside the SE?

Thanks

 

[Applejuiced]

No, its not going to work.

 

[drysdale86]

Have you actually used it? Unless you're recording video its fine, works well for FaceTime and photos. Its a very small feature to write off a phone for. The battery life, 4K rear camera and A9 make it all worth it.

 

[maflynn]

Nope, I don't see that being possible. Personally, I've not been that worked up over that camera, and yes, I've taken some selfies with it

 

[GrumpyMom]

Is it possible to get a FT camera that doesn't do this to my nose? (This is a rhetorical question). It's this distortion that makes me hate the FT camera and selfies. My 6sPlus camera isn't as bad at it, but it still magnifies every pore and flaw. I'm no oil painting, but even I am not as ugly as my FT image. The back camera is kinder. I have noticed even bone thin people end up double chinned when holding the iPhone at a comfortable angle for Facetime. I'm really going to hate it if the Apple Watch gets a FT camera.

 

[3568378]

I've noticed this as well. That's why 1.2 megapixels of ugly seems more acceptable than 5--at least for me!

 

[Z3man]

I have a 6s and an SE and there is very little difference between the FaceTime cameras even though the specs say there is, the difference is hardly noticeable.

 

[Applejuiced]

Is it possible to get a FT camera that doesn't do this to my nose? (This is a rhetorical question). It's this distortion that makes me hate the FT camera and selfies. My 6sPlus camera isn't as bad at it, but it still magnifies every pore and flaw. I'm no oil painting, but even I am not as ugly as my FT image. The back camera is kinder. I have noticed even bone thin people end up double chinned when holding the iPhone at a comfortable angle for Facetime. I'm really going to hate it if the Apple Watch gets a FT camera.
View attachment 629456

Or perhaps you just have a large nose

 

[donlab]

I never understood why the lack of a 5MP front facing camera would matter when shopping for a phone until yesterday. I was visiting the Keukenhof gardens in NL with family and I saw so many people with selfie sticks taking pictures of themselves with the flowers. Of course then it makes sense to have a better camera.

 

[GrumpyMom]

Or perhaps you just have a large nose

Ooh, burn! Have you been hanging out with my "tween" and her pack of goofy insult comic friends?

 

[Applejuiced]

Ooh, burn! Have you been hanging out with my "tween" and her pack of goofy insult comic friends?

Lol
Mine is huge too so those front selfies make my nose look like an aircraft carrier

 

[TantalizedMind]

Have you actually used it? Unless you're recording video its fine, works well for FaceTime and photos.

I use the FaceTime camera on my 5S once a day for 10-15 min for video chat. It's not pretty. It's choppy and blurry. Selfies are also not HD.

The camera "works" but the pictures/video ain't pretty.

 

[v1597psh]

I use the FaceTime camera on my 5S once a day for 10-15 min for video chat. It's not pretty. It's choppy and blurry. Selfies are also not HD.

The camera "works" but the pictures/video ain't pretty.

Nobody cares on the other end about your camera. And FaceTime does not even support 720p. I got SE after using 5s for 2.5 years. And I must say that even rear camera hasn't dramatically changed over these years. Comparing side-by-side photos and videos, taken from these devices, there is not much of a difference. If you start to zoom-in photos, taken on SE, you'll notice noise all over the picture well before you start to see pixelization. Same thing with video. 60fps is noticeable, but 4k is just waste of space and marketing. Quality of video is pretty much the same, comparing to 5s. Just better stabilization and faster focus.

At the end of the day, I doubt that you'll be watching your videos and photos on a big high-res display, like Retina 5k, trying to see every pixel of your picture. Most likely you'll be posting your selfies to Instagram or Facebook, which will compress them down to ~1Mb size. So it's all up to you.

 

[Newtons Apple]

The people I FaceTime with every weekend can tell the difference in my 15" MacBook when compared to the image on my 6S+. They say the image from the iPhone is much sharper.

 

[dcpmark]

I use the FaceTime camera on my 5S once a day for 10-15 min for video chat. It's not pretty. It's choppy and blurry. Selfies are also not HD.

The camera "works" but the pictures/video ain't pretty.

I would think "choppy and blurry" has to do with the network connection, not the camera, which is quite capable of shooting video that is nether choppy nor blurry.

 

[Andres Cantu]

I still cannot understand why the iPod touch 6th generation got the iPhone 6's FaceTime HD camera while the iPhone SE was left with the 5s's. Can't be due to space, since the iPod touch is much thinner.

 

[Applejuiced]

I still cannot understand why the iPod touch 6th generation got the iPhone 6's FaceTime HD camera while the iPhone SE was left with the 5s's. Can't be due to space, since the iPod touch is much thinner.

The SE is the cheaper/less expensive model.

 

[got556]

I guess front facing cameras just don't get me that worked up. With that said, just make sure you have some light and it doesn't seem that bad.