iPhone covered front to back with camera-related rumors
By Donald Melanson 
posted April 29th 2010 3:02PM
posted April 29th 2010 3:02PM
Well, here's a nice bit of symmetry to emerge from the Apple rumor mill in recent days -- some new purported details on both the rear and front-facing camera on the next-generation iPhone. The first, and more straightforward of the two, comes courtesy of The Chosum Ilbo, which is reporting that the next iPhone will pack a 5-megapixel camera supplied by LG Innotek. Details on it are otherwise pretty light, but the site says that LG has already started producing the "sophisticated cameras" at its plant in Gumi this month, with mass production supposedly set to begin in the second half of this year. The second rumor concerns the iPhone's front-facing camera, and comes after a bit of digging in the latest iPhone 4 SDK beta. According to MacRumors, the SDK not only includes an unfortunate bit of code that suggests video calls will be WiFi-only, but evidence that video chat will be integrated into Apple's Game Center as well -- exactly how remains unclear, although there's certainly no shortage of possibilities. Dive into the links below for the complete details.
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It's Chosun Ilbo, not Chosum Ilbo.
I should know, I'm Korean.
Figured this was too good to be true...video calls over wifi only?
What is the point of that?
When are they going to wake the fuck up and switch to Verizon?
AT&T SUCKS...we all know that, jesus.....
Don't really care about the 5MP but if it does 720p video with good framerate and quality then that will be more exciting.
My wife just got a free upgrade on a feature phone with a 5 mp camera. Amazing.
Droid Incredible with 8 mpx camera. Available now.
@shishi I want to see the photo quality compared before I start getting caught up in specs.
You can't judge a restaurant by how many seats they have.
WiFi only? Seriously wtf.... just when you think Apple is going to do things right.....
.....maybe I should have learned by now.
How am i supposed to actually fit this into my pocket...
@(Unverified) That's what she said.
How am i supposed to actually fit this into my pocket...
5megapixel? Welcome to 2006! Nokia N95 had that quite a long time ago, takes beautiful pictures and video.
Maybe if apple sells these unlocked in the usa I would buy one, otherwise I will not , its insane to have to "hack" your phone in order to unlock it, even when you own the phone!
It would be like buying a car that can only drive on 1 specific highway.
@Hydra
I hate that iPhones are locked in North America yet in other countries they sell them unlocked....I don't get it.
@Plazmic Flame They do sell them unlocked (for t-Mobile) here, just not on the street direct. They have the 3Gs at Buy.com, TigerDirect, and CompUSA
The only problem is that the 3Gs is pretty pricey.
@Hydra Nokia put emphasis on those cameras, while Apple focused on software. It seems like Apple made the right choice when you look at the trends indicated by charting the growth/shrinkage in each company's share in the smartphone market.
If LG is going to start mass products of the cameras in the "2nd half of the year" then that pretty much debunks the rumor that the iPhone is going to be released at WWDC in June.
@bdkennedy1
Although they said they won't be a full production, that doesn't mean they won't make an ample supply. Do you recall the iPhone 3G shortage? I think this phone will sell more than the 3GS just because most people with a 3G didn't see a need to upgrade and there were still some die hards with the original. I think a few people are looking to upgrade, especially if they've stayed true to their contract, it just might be the right time to upgrade.
Please let me use this for chat roulette
FYI -- One needs at least a doubling of linear resolution or film size to make an obvious improvement in picture quality. This is the same as quadrupling the megapixels.
A simple doubling of megapixels, even if all else remained the same, is very subtle. The factors that matter, like color and sharpening algorithms, are far more significant.
It's all a myth because the number of megapixels a camera has has very little to do with how the image looks.
I hope you posted this from an anon location to keep the iTroopers from battering down your door.
I dont get this....Nokia launches the N8 with a 12MP camera with Zeiss lens and it gets a 'meh' from Engadget whereas a 5MP camera of no name quality to be put in an iPhone gets a This-is-so-magical response from Engadget. hmmm..... :-?
Guys, am I blind or missed something, but what is that button on the side under the volume buttons??? Please, someone explain :))
@romaniCZE
that's to operate the zoom lens, which is shown here in its fully extended postion. It can also be fully retracted flush into the phone. Amazing.
I'm just hoping the new iPhone will have an OLED screen.
Hahaha just buy a camera I'd look like
an idiot with that just sayin that looks odd
this is the minimum, serious smartphone shall have it, but it is not the first time the iphones is not up to the standards, HDMI, TV out...
Thank God video calls are WiFi only - can you imagine 20 million people trying to video chat over 3G? Ouch.
Hmm, the iPhone is turning into a Dalek?
Someone get the Doctor on the phone! No, wait, not THAT phone--AAAAAAHHH!!