iPod touch Touch 4G - 0.7 megapixel camera??

[Outrun1986]

Yeah I think different cameras for different purposes, if you want to take a real picture use a real digital camera (I won't be selling mine anytime soon just cause I am getting this device) and if you want a quick pic for facebook or twitter then the iPod's camera should suffice. As mentioned before its a pain to upload a huge image from a real camera to facebook or twitter since you have to edit and resize the images.

Even if the competitors cameras (on multi use devices) boast higher pixel counts that does not mean image quality will be much better.

 

[madmaxmedia]

The still photo capability sucks, end of story. I think the resolution is not much better than my old Motorola RAZR (although I am guess image quality will be better than the RAZR.)

Yeah we all know you can take better photos with a real digicam. But everyone was raving about the iPhone 4 camera for a reason too. The camera in the new iPhone is good enough to substitute for one of those little pocket cameras you bring along for casual snapshots. This camera, eh not so much...

It's obviously a lot better camera than the last iPod Touch had, but people were hoping for the 3MP with AF camera from the iPhone 3GS. Oh well, maybe next year. Overall this was still a great update for the iPod Touch.

 

[tadad1]

now overlay this issue with the new iOS version announced yesterday which builds in the HDR feature - an image capture and algorithm technique intended to boost image quality. this feature suggests a dedication to image quality, which would be at odds with supplying only a 0.7MP sensor for the outward-facing camera! a cheap sensor would produce horrible results and undermine Apple's messaging around the Touch's emphasis on image quality (eg, HD video, retina display, etc).

As much as I would love the HDR feature on the touch I don't think the touch is going to get it with the iOS 4.1 update. If you look at the iOS 4.1 Software Update page for the iPhone it is a photo featured part of the update information however for go to the same information for iOS 4.1 and the touch and it is not only is it not featured but it is not even mentioned.

With the camera being a new and desired feature to the new touch line-up and one with such huge potential to encourage more punters to part with more cash I am sure that Apple would not be making the mistake of downplaying such features if it was indeed using the same 5MP sensor as the iPhone 4.

 

[KameronBriggs]

Why do people complain about every single thing?

 

[Phil In Idaho]

Why are people willing to settle for garbage when Apple has proven its capable of much much more?

 

[gta50419]

hey forum members, my 1st post!

to begin with, allow me to thank you for calling my attention to this question around the outward-facing camera on the new iPOD Touch. the current Apple spec sheet at this time does indeed appear CONFUSING with regard to photo quality, and upon reflection, I figured it must be misstated/misleading.

so, i just spent about 30 minutes with the Apple Tech support for iPODS/Touch, and after they checked at length with several experts at their end, they were able to ASSURE ME that the OUTWARD-FACING camera is indeed a 5MP sensor! YEAH!

so basically the still pics will be in 5mp but it'll only come out in the size of 960 x 720??
that's great news if true

in that case thee pics will look amazing like these (960x720 pics)

 

[uberamd]

Why are people willing to settle for garbage when Apple has proven its capable of much much more?

Show me another company with a $229 MP3 player with 8GB of flash storage, a retina-resolution display, dual cameras, wifi, and a speaker. Please, I'm dying to see the competition in this market. The Zune HD?

 

[Canon Rock]

Why doesn't a mod just close this thread...people and their mp myth.

I assure you that WHEN you take a photo on the touch, the photo will be displayed as your "HD" photo that YOU GUYS ALL WANTED. As mega pixels doesn't take a whole count in photos (as several posts by a lot). It will look good on the touch itself but when you resize it, it will look bad <_<

However, if you got a photoshop program like myself, you can retain the quality of the image, even when resizing the image.

There problem solved, now yall go download photoshop and stop complaining.

 

[bmb012]

Thought experiment: I take a picture with my D80 and downsize it to 960x720. You take a picture with your iPhone 5 at full resolution.

Which looks better?

Obviously the lens and sensor size isn't going to be as big as an DSLR's, but you guys are complaining that images larger than the display aren't big enough?

With the tiny lens, you're not going to be seeing more pixels, you'd be seeing higher resolution blur.

 

[Canon Rock]

Well from looking at the face time call (photo) on the new ipod touch. From the Apple site, look at the quality, it looks good... GOOD ENOUGH FOR A FKN PHOTO.

I'm sure most of you aren't a photography so stop complaining, just go buy the damm thing and use it.

 

[Canon Rock]

Thought experiment: I take a picture with my D80 and downsize it to 960x720. You take a picture with your iPhone 5 at full resolution.

Which looks better?

Obviously the lens and sensor size isn't going to be as big as an DSLR's, but you guys are complaining that images larger than the display aren't big enough?

With the tiny lens, you're not going to be seeing more pixels, you'd be seeing higher resolution blur.

Depends, what program did you use to resize it? If you used photoshop, the images will retain its original quality, (unless you make it so small)

If you didn't use photoshop and use like paint or something, the photo you took with your better camera will indeed look better than iphone.

 

[Outrun1986]

Show me another company with a $229 MP3 player with 8GB of flash storage, a retina-resolution display, dual cameras, wifi, and a speaker. Please, I'm dying to see the competition in this market. The Zune HD?

Exactly, there is simply nothing that compares, I am not even aware of another MP3 player that has a camera other than this one. I heard samsung might produce one under the android platform but I can't imagine it having the support and resale value of an apple device. Not that resale value is something to mention but Apple devices simply have a very high resale value and if a product is unheard of, it basically gets swept under the rug and no one cares about it so it will be harder to sell when you want to get rid of it.

The issue with any competitor is going to be support. I mean look at Microsoft's support with the Zune HD, it gets nearly no support, no good apps and no good games. Apple has all that and more. I never hear anyone talking about it, its basically dead and people spent just as much on it as an iPod touch costs. I would take a chance on a new device from another manufacturer however it would have to be much lower priced than Apple's and have more features which is extremely unlikely.

I cannot go on just promises anymore, sure microsoft promised the Zune would be everything and more and those that purchased it got basically none of that. Companies like to deliver false promises just so you will buy their product and that is something I learned over the years.

I am a really picky consumer too, I am not brand loyal and I don't even own any apple products, and I think the touch 4 is a good product. It will be my first apple product and its totally worth it.

 

[Fulaeetoy]

I thinks it's been capped. a hack or modd should do it.

 

[seanickson]

will this camera be sufficient to use camera-based apps such as ones that scan documents?

 

[vanzantapple]

I hope it does end up being a higher resolution camera but I think it is what they say it is now.

 

[iMichaela]

Am I the only one wondering what the pictures will look like on the retina display?

 

[gta50419]

Am I the only one wondering what the pictures will look like on the retina display?

most likely it'll look pretty good on any ipod screen..because it's small
but it'll look horrible if you put in on a computer screen/take it off the ipod

 

[joepunk]

I managed to get an ok 4x6 print from a 640x480 image I took. It is ok because I had the camera on the small image setting by accident and the subject was a band playing at my University in the dark.

So, for really basic stuff and as long as there is enough light I see nothing really wrong with the image size offered on the Touch. In todays world of 2, 3, 4, 5mp etc cell phone cameras I get by just fine with my 1.2mp for quick shots of really basic things.

 

[Peterson8765]

It's all about quality guys, not resolution.

 

[WiseDuck]

If they gave the iTouch everything that iPhone has then there would be no reason to get one. You'd pay another 200 bucks + subscription costs for 3G.

I'm fine with this. Hell, I had no idea it could take still photos until now. I didn't even expect it to have HD video recording so it was a pleasant surprise. Definitely getting one of these asap.

 

[ViViDboarder]

You guys who say resolution doesn't matter are full of it.

Hate to go to extremes here but show me a 10 pixel picture that looks better than a 10MP picture.

There needs to be a balance between Quality and Quantity. If the iTouch takes a FANTASTIC quality THUMBNAIL SIZED image it's absolutely worthless to me.

I often like putting pictures up full screen on my 21.5" iMac or using them as a wallpaper. A lot of times it's after cropping photos too. This resolution is a big issue to me.

I'm not a fool who's thinking it's going to replace anything either (I have an EVO 4G and a Nikon D3000), but I'd at least like it to be useful. If it turns out the pictures have enough pixels to comfortably be viewed full screen, then I'll eat my words about the iTouch in particular, but resolution DOES matter and so does sensor quality.

 

[battlekid]

To the guy who called apple, they know nothing. They told me that the new iPT has "128mb" of ram. LOL! Apple needs to train their sales staff better.

 

[Phil In Idaho]

Show me another company with a $229 MP3 player with 8GB of flash storage, a retina-resolution display, dual cameras, wifi, and a speaker. Please, I'm dying to see the competition in this market. The Zune HD?

Perhaps you missed the part where this thread is about the camera. Apple set itself up here. This camera under performs the first iPhone camera, heck it under performs a Fischer Price toy digital camera. If people are pissed, and they are, Apple only has itself to blame.

 

[kernkraft]

This resolution is an insult. The obvious reason why Apple sticked an unnecessarily low resolution unit in there was to keep the iPod Touch away from damaging iPhone sales, especially following Antenna-gate.

It's not just about resolution, of course. The chip matters, but most importantly, you need a good lens. Of course, hopes shouldn't be high about these in a mobile device - that's why AT LEAST the resolution should be better than a 6 years old budget phone's.

Honestly, this thing with Apple that you just cannot get what you reasonably expect for a lot less is getting tiring.

 

[Phil In Idaho]

Hum... It seems not to bad, doesn't it?

Again, these photos do look great! But they were taken with a camera that has a much higher resolution, much larger sensor and a very sophisticated lens and then down-sampled to meet the pixel dimensions. This is not - repeat - not the same as shooting a photo with a super tiny sensor and lens.

In fact these photos look better than what's possible off of the iPhone 5mp sensor. I think we have to be careful here to compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges. Fact is none of us really knows what the photos will look like - but we can make a few guesses based on current camera technology and the fact that Apple has gone out of its way to "bury the news" on its iPod Touch still camera.