WIRED: iPad 2 cameras lame

[Dr Mordrid]

WIRED via CNN....

Sub-megaixel cameras back & front are one of its main selling points? Sounds like the $100 minimum premium over iPad 1's new lower price. $150 if you get an iPad refurb, is barely worth it. But yet several market reports are that both are putting a major hurt on laptop sales.

[VJ]

Ad I see it, the camera in the iPad2 is more of a gadget to support some functions (facetime, augmented reality things, ...). For these purposes (and to take photos to be sent over the internet), that resolution is adequate. I don't see anybody holding up his iPad to make photo like one can do with a camera or a mobile phone. But marketingwise it looks bad (altough the fact that they can say 720p makes it sound better ).
That being said, a friend of mine tried an android app for augmented reality (identifying buildings and locations), and he says he felt really stupid having to hold up his phone all the time. He said it would make more sense if the camera was at the top of the device for this.

[Dr Mordrid]

I guess after having a 3mp (2048x1536) in my iPhone 3GS I thought the iPad 2 would have at least that. Guess not

[VJ]

Yes, but the iPhone is a better formfactor to use as a camera. The webcams in most laptops are also more limited compared to those in phones, but nobody seems to care about that.
I do wonder when we will see a true camera with phone functionality: current photo-oriented phones still lack many things like decent zoomlenses and some form of manual control.

[UtwigMU]

Yeah, I can just picture myself taking a call on a DSLR with 20cm lens attached.

Since most cell connections are not good enough for HD cybersex videochat, submegapixel is probably enough. And even cheap point and shoot will take much better pictures than iPhone or iPad.

[VJ]

Ok, I meant more like those compact cameras. They take far better pictures than a mobile phone. And given that there are actually mobile phone wristwatches, I guess the technology is here to make something about the size of a compact camera that takes decent pictures (and has optical zoom...) and has a mobile phone part...

[Helevitia]

The cameras are horrible. Much worse than I anticipated. The rear camera is only useful for video which somehow looks OK.