LightSurf Technologies has just announced a "Power Media Processor" (PMP) capability that enhances photos from camera phones that are processed through the company's imaging enhancement software. I spoke to Dave Kumec, a marketing guy at LightSurf, and he explained that LightSurf optimizes photos and videos in two major ways.
The PMP stores a profile of every camera phone offered by a cellular operator and then optimizes the photo based upon the characteristics of each handset, such as the resolution, sensor, display, white balance, distortion, etc. A Treo 600, for example, takes and processes photos differently than a Nokia 6600.
The PMP determines the camera that's sending the photo to the LightSurf server, optimizes the image and stores it on the server. The software also optimizes videos.
The second optimization method
Once the photo is optimizes for storage on the server, it's then transmitted to the intended device, such as another handset, PDA or computer. This is where the second optimization occurs -- and this function has been available since LightSurf created its platform. Only the PMP is new.]
The LightSurf software determines the device that's receiving the photo and transmits the photo with the optimal characteristics for each device. For example, a desktop computer would receive the largest size photo with the highest resolution.
A handset would receive a smaller, lower resolution photo because a larger, higher resolution photo wouldn't make any difference on the phone's small, low resolution LCD.
Yes, but..
Optimization of photos is great. Who could argue against it? Well...me!
A few weeks ago, sparked by Dr. Bill Koslosky's experiences printing photos with his Treo 600 using Kodak's Bluetooth and infrared enabled Picture Maker printing kiosks, I, too, tested the printing at my local CVS pharmacy.
The photos I took with my Treo 600, stored on the handset and then uploaded via infrared to the kiosk, didn't come out too badly. It's VGA quality, after all, but it will be perfectly acceptable for many people -- especially kids who just want memories rather than Ansel Adams quality.
And, the Treo 600 produces mediocre photos. Other camera phones, such as the Nokia 3650, do a better job...within the limits of VGA. The Nokia 6600 that C-Summit attendees received for free takes okay photos, as my textamerica and Yafro moblogs illustrate.
(Note to self: When getting a new camera phone, don't forget to change not only the resolution to the highest setting but also the picture size to the largest setting!)
Don't give me optimization
Although the originals of photos stored in my Treo 600 printed good enough, other photos did not. As a test, I retrieved photos from my photo album on Sprint PCS' Web site. Sprint stores a copy of every photo sent through its (LightSurf's) MMS platform.
The photos downloaded from Sprint's server to the Treo 600 were "optimized" for my handset.
That means they were about 10K (QQVGA?) because the Treo's display is low resolution (that I expect will be improved with the next version). As a result, when I printed those photos, they were muddy blurs.
Under my control
What I want is user-defineable optimization. Most times, automatic optimization should be fine.
But if I want to print a photo, and Sprint's system (LightSurf's) decides to send me a lower quality image, I want to be able to override the default setting and request the "best quality" image transmitted to my device.
Completely do-able
This override capability is completely do-able and LightSurf can implement it. It's up to LightSurf's customers -- cellular operators -- to request it, though.
I think we will see a version of this capability offered as part of the cellular operators' services for ordering prints of photos from the handset.
For example, if you transmit photos to the operator's preferred photo processing company (Kodak/Ofoto, Fuji, etc.) the photo should be optimized for printing, regardless of whether the original is on the handset or retrieved from Sprint's server.
My request
What I want, though, is the ability to download to my handset the best quality photo in order to print it with any photo processing lab.
That means if Sprint, for example, has a deal with Fuji, but I want to print a photo using the Kodak kiosk, I should be able to request the largest, best quality photo from Sprint's server to be downloaded to my phone so that I could upload it (or save it to a memory card) for printing from a Kodak kiosk, even if Kodak doesn't have a deal with Sprint.
(Kodak doesn't have a deal with Sprint.)
