iPod touch The Definitive "How Bad is the iPod Touch 4G Still Camera" Thread

[Alaerian]

BTW, your argument about having to bring along extra gadgets is a stupid one. You have all kinds of gadgets for convenience & convergence. OK, then. Let's see you take along a standalone MP3 player, a big laptop for browsing on WiFi, a webcam, a calculator, a portable gaming device, a mapping device, etc, instead of your iPod Touch. Oh, and don't "whine & moan" about it either.

No, I believe your argument is "a stupid one." The iPod Touch or iPhone is a jack of all trades, master of none. If I want to be able to do everything at once, I take my iPhone. If I want to be able to do one thing extremely well, I bring a separate device.
Sure, the iPhone has a calculator. Do I use it for my Calculus homework? No, I use my TI-89.
Sure, the iPhone can play games. Do I use it for a primary mobile gaming device? No, I use my DS or PSP.
Sure, the iPhone has a GPS system (although mine does not). Would I use it as a primary GPS? No, I have a Magellan.
Sure, the iPhone can browse the web. Do I use it for a primary internet browser or for taking notes in class? No, I use my notebook.
And lastly, sure, the iPhone (or iPod Touch) can take pictures, but do I use it as my primary camera? No, I use a high quality P&S.

To repeat myself, there are PLENTY of people that think the iPod Touch's camera is absolutely fine for quick snapshots - I'm not alone in this. I'm sorry you feel the need to throw a temper tantrum, but a solitary case does not the norm make.

 

[SlamJam12]

Sample at Apple Store

When I played with an iPod touch 4G at the Apple Store, I did not see much difference with the pictures on the iPod touch and my phone. I really can't say much about the video because I rarely use a video recording device.

 

[revelated]

When I played with an iPod touch 4G at the Apple Store, I did not see much difference with the pictures on the iPod touch and my phone. I really can't say much about the video because I rarely use a video recording device.

Looking at the photo on the device vs. looking at them on a computer makes a world of difference. Every photo will look "HD" on the iPod Touch's screen. Send that photo to a computer, view it in native size, then judge it. The reason that's important: most common reason to take these pictures is for websites or sharing via email on the computer.

 

[Dhelsdon]

I love how this thread is a huge argument between various members.

If someone is buying the touch, you would assume they've done their research so they should know what they are purchasing, if they don't .. Well they shouldn't complain about something that is what it is.

 

[spblat]

Ye cannae change the laws of physics!

Frankly I'm amazed that a device this slim has any camera at all, let alone one that can shoot HD video and perfectly decent web quality pics.

Here's a sampling of the best shots I found in the memory card of my kid's Nintendo DSi after we sold it to get him a Touch. I think you'll agree the Touch offers improved image quality.

 

[Dhelsdon]

That last pic is trippy, kinda cool!

 

[tokyopunk]

silly comparison from an obviously bored person

The idea is not to illustrate out-performance, but to provide a measure of just how bad the camera is so that people can decide if it's truly an issue for them or not.

fel10, thanks for contributing those additional photos. Great for some, the noise in every one of those pics would personally bother me though.

This is just a silly argument of comparing apples(lol) to oranges. Of course a .7mp pic is gonna look bad next to a 3 or 5 or 7mp pic. Regardless of the brand that are compared this is just a really needless comparison that is not helpful in the least. As far as making an informed decision about buying it, people should stick to true comparisons that are on par with one another, or better yet just realize a ".7mp" is gonna give bad pics when the industry norm these days are 12mp.

 

[quackerjack]

the discussion on both sides has validity from the perspectives of the people involved.

on the one side we have a group suggesting 'spend more money' and buy separates. separate gps, separate camera, separate web device, separate phone. while a better result may occur, this really defeats the purpose of the device itself, and who wants to carry all that schtuff?

on the other side we have a more budget conscious group hoping for something that isn't a toy priced at 'more than a toy'. let's recall this forum could be considered international with price points being more or less affordable depending on your borders.

personally, i see this as a probable extended upgrade cycle for market churn rather than a reasonable attempt to incorporate features well within technological means and price points according to teardowns and pricing to date.

unfortunately for me it's a dealbreaker barring an enterprising bit of software that may help produce better images with less noise than exists now (not including post processing), assuming that may even be possible.

/2cents

 

[peestandingup]

This is just a silly argument of comparing apples(lol) to oranges. Of course a .7mp pic is gonna look bad next to a 3 or 5 or 7mp pic. Regardless of the brand that are compared this is just a really needless comparison that is not helpful in the least. As far as making an informed decision about buying it, people should stick to true comparisons that are on par with one another, or better yet just realize a ".7mp" is gonna give bad pics when the industry norm these days are 12mp.

You're confusing quality with megapixels. Don't. That's what a lot of uninformed consumers do & part of the "megapixel myth". "Look, honey. This camera is cheaper AND it has more megapixels. Whatta steal!"

Lower megapixels doesn't = lower quality. Just a smaller sized image. Even a 1 megapixel camera is capable of taking good photos. Hell, some of the best photos I've ever taken to this day have been from cams that had less than 4 MP.

 

[Carouser]

2cents

A thread that could give people a general idea of what kinds of pictures the iPod Touch can take so they can make up their minds for themselves would be great. But this thread is titled "The Definitive 'How Bad is the iPod Touch 4G Still Camera' Thread" so it's pretty obvious what the point was. The OP didn't say "What kind of pictures can it take" or "Is it good or bad, you decide". The OP started off with "How bad is it? You decide", so the point of the thread was to have a cry about just how terrible the camera is, instead of letting people discuss whether it was good enough for them or not. It's skewing the discussion from the get-go, just as much as "How dumb is your dog, you decide" or "how awful is this car, you decide" would. The OP even said the point was "to provide a measure of just how bad the camera is" not "to provide a measure of the sorts of pictures the camera takes" when plenty of people find it satisfactory.

 

[afd]

Surely the main reason there is a camera on the touch is for facetime or uploading to youtube? Taking stills is almost an afterthought on apple's part. It's a video camera that happens to also do stills.

 

[revelated]

You're confusing quality with megapixels. Don't. That's what a lot of uninformed consumers do & part of the "megapixel myth". "Look, honey. This camera is cheaper AND it has more megapixels. Whatta steal!"

Lower megapixels doesn't = lower quality. Just a smaller sized image. Even a 1 megapixel camera is capable of taking good photos. Hell, some of the best photos I've ever taken to this day have been from cams that had less than 4 MP.

Exactly. That's why I provided different side-by-sides. I noted the # of megapixels as a reference point, but ultimately it's to compare the quality of the images.

A thread that could give people a general idea of what kinds of pictures the iPod Touch can take so they can make up their minds for themselves would be great. But this thread is titled "The Definitive 'How Bad is the iPod Touch 4G Still Camera' Thread" so it's pretty obvious what the point was. The OP didn't say "What kind of pictures can it take" or "Is it good or bad, you decide". The OP started off with "How bad is it? You decide", so the point of the thread was to have a cry about just how terrible the camera is, instead of letting people discuss whether it was good enough for them or not. It's skewing the discussion from the get-go, just as much as "How dumb is your dog, you decide" or "how awful is this car, you decide" would. The OP even said the point was "to provide a measure of just how bad the camera is" not "to provide a measure of the sorts of pictures the camera takes" when plenty of people find it satisfactory.

Why did I name the thread what I named it? We know it's bad. Everyone knows it's bad. The question is HOW bad. There are different levels of bad.

It's up to the reader to decide HOW bad, so I left it wide open and provided comparison shots against different camera types. The Palm Pre Plus is certainly no mega performer.

 

[quackerjack]

just thought i'd throw a bone out there related to my question of software adjustments potentially providing better quality:

http://www.ipodtouchfans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=313796

new app called 'clear cam' appears to make a difference, marginal, but better. has hope for similar undertakings later, and i'd expect a better version by these, or other, people soon-ish.

 

[peestandingup]

just thought i'd throw a bone out there related to my question of software adjustments potentially providing better quality:

http://www.ipodtouchfans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=313796

new app called 'clear cam' appears to make a difference, marginal, but better. has hope for similar undertakings later, and i'd expect a better version by these, or other, people soon-ish.

I saw that earlier & almost downloaded it. Then I thought it might only be good for stationary objects since it takes multiple photos & layers them overtop of each other.

I bet anything in any kind of motion it would be useless for. Still, better than nothing I suppose.

Anyone tried it? Care to post results??

 

[revelated]

I saw that earlier & almost downloaded it. Then I thought it might only be good for stationary objects since it takes multiple photos & layers them overtop of each other.

I bet anything in any kind of motion it would be useless for. Still, better than nothing I suppose.

Anyone tried it? Care to post results??

There's another app which probably does the same. Forget the name off the top of my head, but it works similar to Neat Image where it's effectively filtering the image. OK for distant or open shots, horrible for closeup or detail shots. I'd rather just load the image into Photoshop and run filters against it, but I really shouldn't have to do even that.

 

[kelving525]

Fooled around with Photoshop and a few camera apps...

The camera itself is poor, BUT the post-processing makes everything a little better.

AND MY PERSONAL FAVORITE... somewhat "artsy" and "dreamy." Yes, this photo was taken and edited in the iPod Touch.

 

[sagnier]

i

 

[sagnier]

I love how this thread is a huge argument between various members.

If someone is buying the touch, you would assume they've done their research so they should know what they are purchasing, if they don't .. Well they shouldn't complain about something that is what it is.

careful - thats the raison d'etre of this whole forum!

 

[SuperMacMan]

The best camera is the one you have with you

Too right!! My new 32GB iPt 4 is permanently glued to me, while my camera rarely leaves the house. Having it is brilliant - sure, the photos aren't great, but they're a memory of whatever it is you wanted a photo of, and it's pretty quick too.

 

[seong]

Here are some pics taken with my iPod Touch 4G.

 

[vanzantapple]

Nice pics for an iPod Touch.

 

[georgerussos]

Here's one I took today, it's pretty good, I think. Save it on your PC to see the actual quality.
My legs seem to be fat, they are NOT

 

[ingraman]

By pretty much any measure the 4G camera is bad. The pictures look similar to those that I could've gotten off my first cell phone (eg. 2003). That said, a bad camera is still better than no camera at all. I'll be waiting for the release of the 5G, since I'd still like a PMP with a decent camera.

 

[Invincibilizer]

This is the main reason I held of buying the 4g ipod touch months ago.

Due to the terrible camera in ipod touch 4g, I expect a decent camera in ipod touch 5g that can rival cameras that are in 2010 phones.

 

[wrinkster22]

the best camera is the one you have with you, and quite often for me it is an iPod touch. A printed 4 by 6 by an ipod touch is actually pretty darn good for something that small... the video camera makes up for it though

I took that picture of my fish with my ipod touch. Printed as a 4 by 6 it did look quite good, a tad fuzzy but oh well.