What’s the deal with these camera phones? Do you take a picture just to send to someone with another camera phone or can they store several pictures and have a facility to down load them? Are the pictures of any quality? I am betting that they are a gimmick to sell some sucker two cell phones where in reality he doesn’t really need one cell phone.:wally
You can take pictures and send them via Multi-Media Messaging (MMS) to other phones. MMS messages are like SMS, but with the capacity to transmit pictures and sound. Many phones that don’t have cameras can still receive and send MMS.
You can take pictures, store them on your phone memory or download them to a desktop computer. You can use a photograph as your phone screen “wallpaper”, or configure a particular photo to flash on the screen when an individual or group of individuals call.
Some camera phones are able to email pictures.
The pictures are of a pretty crappy quality – not unexpectedly. At this time, they’re a novelty feature.
I just got a new Docomo Foma Videophone (N2102V) that takes pretty decent pics - 800x600 resolution. I can then email them wherever or use the IR link to send them to my PC or whatever. A friend just got one that takes 1024x768 res shots. Really nice. Mine even has an extreemly simplified Photoshop program in it that can edit or touch up the pics.
Gimmicky? Sure, but it’s also proved useful for work. I can take pics of equipment at remote sites and email them quickly without lugging around a laptop + digicam and hoping for an internet connection.
It was reported in the papers a few days ago that a sports centre in the UK has banned people from taking these phones into the changing rooms because they might be used to photograph somebody undressed . Also I have heard that some offices and factories have also banned them because they might be used for industrial spying .
I have a Nokia 3650, and am thrilled with the quality of the pics.
I can email them to friends “on the go” which is good considering most of my friends are on-line-people and will get the message right away. The quality is otherwise good, here is a quick example.
I can also grab videos with it, and send via email or MMS. Obviously it doesn’t replace a high-end digital camera, but for me the advantages of having a cam built into my phone (which I bring everywhere anyhow) are fantastic. It is all about what you want/need. I will eventually be getting a “proper” digital camera so that I can make prints from photos that I take, but that will not be something I take with me everywhere, my phone will be.
Loooove The Phone. Search on my name and “nokia” for numerous raves about the features of my Nokia 3650.
FTR, the quality from the phonecams varies quite a lot. In the tests in magazines that I have seen, the 3650 consistantly scores highest.
You also know that you can play games on your phone. A TV reporter stated that the cell phone companies just LOVE you to access these things, as you are eating up minutes that are costing you money.
Here in Japan where these cameral phones have been for a while now, shops are experiencing “digital shoplifting”, particularly of books and magazines. People will just snap pictures of the pages, pictures or information they want and not buy the mag. There are now signs all over bookshops asking customers not to do this, but I see it almost every time I go shopping, even in my tiny country town.
In Europe and the US, the best camera phones are still limited to 640x480 resolution, which is still a gimmick in most regards, but could be a lifesaver if you need to take a few snapshots after an accident, for insurance purposes, when you see an old friend quite unexpectedly, or spot a sexy ass walking in front of you that you just must record for posterity.
Within a year or so, the megapixel phones that are just coming out in Japan right now will trickle down to Europe and the US, and camera phones will be just as useful as standard digital cameras for most casual purposes. A digital camera is the most logical device to unite with a cell phone in my opinion.