Reiter's Camera Phone Report

Featured PostMy new weblog: "Reiter's Mobile TV Report"

I just started another weblog:  "Reiter's Mobile TV Report" (see below).  It's actually a subtopic -- albeit a huge subtopic -- of "Reiter's Camera Phone Report."

My BlackBerry Curve 8300 photo selected for Schmap Guide - East Coast

Schmap Guide has chosen one camera phone photo from my Flickr collection of camera phone images for their photo guide to the East Coast (see below).  I post some of my better camera phone photos on Flickr (I need to post some more!).

The Schmap Guide photo is part of a sculpture of heads affixed to a staircase (see below) inside the Torpedo Factory Art Center in the Old Town area of Alexandria, Va.  I shot the photo with a BlackBerry Curve 8300, which has a two megapixel camera, as I was wandering around Old Town specifically to take camera phone photos with what was then the new 8300.

I wrote previously in this weblog that the 8300’s beta and early commercial software had serious problems with the white balance when taking photos in bright sunlight.  But software updates and succeeding versions in newer BlackBerry models have significantly improved the photo quality in sunlight. 

The 8300 and 8320 take better than average two megapixel camera phone photos.  (My 8300 and 8320 photo albums.)  I’m often pleased with the results, although you can’t compare them to many phones with higher resolution cameras, such as the Nokia N82.

(Research in Motion gives me BlackBerry phones to test, as do many other handset manufacturers and cellular operators.  The Curve 8320 is my “must take” phone because of its superior QWERTY keyboard and e-mail capabilities, although I often also carry a high end multimedia phone, such as Nokia Nseries handsets.)

Thank you, Schmap

A few weeks ago I received an e-mail from the managing editor of the Schmap Guide who wrote that one of my Flickr photos was short-listed for inclusion in the Guide.  She asked my permission to use the photo if selected. 

I hadn’t submitted the photo or previously knew of the Guide, but of course I gave my consent.

There’s no money involved, but I am content with the glory.  So, thanks Schmap Guide for thinking my photo is good enough to be selected.

Case Western Reserve University students have mixed reactions to camera phone barcodes on campus

Case Western Reserve University's student newspaper, The Observer, has published an interesting article about the use of snapping camera phone photos of 2D barcodes to obtain information at the school (http://observer.case.edu/Archives/Volume_40/Issue_26/Story_2743).

Reactions were mixed, but many students weren't impressed with the barcodes' value. Two especially interesting points to me:

1. Students wondered why barcodes were necessary if the same information that would be provided by taking a barcode photo to access the Web simply could be provided -- or is provided -- on the paper (poster, advertisement, etc.) where the barcode was printed and

2. Students didn't like barcodes that didn't describe what information would be provided.

What makes sense

My view: A barcode isn't necessary if it's more appropriate to include the information directly on the document. Also, perhaps we'll find that barcodes are used much more when information about their use is provided.

On a movie poster, for example, the text above the barcode could say: "Get a discount coupon, theater locations, schedules and reviews."

Except in certain circumstances -- such as contests, treasure hunts, etc. -- people might need to understand why they should go through the trouble of snapping a photo and waiting for the download of information from the Web. That seems logical to me.

[Sent to TypePad via wireless e-mail with RIM BlackBerry Curve 8320.]

Director Spike Lee, with Nokia, to create cellular phone film from user submissions

The famous movie director Spike Lee will create a short film based on camera phone videos submitted by users, according to an article in The New York Times. The effort is sponsored by Nokia.

Anyone can submit a video -- to www.nokiaproductions.com -- and Lee, in conjunction with assistant directors, will review the submissions. Visitors to the Web site will be able to vote on the best videos.

Visitors also will be able to use the submitted videos to create their own mashups.

After the votes are in, Lee and his assistants will select videos to combine into a three-act film. Each act will run three to five minutes.

Lee's blog

The article notes the film's theme will be "loosely based on the concept of humanity." As part of the project, Lee will write a weblog that provides tips for filmmakers.

Nokia says the project isn't a "marketing gimmick" but, rather, highlights to concepts of social networking and entertainment. Well, of course it's a gimmick or, to be kinder, a marketing "strategy." But, to be fair, it also will illustrate social networking concepts.

The film will premiere in Los Angeles next fall. Nokia hopes to convince a cellular operator to distribute it, but so far no one has agreed, the article says.

[Sent to TypePad via wireless e-mail with RIM BlackBerry Curve 8320.]

N82 videos: Nokia discusses WiMAX/4G, multimedia hosting during CTIA show

I recorded a few videos with my Nokia N82 camera phone during the CTIA’s Wireless 2008 conference in Las Vegas.  I posted one video to YouTube and Vimeo and the second video just to Vimeo because it’s more than 100 MB and more than ten minutes, which is over the time and file size limits for YouTube.

At Wireless 2008, Nokia officially announced its WiMAX-enabled N810 Internet Tablet.  I got to play with it very, very briefly.  It’s almost identical to the N810, but the keys feel a bit nicer; they seem slightly easier to push.  Also, there’s a small “hump” on the back of the device that, I think, is where the WiMAX radio is located.

(I’ll be writing more about WiMAX in less than a week.  Stayed tuned.)

3G, WiMAX, LTE

The first video (Vimeo only; see below) is with Victor Brilon, Nokia’s senior product manager – home networking solutions – for convergence products, who discusses a variety of subjects, including bandwidth versus pricing, the HAVA player (that is similar to the Slingbox and works with the WiMAX N810), the relationship between 3G, LTE and WiMAX and open wireless networks.

Also participating in the conversation is Jeb Brilliant, the president of Brilliant Expos, who is rather plugged in (or “unplugged”) into wireless developments, and Mark Squires, Nokia’s director of communications for social networks, who is helping launch Nokia weblogs (more about that in another article). 

Jeb’s the one with the beard on the right and Mark’s in the middle.  Victor (on the left) does most of the speaking and is wearing a sports or suit jacket.

The video was shot in a meeting room at the Las Vegas Convention Center and the video quality is really rather good — when you’re viewing the original file in QuickTime.  The audio is good for the two participants closest to the camera — Victor and Jeb — but Ray’s voice is muted because he’s farther away. 

I have told Nokia executives — and would like to tell them again and again — that they’ve got to offer a better way to record audio, such as an optional adapter for an external microphone.

Ovi video

The second video, posted on YouTube and on Vimeo (see below), is with Serena Glover, one of the founders of the multimedia hosting/sharing/social networking site Twango that Nokia purchased and now calls Ovi.  Serena discusses capabilities she’d like Ovi to offer while she’s at Wireless 2008, such as being able to see photos and videos of friends/colleagues who are at the conference.

Serena also discusses distribution and openness, including sharing and viewing content without having to become a member of the site.  Rafe Blandford, the editor of the great All About Symbian Web site, does most of the talking with Serena.

As with the other N82 video I just posted, the video quality is excellent — if you’re viewing the original file — rather than the downgraded quality on the Web.  So, don’t judge the true quality of the N82 from what you see on the Web.

First video with my Nokia N82 five megapixel, 30 fps camera phone

Yesterday I posted some of my first photos from the Nokia N82 five megapixel camera phone, and very early this morning — when it was still dark outside and raining — I shot my first video with the phone (see below).

I shot it with the best quality (“TV high quality” and “video stabilization”) at 30 frames per second.  I didn’t get a manual with the N82, so I wonder if video stabilization reduces the quality in any way.  I’ll have to check. 

There aren’t too many parameters to set.  I could have changed the settings from “auto” to “night” and used white balance settings of sunny, cloudy, incandescent and fluorescent.

I could also have changed the color balance from normal to sepia, black and white, vivid or negative.  The N82 has a Xenon flash, that’s especially good for taking photographs.

Xenon versus LCD

But for shooting videos, another new Nokia camera phone, the N96, has two LCDs LEDs, rather than the typical one LCD flash or Xenon.  As I wrote last month when I was at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Nokia told me the two LCDs LEDs provide lighting that’s better for videos. 

The N96 will be commercially available later in the year.

First photos from my Nokia N82 five megapixel, Xenon flash camera phone

Courtesy of Nokia’s “blogger relations program” I have received Nokia’s new N82 camera phone with a resolution of five megapixels, a Xenon flash and video recording capabilities of 30 frames per second.  I received it Friday afternoon so I haven’t taken a huge number of photos, but I have established a photo album for the handset that includes about 30 photos.

I began taking mundane photos during the day, such as from above a creek with a couple of birds in Chevy Chase, Md. about a 20–minute walk from my house (see below).

But taking photos in relatively good conditions isn’t too much of a challenge.  So I ate dinner while I waited until it was dark outside.  I then took photos of some shops that are a five-minute walk from that creek, such as a photo of the outside of Tiffany’s (see below).

I took several photos of Tiffany’s windows.  Shooting through glass doesn’t always produce the best images (see below).  I might have shot the “red” window with a high contrast, but I’m afraid I don’t remember.

I also took several photos outside of an expensive women’s clothing store, Saks Jandel (see below).

For the photos of Tiffany’s windows and Saks Jandel, I used the “landscape” mode that is also designed for shooting through glass.

I’ll be taking many more photos during the weeks to come as well as testing the video recording capabilities.  I expect to take lots of photos and some videos during the CTIA’s Wireless 2008 conference in Las Vegas at the beginning of April.

U.K.'s News International explores QR codes to capture younger readers

The British news organization, News International, that’s owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., is exploring opportunities for adding QR (barcode-like) codes (see left) to its newspaper articles, perhaps within 18 months to 24 months, according to Marketing Week. 

The organization wants to capture more younger readers, and the immediate use will be for incorporation into advertisements. 

The QR code includes, for example, a URL. The code is photographed with a camera phone and transmitted to a server that returns information to the phone. 

The Sun pull-out section

This could include additional details about products, discount coupons, times for movies, ticket prices, etc.  In December 2007, The Sun included an eight-page pull-out section that included QR codes in advertisements from such companies as the betting firm Ladbrokes, Fox, Ford and British Airways.

“Ladbrokes, for example, used the code to give mobile users access to its Free Bet promotion,” the article says.  MocoNews.net discussed the December effort.

The Sun will include another pull-out section next month, Marketing Week reports.

International adoption levels

QR codes are a very big deal in Japan, where they are rather commonplace.  They also are generating some interest in Europe. 

In the United States, though, the use of QR codes or any similar barcode-type graphics that are photographed by camera phones, are virtually non-existent.  Several companies, such as Scanbuy and NeoMedia Technologies, have been actively promoting these efforts in the U.S., but it’s still very early days in the adoption cycles. 

There’s some good news, technologically, for camera phones’ ability to capture images that can be read by software.  The resolution of cellular phone cameras is increasing.  Even more importantly, phones are increasingly offering close-up capabilities that are necessary to capture a readable image.

Vodafone tests "Otello" search based on MMS images from German newspaper

From “Pocket-lint” I see that Vodafone in conjunction with a German newspaper is testing a new search service based on scanning images (see below).

A user transmits a camera phone photo and the search engine, Otello, searches for information based on the image.  “Pocket-lint” says the tests are being conducted with a German newspaper that provides additional information about articles that are photographed.

“Pocket-lint” says there’s no news about when or if the test will become a commercial service.  I can certainly see the value of this type of service, although it’s not easy for software to recognize a wide variety of images shot with cameras of varying degrees of resolution, image quality and close-up capabilities.

Other companies are exploring scanning/search capabilities for camera phone photos.  Mobot has formed partnerships with publications to provide information, such as coupons and discounts, based on images transmitted from phones.

Kodak hopes for camera phone success with smaller, five megapixel CMOS sensor

The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle looks at Kodak’s entry into the camera phone marketplace and its relationship with Motorola.

The newspaper, that extensively covers Rochester, N.Y.-based Kodak, writes that Kodak is developing five megapixel CMOS chipsets for camera phones.  Some time this year, Motorola is expected to offer at least one handset with a Kodak chipset.

The article says Kodak is “banking on camera phones appearing on the market by next year that shoot high-quality, five-megapixel digital photos.  Those photos would be due to a new line of inexpensive image sensors Kodak is starting to market.”

In February Kodak announced the world’s first 1.4 micron CMOS five megapixel image sensor, the KAC-05020.  Kodak says the new sensor can produce photos that are as good as or better than larger, 1.75 micron CMOS sensors.

Why it’s better

Kodak explains its redesign of traditional CMOS sensors:

“In a standard CMOS pixel, signal is measured by detecting electrons that are generated when light interacts with the surface of the sensor.  As more light strikes the sensor, more electrons are generated, resulting in a higher signal at each pixel.

“In the KODAK TRUESENSE CMOS Pixel, however, the underlying ‘polarity’ of the silicon is reversed, so that the absence of electrons is used to detect a signal.  This change enabled a series of improvements to the design and structure of the pixel that ultimately results in CMOS imaging performance that rivals that available from CCD image sensors.

“Light sensitivity in the new sensor is enhanced through the use of the recently announced KODAK TRUESENSE Color Filter Pattern, which adds panchromatic, or ‘clear,’ pixels to the red, green and blue pixels already on the sensor.  Since these pixels are sensitive to all wavelengths of visible light, they collect a significantly higher proportion of the light striking the sensor.

“This provides a 2x to 4x increase in sensitivity to light (from one to two photographic stops) compared to current sensor designs, improving performance in low light and reducing motion blur in action shots.”

Samples in the spring

Sample quantities of the new sensor are expected in the second quarter of this year, Kodak says.  They will be produced in Taiwan, the newspaper says.

The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle says other 1.4 micron sensors offer a maximum of three megapixels.

In the United States we’re seeing a fair number of two megapixel camera phones.  I think the highest resolution camera phone that’s available from a U.S. cellular operator is 3.2 megapixels.  Overseas, five megapixel camera phones are available from a variety of manufacturers.

Five megapixels if you pay for it

In the U.S., unlocked five megapixel camera phones may be purchased from, for example, Nokia.  However, they aren’t subsidized by any cellular operator and cost about $500 or more. 

I have a five megapixel Nokia N95, that’s a great handset.  I hope to get a new, more advanced Nokia camera phone in the near future.

Evernote beta searches camera phone photo text on computers, Web, phones

Erick Schonfeld in “TechCrunch” writes about the note-keeping program Evernote that has launched a private beta version for searching text in images — such as from camera phones — in Evernote’s client for computers, on a Web version and a Windows Mobile phone.

I have Evernote (not the beta version, though) and it’s especially useful with my Tablet PC for taking notes and storing them in one continuous file that’s easy to search.  You can also highlight information from Web pages and insert it into Evernote.

The beta version greatly expands the functionality for searching within images as well as being able to access the information in almost any situation, whether you’re looking at the notes stored on your desktop or laptop computer, using another computer to search your notes on the Web or searching your notes from a cellular phone.

Evernote has a video in QuickTime as well as in YouTube (see below) that does a good job of highlighting many of the functions.

For example, the video demonstrates searching for key words in a label on a bottle of sake (see below).

The video also shows searching for key words on a photo of a Virgin America ticket to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show as well as the word “Venetian” (i.e., Venetian Hotel in Vegas) that’s handwritten on a Post-it note (see below).

Expanding the usefulness of camera phones

Evernote opens all sorts of opportunities for using a camera phone to snap photos of, for example, business cards, train and plane tickets, receipts, signs, etc., storing the information and searching it on computers and phones.  Notes can be geo-tagged, if the cellular phone supports this capability.

By default all of your notes on the Web are private.  But it’s possible to share your notes.

Schonfeld quotes Phil Libin, the CEO of Evernote, saying, “The main idea of Evernote is to create an external brain.”

Changing behavior?

If Evernote’s capabilities to search text in images really works as well and as reliably as in its video, the software certainly will be extremely useful.  I’ve certainly written in this weblog about the value of taking camera phone photos of information you want to remember.

Schonfeld writes, “It is also a new behavior that won’t come naturally to many people.  People might look at you strangely if you insist on taking a picture of every single person in a meeting with your camera phone and their business cards. 

“But I’ve seen people do stranger things in meetings.  I could see Evernote being used incidentally at first and then the habit growing over time.”

How many times have you forgotten a person’s name?  It would be interesting if taking a photo of a person along with his/her business card would become commonplace.  Evernote also is working on the ability to search images based on their type and on facial expressions, such as sad or happy.

Developing mobile phone clients

In addition to its Windows and Windows Mobile clients, Evernote is developing software for the Mac and cellular phones using Java and Google/Open Handset Alliance Android platform and the Apple iPhone, the article notes.  The Evernote video uses an Android emulator on a Mac to demonstrate searching for “auto” and “collision” on a Post-it note with information about an automobile body shop (see left). 

I saw a version of this Android phone during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.  The software worked, although neither the handset nor the applications had much of a “wow” factor.  To be fair, they were early versions used to demonstrate hardware and software.