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Wired Speculates about why the iPhone doesn’t do video

Posted January 13, 2009 10:54 AM by Chris Seibold
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If you’re rocking the iPhone you can’t record video. That doesn’t mean the iPhone doesn’t have the built in performance to record video, there are several apps that will do the job once you jailbreak your iPhone, it just means that Apple hasn’t seen fit to release an app that records video and hasn’t allowed a video recording app in the App Store to record video.

Which brings us to the question of why. Why can’t the iPhone record video? It isn’t physical limitations and it isn’t that no one records video with a phone (ask Michael Richards) so it has to be something else. Apple isn’t saying why the company won’t allow video on the iPhone and that leads to speculation. Some speculate that it is because of movie piracy, others imagine that it is a nefarious plot to keep the camcorder companies in business.

At Wired Eliot Van Buskirk has a different take. Eliot opines that the reason the iPhone doesn’t record video is the same reason that the iPod doesn’t record audio: because users might make something crappy. There are other reasons given like how much more effort Apple would have to put in the thing to minimize the crappiness of user recorder media but Eliot’s position is summed up by this:

It’s true that Apple discourages piracy in several ways, but that’s not the primary reason Apple’s portable products don’t record audio and video, iPhone included.  It’s because Steve Jobs can’t abide the thought of someone using his products to make something that looks or sounds like crap.

A novel argument that’s for sure but one that really doesn’t hold up to much scrutiny. Apple also makes the Mac and the iLife suite of software. If you’ve ever seen a creation made with Garageband or iMovie you know perfectly well that no matter how good the tools are more often than not people turn out pure shinola. Heck Apple even goes the extra mile with MAil giving you the option to turn really dreadful email using templates in the latest version of Mail. Steve can clearly abide people using Apple devices to crank out the most boring crap known to man. For evidence of this look at last weeks Keynote.

So what is the real reason video isn’t on the iPhone? We have no idea, maybe piracy, maybe privacy, maybe it really is that SJ can’t stand the thought of iPhone made home movies. It really doesn’t matter because video recording should be on the iPhone. That it isn’t is an outrage. People know video recording on cell phones sucks but they are willing to put up with it because cell phones are so easy to lug around. So whatever the reason we confidently say: Get over it Apple and give us video recording on the iPhone! Um, please.

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Comments

  1. Here Here!

    Posted by Szblogger on January 13, 2009 1:53 PM

  2. I don’t agree with the point that the reason is because “Steve Jobs can’t abide the thought of someone using his products to make something that looks or sounds like crap.” If that was the case then he wouldn’t have put a regular camera on the phone either because it doesn’t take that great of pictures either.

    Posted by Omar C on January 13, 2009 6:03 PM

  3. This is the dumbest reason I ever heard.  There are stupid and useless applications in the app store created by people.  The person above makes a good point also with the attached camera.  That is the worst camera (no flash, zoom, stationary lens for blurry close shots) with no included touch up software.  For someone to say it’s to prevent people from making bad videos is just stupid.

    Posted by Whaat on January 13, 2009 6:52 PM

  4. The camera is fine bro! We need video and flash and voice dialing and mms messaging!!!!!!! Cmon Steve!!!!

    Posted by sIK on January 13, 2009 9:55 PM

  5. I suspect one reason might be battery life. Apple seems afraid people will find out how crap the battery life is compared to how much it’s needed. Like, if I start doing a lot of surfing on 3G, I can’t get thru half a day without a recharge.

    The battery life really is insufficient for all the things we want to do with our iPhones. And video would be just another battery sucker.

    Posted by Chris Howard on January 14, 2009 6:04 AM

  6. The camera is crappy, but people should stop expecting dSLR or even P&S quality pictures out of an imager the size of a toenail clipping.  Phone cameras are great for capturing notes or “look where I am!” photos, but unless there are major breakthroughs in optics, physics dictates that small cameras suck. 

    There’s a reason people still use medium format cameras, even with 20+ megapixel SLRs becoming the norm for pros.  The image resolution doesn’t matter much (2 megapixels is enough for good 6x8’s and acceptable 8x10’s…National Geographic cover images have been shot on 3MP cameras), but the _size_ of the sensor and lens matters a ton.

    The N97/N95 have better cameras, but those things are big thick bricks with enough space to jam autofocus and whatnot in there.

    It’s a phone.  Certain compromises have to be made. 

    WRT video, I suspect they just couldn’t get a nice responsive experience out of the camera in there.  All the 3rd party video apps are totally laggy in anything but bright sunlight.

    Posted by Patrick on January 14, 2009 8:53 AM

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