We asked for cameras on the iPad 2. Apple threw us a bone and complied. But, why the alleged poor quality? Does it matter?
Don’t get me wrong, Steve. We’re all glad you answered the call. After all, we can now FaceTime each other and do our part to keep turning back the clock to the lost art of personal, face-to-face connection.
The Specs, or Lack Thereof
Ah, it’s so nice to be taken back to the days of shoebox-sized digital cameras, 3.5 inch diskettes, and resolution of a megapixel or two. Unfortunately, as Wired Magazine reports on CNNTech, the rear facing camera of the iPod 2 comes in just shy of 1992, less than one megapixel, .092 to be exact.
For movies, presumably FaceTime, too, the 1-ish megapixel is adequate, but it really stinks if you want a quality still image.
Does the iPad Camera Matter?
But, how badly do I need a good quality camera on my iPad? I made a list of my top-five daily uses for it, considering also the soon-to-come features, just to see:
- Daily task review with the Toodledo app
- Google calendar for meetings and appointments
- Email checking/sending
- Social media (twitter, Facebook, etc.)
- Blog writing/posting with iA Writer and WordPress
Even FaceTime doesn’t make the top-five. In truth, camera usage will be much farther down the list. Everything I need, I have already. I better stop discussion right there, or I’ll find no reason to upgrade. In short, there’s no mention of capturing priceless family photos, or movies, with a device the size of a dinner plate. That isn’t meant to disparage the device as a whole, just iPad’s potential as a go-to camera.
You may argue, as did Wired, that when a person forks over $500 to $700, the least Apple could do would be to give them a good iPad camera, too. I agree, they should. I suppose we should adopt the old standard activist line and “be the change we want to see.” So, let’s all go be good cameras.
Image courtesy iPad 2.
