Cameraphones - Resolution
Skip contentResolution is a measure of how good a photograph the digital camera can produce, and this is defined as the number of pixels (or individual dots of light) that make up the image. The quality of the photos that can be taken with a cameraphone ultimately depends on the resolution of its sensor, and this usually means that a greater number of pixels will produce better quality and definition in the pictures. If the number of pixels is inadequate, then poor resolution will soon become obvious by the “graininess” of the photographs, which is most easily recognised from the characteristic jagged edges that appears on diagonal lines in a picture.
If the potential buyer checks out the resolution figures quoted for cameraphones, it can soon be seen that a range of pixel sizes is currently available for the different models. However, some sizes appear to have become accepted as standards, and this should give the potential buyer at least some idea what sort of picture quality is to be expected.
The CIF standard was a common resolution provided in the earliest cameraphones, and it is still available in some current models. With a CIF quality sensor the user will be able to take photographs with the format of 352 x 288 pixels, which provides a total of 101,376 pixels to make up the image. Although this resolution may be adequate for viewing on the phone’s own display, it will soon appear inferior when enlarged on a PC monitor, or if sent to a printer.
A better standard of resolution is offered by VGA cameras, which can provide pictures with the format 640 x 480 pixels, and this standard results in a total of 307,200 pixels, i.e. three times the number of pixels of a CIF picture. In 2004 most cameraphones are provided with VGA cameras, and this seems to have become a commonly available resolution. Although VGA quality pictures will appear more satisfactory on a PC screen than CIF, they are still not good enough for photographic quality pictures, if prints of a reasonable size are required.
The current best resolution cameraphones in Europe and the USA offer in the region of 1.0 to 1.3 megapixels (1,152 x 864 or 1,280 x 960 pixels), and at this resolution the pictures should be good enough to print off at the standard 6 x 4 inch photographic print size. However, in comparison with the average dedicated digital camera, which may provide a resolution in the region of 3 to 5 megapixels, the one megapixel cameraphone still falls significantly short on picture quality. Resolution is a factor that can only get better over time, as the technology and customer demand continues to advance.
Another aspect that should be understood by potential buyers is that most phones will offer the user a choice of maybe 2, 3 or 4 alternative resolutions when they take a photograph, so that the image can be tailored for a particular purpose. The reason for this may be simply to allow the user to take more pictures with the available phone memory, as there will always be a trade-off between the quality of a photograph and the amount of memory space required for its storage. The lower resolution settings should also be adequate for images sent by MMS and for the thumbnail portraits saved in the user’s picture phonebook. However, when the photographs are required for printing, or they must show the most detailed picture possible, then the camera will need to be set at its highest possible resolution.
