Video Calling/Front facing camera (Why)

[alexboy45]

I am wondering what all the fuss is about regarding the front facing camera. I know loads of people on various networks and using all different phones on a 3g network and have never made a video call. I personally don’t see the point. why would you want to see who you are calling. Unless you’re feeling a bit lonely at night

 

[design-is]

Valid point... Video calling has never really taken off anywhere as far as I'm aware.

However, one upside could be ability to take park in iChat meetings? (all I can think of at this early hour)

 

[ThunderSkunk]

I am wondering what all the fuss is about regarding the front facing camera. I know loads of people on various networks and using all different phones on a 3g network and have never made a video call. I personally don’t see the point. why would you want to see who you are calling. Unless you’re feeling a bit lonely at night

One possible reason is that image size and quality made it just about pointless on most phones.

You might see the point if you worked in design, or engineering, or architecture, or etc... or were deaf, or... Like most innovations, until something is done right, it can fail a hundred times and no one cares. The iPhone, on 3G, is probably the best platform for video calls. You might just see the point once you try it.

It's taken off all over Asia. ...but then they've had the technology five times longer than us too.

 

[netdog]

I rate video calling right up there with mucking up my display's screen with fingerprints so that I can have touch control on my desktop or laptop computer.

FWIW, video calling has been around for years as a home solution. Nobody seems to want it.

 

[Phil A.]

Maybe video calling has never taken off because it's expensive and the implementation of it is poor on other phones (in a similar way to how web browsing on phones never really took off before the iPhone).
Video calling is great for people like me who spend a lot of time away from home on business: I have a 9 year old daughter and she loves to be able to see me when I'm away. At the moment, we do it via iChat but it would be even better not to have to get the computer out to make a call!

 

[alexboy45]

all fair points. i am just the person that calls someone because i dont want to see them. i might as well go round to their house but that is me. i also never understood the webcan craze either.

 

[LiveForever]

Video calling is over rated and nobody does it. My wife and I tried it when we first had our 3G phones four years ago and soon realised it was a waste of time.
Its not just the size of the picture its impractial most of the time. If you are walking or on a train the last thing you want is to accept a video call.

Strangely enough we have skype and never use our web cam. Although my brother is in the UK and we are in Australia after a few times we stopped the web cam. You can communicate more freely without having to look at or be looked at.

It's also very intrusive ( I'm not talking about close family) as you can maintain a degree of seperation and privacy you don't get with a video phone call. Usually you want to protect your personal space .

No Front facing camera was a good move by apple, just glad they didn't play the spec ticking game.