Next-Generation iPad With 1-Megapixel Rear Camera and Case Cover Proximity Sensor?

[bghoward]

If find these arguments kind of silly.

The iPhone 4 is $600-$700 device when not subsidized, how in the world do you expect apple to add a 10" IPS (possibly ridiculously high-res) screen, bigger battery, plus the same 5MP camera and undercut the iPhone by $100-$200?

They have to cut some corners and to me the camera is a no brainer. I'm not going to hold a 10" tablet up to take photos! I don't carry my iPad around in my back pocket either, so I don't really see it being used to capture those spontaneous moments either.

All the camera needs to do is capture 720p video for facetime. The one complaint I would make is that I would rather have a 1mp camera on the front as that is how I use facetime 99% of the time.

 

[akornstein]

I don't know what the fuss is about the rear camera. I would use it all the time! Think about the enterprise uses for this. I use my iphone to scan documents all the time and accessing them later. This is a great move for the ipad.

 

[Northgrove]

Megapixels are overrated. 1 MP ≈ 1024x768. You wouldn't use an iPad for your photo album anyway; it's using a form factor that would be a hideously awkward "camera". Hold that thing up and try to aim it at the pub when photographing your friends, and you'd be the laughing subject, lol. So the photos you'll likely catch is the occasional ones for publishing on Facebook and the web. And then 1 MP is more than enough for at least my needs. It's almost a full screen here on my 15" MacBook Pro.

And if you think I'm Apple biased, I'm saying the same all the time about people looking for 10 MP handheld cameras. Dedicated cameras. It's too much. Just consumes drive space. The sensor isn't good enough to warrant the possible print size.

If Apple pumped that camera to output 5 MP, the silly thing is that people would all be happy, even if it'd still use the same sensor as on this upcoming 1 MP variant.

 

[urbanlung]

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This has got to be a wind up so when it finely arrives it will be better than our fears. There areoads of uses for a camera facing away from the user. Real estate apps would benefit, medical apps, AR apps, general sales apps, crime scene apps, location Nd recee apps etc. Plus there is the competition to keep ahead of. It would be crazy not to give the next iPad a decent camera both front and back. And yes I am waiting for one.

 

[csjo00]

Why does iPad need a rear camera?

That's really what I was thinking.. I don't think I'd ever use a rear camera.

I might use a front camera, since FaceTime.. But I don't know of anyone with it yet, so pointless to me. Albeit it'll be nice to have once it becomes popular.

I really just want more RAM, and a higher resolution screen.

 

[absynth]

If find these arguments kind of silly.

The iPhone 4 is $600-$700 device when not subsidized, how in the world do you expect apple to add a 10" IPS (possibly ridiculously high-res) screen, bigger battery, plus the same 5MP camera and undercut the iPhone by $100-$200?

They have to cut some corners and to me the camera is a no brainer. I'm not going to hold a 10" tablet up to take photos! I don't carry my iPad around in my back pocket either, so I don't really see it being used to capture those spontaneous moments either.

All the camera needs to do is capture 720p video for facetime. The one complaint I would make is that I would rather have a 1mp camera on the front as that is how I use facetime 99% of the time.

Fully agreed. Finally some sanity around here. It doesnt make sense to have a VGA camera on the front and a 1MP camera on the back when 95% of the use, and for some people 100% of the use will be the FaceTime cam.

It is very unlike Apple to add features that arent really needed by most people.

 

[gorgeousninja]

Wait...

As can be easily seen by just a cursory glance at any of the articles on these forums there are a bunch of people that are going to knock Apple no matter what they do. From the screws they use, the amount of RAM, or the MP of the camera's, its's always for them wrong. They moan, they whinge, they froth, they hate. Rinse and repeat ad-nauseum. When I read the spec for the 1mp camera it made me smile as you know these bunch of socio-maladjusts will be wailing, and screeching about how Apple are deliberately trying to ruin their oh so important lives. Here's a hint people this is not a confirmed feature, and when it's announced the ipad2 will work just as flawlessly as they intended.. tho', now I'm kinda hoping that their intention is to go really retro - have a 1mp camera, a CRT monitor, weigh 30kgs, run off a diesel engine, and all held together with duct tape...

 

[Worf]

As several have pointed out before who needs a rear camera for a TABLET?! Next thing you know people will be asking for rear facing camera's with their Macs, PCs, Netbooks. Anything semi mobile. I am disappointed but i can live with it since the iPhone 4 camera is very good. Rear camera's were mainly just to appease the techies .

Also if this was a move to keep costs down and keep us from having carrier contracts from buying an iPad i can live with it.

I also think Apple made a decision between having a universal ipad with differences only in GB or having an iPad 'lite' and iPad Pro. It's clear Apple is going to keep their mobile product lineup integrated for a while before opening customizeable options up when buying this third category hybrid computer.

However now this puts more pressure on Apple to deliver with the High Res display. Hopefully this becomes the one time John Gruber is wrong.

 

[swarmster]

Fully agreed. Finally some sanity around here. It doesnt make sense to have a VGA camera on the front and a 1MP camera on the back when 95% of the use, and for some people 100% of the use will be the FaceTime cam.

It is very unlike Apple to add features that arent really needed by most people.

FaceTime doesn't transmit HD video, so it would be kind of wasted in the front. The HD is for recording/augmenting video, which is more often done with the back camera.

 

[poppypiggy]

1 MP is perfectly fine

A decent quality 1 MP sensor is perfectly adequate in most cases. Assuming there will be a 1 MP rear-facing camera in the next iPad, it will be HD video. I'm more interested in pixel size, sensor size, quality of the lens, etc. A 2 or 3 MP HD CMOS sensor would be cost prohibitive and overkill at this stage of the game.

I can think of many uses for one. In addition to bar code scanning, VR apps, etc. - imagine the usefulness in healthcare, for example. iPads are currently being field tested in the hospital where I work. Eventually, with a rear facing camera (a la face time), virtual assessments can be done. If one has a complicated/confusing case, point it at your client and send the live video quickly to another specialist for his/her impression. The iPad has the potential to help save lives.

FYI - take a look at this article regarding video sensors.

http://gizmodo.com/5725085/canons-b...cessary-pixels-to-shoot-more-incredible-video

 

[wiredx]

I dont see whats the big deal about just a 1MP camera for the ipad or even the iphone. If you're serious about photography get a real camera

 

[Porco]

This seems like a silly rumour to me. If not, presumably we'll see something like this:

Apple iPad (2011) User Guide

Pinch to Zoom

Using a pinching motion with your thumb and forefinger, you can zoom many screens on your iPad including browser windows, maps, and photos*

*Please note photos taken with your iPad's rear-facing camera may look really bad if you zoom them AT ALL because we were too cheap to give you any extra resolution. Sorry about that, but maybe consider the iPad (2012) if you like this one otherwise? Or perhaps we can tempt Sir or Madam with an iPhone?

 

[PJT]

As several have pointed out before who needs a rear camera for a TABLET?! Next thing you know people will be asking for rear facing camera's with their Macs, PCs, Netbooks. Anything semi mobile. I am disappointed but i can live with it since the iPhone 4 camera is very good. Rear camera's were mainly just to appease the techies .

As several people have pointed out before, people using it for enterprise solutions.

 

[meatballs]

1 MP camera, pardon my french but what the ****? They might as well leave it.

 

[Jaro65]

Why does iPad need a rear camera?

So I can use it as an optical scanner when in need, among other uses. But 1MP won't allow us to do a whole lot.

 

[Lesser Evets]

I don't know what the fuss is about the rear camera. I would use it all the time! Think about the enterprise uses for this. I use my iphone to scan documents all the time and accessing them later. This is a great move for the ipad.

HEY! THE REAR FACING IS STUPID! Y'UNDERSTAND? STOOOPID!

This thing is too heavy to lift. It's like, your arm will break in half when you hold up the whole 1.5 lbs!! THAT CAMERA IS DANGEROUS!!

/stupid nay-sayer

I agree with you. The rear camera is brilliant and I would use it all the time. The iPad is an all-in-one aside from lacking phone. It could practically be a video-camera platform or awesome, but at 1MP, the camera/photography side of it is sad. Let's hope Apple livens up this hardware soon.

Most people couldn't even BEGIN to understand how ANYONE would use the iPad. That same sort of lameness is inherent in the people who can't imagine how stunningly awesome this can be as a computer-video camera-camera-editing platform-internet posting bundle.

Once the hardware grabs the golden ring, I'd consolidate use of 4 or 5 different bits of tech in this one device.

 

[seanjs]

1MP makes sense to me. Don't plan on taking photos with the iPad, and only using for video conferences ala Skype/Facetime. Good move to keep the price down; I'll take pictures with my iPhone, thank you very much!

 

[splashnader]

I would really rather they just scrap the rear facing camera. I would rather they focus on increasing the screen resolution, which it appears that they wont be doing that either. I know there are many other practical uses for a rear facing camera in a tablet, aside from just snapping photographs, but I was hoping for larger improvements in other areas.

 

[iPadThai]

iPad2 = fail

Let me predict for you the next iPad2:

1) Same Resolution 1024x768, same EXACT SCREEN meaning same IPS LCD.
2) SAME PROCESSOR
3) SAME BATTERY LIFE
4) Added 1MP back camera WITHOUT LED FLASH OR ANY FLASH
5) Front camera same as iPod touch HD/iPhone 4
6) SAME SPEAKER except this time they cut it out on the backside so sound comes out with better stage presence.
7) Modified volume and mute switches
8) Thinner profile so apple can claim they have the thinnest device.

That's it....they will save it until they see honeycomb or whatever google toilet robot will push out and when that time comes, you will see apple step up and actually put something worthwhile into the ipad 3.

iPad2 details (albeit rumors) are pathetic. But it looks like we will be getting an iPad 1.5 model. At least with the 3GS, you get double the speed. I'm predicting they are just gonna keep the same ol' A4.

Look at the guys at apple - tim cook even saying we don't see honeycomb or rim's tablet as a threat/competitor at all...that right there speaks the truth about the ipad2.

I'm not getting iPad2 - I'm waiting for iPad3.

 

[WhySoSerious]

Let me predict for you the next iPad2:

1) Same Resolution 1024x768, same EXACT SCREEN meaning same IPS LCD.
2) SAME PROCESSOR
3) SAME BATTERY LIFE
4) Added 1MP back camera WITHOUT LED FLASH OR ANY FLASH
5) Front camera same as iPod touch HD/iPhone 4
6) SAME SPEAKER except this time they cut it out on the backside so sound comes out with better stage presence.
7) Modified volume and mute switches
8) Thinner profile so apple can claim they have the thinnest device.

That's it....they will save it until they see honeycomb or whatever google toilet robot will push out and when that time comes, you will see apple step up and actually put something worthwhile into the ipad 3.

iPad2 details (albeit rumors) are pathetic. But it looks like we will be getting an iPad 1.5 model. At least with the 3GS, you get double the speed. I'm predicting they are just gonna keep the same ol' A4.

Look at the guys at apple - tim cook even saying we don't see honeycomb or rim's tablet as a threat/competitor at all...that right there speaks the truth about the ipad2.

I'm not getting iPad2 - I'm waiting for iPad3.

This is 100% accurate. Take it to the bank.

 

[1984]

You can say that again.

No, seriously, keep saying it. Over and over. I need a break.

And yet you keep saying that megapixels don't matter ignoring how the camera used in the iPhone brings many more benefits such as backside illumination and auto-focus.

I have both the iPhone 4 and iPod touch 4 and the iPhone 4 wins hands down for video in indoor and low light situations. Yes, video. I just tested them side by side. There is simply no comparison between the two. The iphone 4 is an order of magnitude better. In fact the iPod touch 4 cannot even be considered real HD due to the level of video noise. It's awful.

There is also the matter of being competitive which is important with all the other tablets coming out. They could simplify things by using the same camera in the iPhone 4 and iPad 2 and get further bulk discounting by increasing their orders for them all while giving us decent quality and remaining competitive.

 

[1984]

Let me predict for you the next iPad2:

1) Same Resolution 1024x768, same EXACT SCREEN meaning same IPS LCD.
2) SAME PROCESSOR
3) SAME BATTERY LIFE
4) Added 1MP back camera WITHOUT LED FLASH OR ANY FLASH
5) Front camera same as iPod touch HD/iPhone 4
6) SAME SPEAKER except this time they cut it out on the backside so sound comes out with better stage presence.
7) Modified volume and mute switches
8) Thinner profile so apple can claim they have the thinnest device.

That's it....they will save it until they see honeycomb or whatever google toilet robot will push out and when that time comes, you will see apple step up and actually put something worthwhile into the ipad 3.

iPad2 details (albeit rumors) are pathetic. But it looks like we will be getting an iPad 1.5 model. At least with the 3GS, you get double the speed. I'm predicting they are just gonna keep the same ol' A4.

Look at the guys at apple - tim cook even saying we don't see honeycomb or rim's tablet as a threat/competitor at all...that right there speaks the truth about the ipad2.

I'm not getting iPad2 - I'm waiting for iPad3.

Sadly I think you may have hit the nail on the head. People kept saying Android would not catch up with the iPhone. Whoops. Now they are saying the same thing about the iPad. Of course they will make it "unreasonably thin" as Ive puts it and push form over function. "We can't use a better camera because the edges are tapered" Uh-huh.

 

[1984]

A decent quality 1 MP sensor is perfectly adequate in most cases.

Except the one they use in the iPod touch is rubbish. Absolute garbage.

 

[1984]

I dont see whats the big deal about just a 1MP camera for the ipad or even the iphone. If you're serious about photography get a real camera

The best camera is the one you have with you.

 

[cacophony555]

iPhone 4 vs iPod touch 4

The comparison images shown are only .3 megapixel (or less). The reason why the iPhone 4 looks so much better is due to the aspects that actually control image quality in a camera: physical sensor size, sensor technology, lens, and image processing algorithms. The marked difference here has nothing to do with the megapixel count of the two cameras. Megapixels are only useful for cropping, printing, or displaying at much larger resolutions.

The touch images suck because the sensor/lens/whatever is not capable of taking good quality images at the full resolution (.9 megapixel). This is not a fault of the number of pixels, but rather each pixel's ability to capture data (which comes down to the sensor size, sensor technology, lens, etc).