Next iPod touch may use 3.2-megapixel back camera
updated 02:10 pm EDT, Fri July 9, 2010
Apple may use older, slimmer camera for iPod
The momentum behind a camera-equipped iPod touch grew on Friday as a rumor now suggests it will have a 3.2-megapixel camera and not the five-megapixel camera mentioned by a retailer before. The sensor would behave much like that for the iPhone 3GS and could be necessary, as the iPhone 4's camera is larger and could be too large to include along with a front camera, if at all.
The tip to 9 to 5 Mac doesn't have more on its own, but it's noted that the 3.2-megapixel sensor would be a way of upselling customers from the iPod touch to the iPhone. Dropping the sensor depth could likewise drop the price of the MP3 player, which Apple has been keen to emphasize. Last year, Apple left the base iPod touch with previous generation hardware to keep it at the $199 point rather than upgrade it at the earlier $230.
A lower-resolution camera might preclude 720p video recording as the sensor may not have the performance to capture HD movie, but it would allow FaceTime and still photography.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jul 2006
Apple's counterproductive marketing
Apple marketing team is clueless if it thinks that leaving out features will 'upsell' many of us to a iPhone. The products are very different. Many of us don't want a pricey cell phone contract that drives the cost of an iPhone into the $2000 range, or we don't want to go with AT&T under any circumstances. And for that freedom, we're willing to carry about a Verizon/T-Mobile phone in addition to some sort of productivity & gaming & music device. What we want are iPhones without the costly phone, even if that means a slightly thicker case (for a better camera) and especially if it means a slightly larger screen for better gaming or user input. Camera--yes. GPS--certainly. Gyroscope and compass--maybe. A deliberately castrated iPod touch to sell us a phone contract we don't want--no, no, no.
Apple is actually hurting sales with these stupid policies. Although I needed a better laptop, I endured my low-end, slow-as-a-slug Wallstreet for several years because I refused to get a iBook that Apple was refusing to ship with easily created drivers that would allow a separate, non-mirrored display. They wanted me to 'sell up.' They ended up not making a sale at all.
Like a lot of people, I hate being jerked around. Not supporting a Bluetooth keyboard on my 2-gen iPod touch makes me less likely to move to a 3-gen. I'm not going to pay $250 for a 99 cent feature. Instead, I'll raise the 'before I buy again' bar higher. Don't give me Bluetooth on my existing device (despite the fact that it can handle a Bluetooth stereo headphone), and I won't upgrade until I can get a GPS, and a compass, and Bluetooth 4.0, and a much better screen. And all for a very good price.
Two can play this game of features.