HDR for iPad - what for?

Posted:
in iPad edited January 2014
Hey all!



Apple's going to add HDR support for iPad in iOS 4.2. However, I am wondering, what use will it be on the iPad which has no camera? Same question goes for earlier iPod touch models.



Thanks for any advise!

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 12
    mr. memr. me Posts: 3,221member
    They're pictures. You look at them. Do the math.
  • Reply 2 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. Me View Post


    They're pictures. You look at them. Do the math.



    Sorry, but I am not quite getting it... Steve Jobs clearly showed that HDR is meant for the camera to shoot three photos with different exposures, then the HDR would process into a single one.
  • Reply 3 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Artemiy P. View Post


    Hey all!



    Apple's going to add HDR support for iPad in iOS 4.2. However, I am wondering, what use will it be on the iPad which has no camera? Same question goes for earlier iPod touch models.



    Thanks for any advise!



    Yup... This is why people think the next version of iPad will definitely have a camera of some sort.
  • Reply 4 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nvidia2008 View Post


    Yup... This is why people think the next version of iPad will definitely have a camera of some sort.



    What does that have to do with ANYTHING?!



    There's support for making phone calls in 4.2. The next iPad must have telephony hardware!
  • Reply 5 of 12
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,309moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Artemiy P. View Post


    Apple's going to add HDR support for iPad in iOS 4.2. However, I am wondering, what use will it be on the iPad which has no camera?



    I reckon they mean support for the .hdr format. Digital cameras can shoot .hdr files but you can't see them on location. With an iPad, you'd be able to import those files and preview them on the IPS display.



    On the iPhone, the HDR support would mean taking multiple exposures to get a wider dynamic range but the iPhone seems to merge them itself into a .jpg and if so the HDR support on the iPad has no bearing on HDR support on the iPhone. If the iPhone gets the ability to store .hdr photos then it would mean you could view those on an iPad.
  • Reply 6 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin View Post


    I reckon they mean support for the .hdr format. Digital cameras can shoot .hdr files but you can't see them on location. With an iPad, you'd be able to import those files and preview them on the IPS display.



    Marvin, this makes perfect sense, thank you very much for the explanation!
  • Reply 7 of 12
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin View Post


    I reckon they mean support for the .hdr format. Digital cameras can shoot .hdr files but you can't see them on location. With an iPad, you'd be able to import those files and preview them on the IPS display.



    On the iPhone, the HDR support would mean taking multiple exposures to get a wider dynamic range but the iPhone seems to merge them itself into a .jpg and if so the HDR support on the iPad has no bearing on HDR support on the iPhone. If the iPhone gets the ability to store .hdr photos then it would mean you could view those on an iPad.



    Dunno. Seems like a bit of a stretch. Jobs has just been talking about the HDR feature in iOS, then casually drops that the iPad also will bet getting the HDR feature, and we're supposed to assume he's using two distinct and completely different meanings of "HDR"? And one of those meanings is a slightly out of left field image processing feature involving DSLR imports?



    It seems more likely that Jobs either misspoke (because he was rattling off new iOS features during the iPad bit and just forgot to edit) or the next iPad is getting a camera.



    I think the latter is inevitable, the only surprising thing would be if Apple released a new iPad to coincide with the release of iOS 4.2. OTOH, Apple's never publicly stated that the iPad would adhere to the iPhone's once a year release schedule, so a late fall refresh wouldn't be a total shocker. Moreover, Apple's now had a good long look at Android's trajectory and know full well that a slew of Android based tablets are about to hit the market. They may have a somewhat more proactive schedule for getting hardware out there than they did last year at this time.
  • Reply 8 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    Dunno. Seems like a bit of a stretch. Jobs has just been talking about the HDR feature in iOS, then casually drops that the iPad also will bet getting the HDR feature, and we're supposed to assume he's using two distinct and completely different meanings of "HDR"? And one of those meanings is a slightly out of left field image processing feature involving DSLR imports?



    It seems more likely that Jobs either misspoke (because he was rattling off new iOS features during the iPad bit and just forgot to edit) or the next iPad is getting a camera.



    I think the latter is inevitable, the only surprising thing would be if Apple released a new iPad to coincide with the release of iOS 4.2. OTOH, Apple's never publicly stated that the iPad would adhere to the iPhone's once a year release schedule, so a late fall refresh wouldn't be a total shocker. Moreover, Apple's now had a good long look at Android's trajectory and know full well that a slew of Android based tablets are about to hit the market. They may have a somewhat more proactive schedule for getting hardware out there than they did last year at this time.



    I realized I am not actually interested in a camera on the iPad, since I will be getting a new iPod touch for this purpose.



    Another thing is, November is 2-2.5 months from now, and then you add 1-2 months after that until the iPad appears in my country. Should I wait and spend 4-5 months without an iPad, while I can change my life a bit earlier? Don't think so. Still inclined to get one next week.
  • Reply 9 of 12
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Artemiy P. View Post


    I realized I am not actually interested in a camera on the iPad, since I will be getting a new iPod touch for this purpose.



    Another thing is, November is 2-2.5 months from now, and then you add 1-2 months after that until the iPad appears in my country. Should I wait and spend 4-5 months without an iPad, while I can change my life a bit earlier? Don't think so. Still inclined to get one next week.



    Yep, rule of thumb is that if a device does what you want now waiting for an update that might do something else is a bad strategy, since you'll probably be waiting forever.



    The one exception is when an update is right around the corner and you have some assurance that it will feature something you really want/need. OTOH, iPads have a pretty good resale value, so you could do what a lot of people with Apple gear do-- get what you want now and if you feel compelled to upgrade later get a goodly percentage of your purchase price back before buying the next model.
  • Reply 10 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    Yep, rule of thumb is that if a device does what you want now waiting for an update that might do something else is a bad strategy, since you'll probably be waiting forever.



    The one exception is when an update is right around the corner and you have some assurance that it will feature something you really want/need. OTOH, iPads have a pretty good resale value, so you could do what a lot of people with Apple gear do-- get what you want now and if you feel compelled to upgrade later get a goodly percentage of your purchase price back before buying the next model.



    We've discussed this and I can see that my wife needs an iPad too, but I won't be getting two iPads immediately. I think will get one now, and next-gen later. Perfect strategy, I think hahah :-)
  • Reply 11 of 12
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,309moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    Dunno. Seems like a bit of a stretch. Jobs has just been talking about the HDR feature in iOS, then casually drops that the iPad also will bet getting the HDR feature, and we're supposed to assume he's using two distinct and completely different meanings of "HDR"?



    Same meaning really just different contexts. iPhone is taking HDR photos, iPad is viewing/manipulating HDR photos. Both processes need support for manipulating multiple exposure images so it's the same software API. The iPad would just give you the control over the blending process rather than the iPhone doing it for you.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    I think the latter is inevitable, the only surprising thing would be if Apple released a new iPad to coincide with the release of iOS 4.2.



    I don't think that's very Apple-like. I just don't see people holding up a slate to take a picture or shoot a video. In some ways it would be cool as you get a huge viewfinder but it would just look weird. A front-facing camera I can understand but not a standard camera.



    Concerning a hardware update, the iPad could use 512MB RAM and Facetime but I think they'll draw out the updates over a longer period of time. They are probably struggling to keep the current shipments up without adding new features so soon. If they didn't want to milk it, they would have put those features in from the start.
  • Reply 12 of 12
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin View Post


    Same meaning really just different contexts. iPhone is taking HDR photos, iPad is viewing/manipulating HDR photos. Both processes need support for manipulating multiple exposure images so it's the same software API. The iPad would just give you the control over the blending process rather than the iPhone doing it for you.







    I don't think that's very Apple-like. I just don't see people holding up a slate to take a picture or shoot a video. In some ways it would be cool as you get a huge viewfinder but it would just look weird. A front-facing camera I can understand but not a standard camera.



    Concerning a hardware update, the iPad could use 512MB RAM and Facetime but I think they'll draw out the updates over a longer period of time. They are probably struggling to keep the current shipments up without adding new features so soon. If they didn't want to milk it, they would have put those features in from the start.



    A rear-facing camera on the next gen iPad is needed to support new iPad-centric augmented-reality apps. Most everyone on these forums assumes the iPad won't have it because it would look stupid. Think again!
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