Apple iPhone might be revolutionary, but perhaps definitely not for wireless imaging

Apple's new iPhone looks like a beautiful device and it could indeed be a revolutionary cellular phone (see left), but it certainly doesn't appear to be is not so hot from a wireless imaging standpoint.  Indeed, the iPhone could be is a wireless imaging disappointment in some respects.

One reason for the disappointment is that for such a high-end gee-whiz handset, the iPhone's camera isn't such a big deal.  It's two megapixels (see below right).  That's nice, and most camera phones in the United States are still VGA or 1.3 megapixels.

Two megapixel camera phones are rare in the U.S., but it's certainly not revolutionary.  Verizon Wireless for months has been offering a 3.2 megapixel camera phone.  For many users, the iPhone's two megapixel camera might be just fine.

This depends, however, on the quality of the image.  Resolution is just one criteria.  The quality of the components and software makes a huge difference.  I've seen some VGA camera phones that do as good a job as 1.3 megapixel handsets.

No flash or cover

In addition, from what I've seen of the phone and viewed of the specifications, there doesn't appear to be a flash.  Granted, most camera phone flashes are rather poor, but they can make a difference in low lighting conditions. 

Also, it's possible to use a more powerful flash in a camera phone, such as a Xenon flash, that does improve the brightness of the lighting.

Another problem -- although this isn't such a big deal -- is there doesn't appear to be any lens cover.  I'm sure there will be many, many cases for the iPhone that will cover the lens, but how easy will it be to take a photo in such a case?

Camera phone lenses can get dirty and scratched when they aren't protected.

No zoom

The iPhone doesn't have any zoom capability.  To be fair, the digital zoom is almost always useless.  Except in rare situations when you can't get closer to the subject and the digital zoom software is good, you're much better off using an image editing program to do the equivalent of zooming.

The iPhone could have included an optical zoom.  The Nokia N93 (that I have on my desk, courtesy of being in Nokia's blogger program) has a 3x optical zoom.

Optical zooms make camera phones a bit bulkier and more expensive, and Apple is very concerned about style.  An optical zoom would make the iPhone larger/thicker. 

But optical zooms are the future of camera phones.

Video recording?

In addition, I haven't seen any specifications that indicate the iPhone can record videos.  During his presentation yesterday at the Macworld Conference and Expo, Apple's CEO Steve Jobs spent no time discussing the camera's capabilities and said nothing about video recording.

It's possible the phone can record video and it's just not listed in the specs.  I sent an e-mail to two Apple public relations people asking for clarification, but I'm sure they're so busy that I'm unlikely to get an answer quickly.

If the iPhone doesn't have video recording capability, that's pretty pathetic.  With all the excitement about camera phone videos and, more importantly, the genuine value of being able to record videos, for the iPhone not to have that ability is ridiculous.

But since I don't know for certain, I'll just to wait for some official word yea or nay.

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Update: The iPhone cannot shoot video recordings.  This was confirmed to me via e-mail by an Apple analyst relations executive.

I am flabbergasted.  That's absolutely ridiculous.  I can't imagine why Apple would eliminate that feature -- a feature that is not only fun and useful to have now but one that is becoming increasingly important as the world realizes the value of the "citizen videographer."

Does Apple think it is too difficult for users to shoot video?  Does it think it's an unnecessary frill?

Impressive as the iPhone appears, its lack of video recording makes it a wireless imaging dud.

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EDGE versus HSDPA

There has been a lot of discussion about the fact that the iPhone -- at least the first version for the U.S. is based on Cingular's GSM EDGE data protocol, not its much faster HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access).

During Jobs' demonstration at Macworld, he used WiFi -- not EDGE -- to demonstrate some of the features, such as Web browsing.  It would have been quite interesting to see the crowd's reaction when Web pages loaded v-e-r-y s-l-ow-l-y via EDGE.

EDGE is fine for sending and receiving text e-mail and it's often not bad for downloading Web pages.  But for Web pages that are graphic-intensive, it can takes minutes for a single download.

WiFi

Sometimes I've canceled the download because it was unbearably slow or the browser couldn't "digest" the page -- something iPhone's bundled Safari browser  is likely to be much better at doing.

If you're at a WiFi hotspot, it's the fastest way to go.  It's also possibly the the cheapest way if you're at a free hotspot or pay a modest monthly fee for unlimited service, such as from Boingo or T-Mobile.

We'll have to see what Cingular (see below) charges for data access on the iPhone.  Currently, it has an amazingly large number of confusing data plans.

Asymmetric rates

EDGE, like other cellular data protocols, is asymmetric so the download speed is faster than the upload.  Uploading a large photo, for example, could take a while.

This will depend on a variety of factors, such as the amount of compression of the file in the handset before it's uploaded.  Also, files may be uploaded in the background while you're doing other things with the iPhone so you wouldn't notice uploading a single large photo.

Photo organization

The specifications of the camera notwithstanding, the iPhone's software seems really nice, that is, duh, only to be expected given Apple's excellence in software.  The main photo album menu is clear (see left), you can view 20 thumbnails of photos on the large screen (see right) and it's easy to scroll through the images.

Photos look great on the 3.5-inch screen that has a resolution of 320 x 480 at 160 pixels per inch.

In addition, the images automatically reorient to a landscape or portrait mode depending on whether the handset is held horizontally or vertically.  You can also zoom in on images by using your fingers with sort of a "pincer" motion -- opening or closing your fingers to zoom out or in.

The finger taps are indicated on the photos by the white circles you can see on the screen.

Any image editing software?

It's also very easy to select a photo to use as a wallpaper, including positioning the image left/right, up/down and to zoom it in and out (see left).  You can see exactly how the photo will look before you set it to be your wallpaper image.

I don't remember seeing anything in Jobs' presentation or on the Apple Web site about any image editing software bundled with the phone.  With Apple's existing excellent, easy-to-use image editing software, I'd hate to find out that some software isn't bundled with the handset for such tasks as removing red eye, cropping, exposure, contrast, etc.

iPhone = iWon't

While much of the rest of the world is slobbering over the iPhone -- a handset that I, too, really like from what I've seen -- I cannot recommend it (at least based on Jobs' webcast and reading the specifications) for those of you who care about wireless imaging.

A cellular phone that can't record video is a crippled device.

If you care about wireless imaging, the iPhone isn't for you (unless you want it as a second phone).  The Nokia Nseries and the high end Sony Ericsson handsets with 3.2 megapixel cameras, video recording capabilities and basic image editing software are far superior as total wireless imaging devices.

Also, wireless imaging (for me at least) also includes mobile television.  That's another subject.

I'll write more about the iPhone in the very near future.

Comments

[Ramon M Salizar]

Check it, the iPhone can actually record video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2L0cNPMSDXs&feature=related

i dunno what all the fuss is anyways coz recording video is pretty useless to me. so whatever i dun care

[ali]

hi.. i jus got an iphone.. as all is said dat ders no video recording which is true.. der is no option for forwarding messages too.only reply or send.have to chek out more stuff which is not provided in the iphone..

[Alan A. Reiter]

Hi Ben,

The iPhone syncs through iTunes. iTunes stores contact information, photos, browser bookmarks, etc. You sync your iPhone by inserting it into the cradle that connects to your computer's USB port.

As far as I know you have to go through iTunes to transfer all operations and information on your computer. If I'm wrong, I'd certainly like to know. I don't have an iPhone so I'm not absolutely sure.

[ben]

does the phone/cell have a usb connection so i can transfer my data to the phone

[Alan A. Reiter]

Hi Mark,

Yes, I think it's disappointing that the iPhone doesn't have video recording capabilities either. I thought perhaps it could have been added at the last minute, but none of Apple's advertising videos show recording so I guess it won't be available.

Many people find that they use their cellular phone's camera and video recording features more than they thought -- once they have it.

The only hope is that because Apple intends to make the iPhone a major strategic segment of their business, new versions will be coming so video recording might be available in a later generation.

[Mark Gillis]

It's a bit of a disappointment for me to not have video recording capabilites on my phone. I never expected to really care about this feature before (given the limits of resolution) but when I got my Sony Ericsson Z520, I found that I use it more times than not.

To have an expensive phone such as the iPhone without this feature is a deal-breaker for me. I will wait and see if they do provide for it at release (which is in 6 days) but I might check out the other phones listed in this thread instead.

[Lis]

Thanks for the information on the lack of a video camera on the iPhone. That is USELESS to me. I was so excited to get the new phone but with no video capabilities, I won't be buying one!

[Jay Patell]

If the iPhone had a 3.2 MP or even better a 5 MP camera, (w/h 30 fps video) it would have been a serious competitor to the new Nokia N95. Since the iPhone and the N95 are in the same price range, I think the N95 blows the iPhone away.

[anthony]

wow..no video,camera sucks as well,was going to get it,but no thanks.they should have had video..is this 2007 or 1978..peace

[Alan A. Reiter]

Hi Steve,

Yes, it is incredible that the iPhone does not, at this writing, have video recording capability. But since virtually every camera phone component package offers video, there's certainly a chance Apple will offer this feature when it launches.

Or perhaps it will be offered -- along with HSDPA -- in Europe. (I'd really like to know why HSDPA -- that's already in many major markets in the U.S. -- won't be available for the U.S. launch.)

However, as I wrote, for cellular subscribers for whom the camera is important, there are many better choices than the iPhone, including Sony Ericsson and Nokia.

Sony Ericsson's high end phones might produce photos that are a bit better than Nokia's N Series, and Nokia might produce better video than Sony Ericsson. Overall, though, both are far superior to what the initial specs are for the iPhone.