[keithypts]

i have been finding some barcodes in my stuff, but my playbook camera cant focus them due to their size, i dont really know about other tablet cameras focusing, but i thing rim can do better in it

[FF22]

It is not a very good "macro" camera. I think if you back off from the subject it might work a bit better although the image might start getting too small. What are you trying to do with the bar codes?

[goku_vegeta]

i have been finding some barcodes in my stuff, but my playbook camera cant focus them due to their size, i dont really know about other tablet cameras focusing, but i thing rim can do better in it

That's because the PlayBook has a fixed focus camera, this variant is the EDoF (Extended Depth of Focus). This Camera type is also found in the Bold 99xx series and Curve 93x0 series.

[pididipop]

I don't know what your issue is with scanning bar codes because I am able to scan bar codes. I took my Playbook to a Dbacks ball game in Phoenix recently and got some excellent zoomed in pictures and video (with stabalization on). The Iphone people with me were very impressed, especially with the video.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9800 using Tapatalk

[gregorylkelly]

Fixed Focus lenses have a couple benefits over EDoF lenses, but for the most part EDoF lenses are better.

[kbz1960]

Back off some and take the picture. Then you can pinch zoom in on what you want. Good lighting is needed also.

[alnamvet68]

Interesting subject matter + "sucky" thread title = 1 estrella.

[urbanmx]

The camera is hit and miss half the shots look great the other half don't. I am no photographer though.

[kstock]

EDoF (Extended Depth of Field) is a fixed focus lens system. It uses clever physics and programming to allow clear focus over a greater range of distance. However, it is not capable of "macro" photography, meaning that if you get nearer than *about* a foot the image will start falling out of focus, and will get worse the nearer you get. This is the nature of this type of lens. Think about looking at a mountain range in the distance... Vast areas of it will appear clear to you - even features that are miles apart. Now hold up a pen about 3 or 4 inches in front of your face.... If you focus on the pen, then everything behind and in front of it will be out of focus, even if there is only an inch difference.

The advantage of EDoF in a tablet/phone camera is that it allows you to take pictures more quickly, and the greater depth of field is good for taking pictures of landscapes/cityscapes, groups of people etc, as it means that you won't have the people/objects in the foreground and background out of focus, while the people/objects in the midground are in focus. Auto-focus cameras allow for photographing objects within a foot or so, and also allow for a little bit of artistic creativity (e.g. portraits where the subject is in focus, and the background is blurry).

However, the size of a phone or tablet camera reduces the available options to manipulate things such as aperature, ISO, and shutter speed, which means that effectively using an auto-focus camera is very limited as well. For example, with a high-end compact or SLR camera you can adjust the aperature in order to increase or decrease depth of field. (Same principal that allows people to see more detail during the day, when there is more light available and thus our pupils are smaller than at dusk when they are larger.) Without that aperature control, an auto-focus phone or tablet camera (such as the one found in the 9810) has a limited range of depth of field that can only be "altered" by moving closer or farther from a subject.

Bottom line: Both EDoF and Auto-Focus have their drawbacks, and which one is better is completely dependant on the type of pictures you take. In making a camera small enough to fit inside a phone or tablet you will HAVE to make sacrifices, and, as the saying goes, you can't please all of the people all of the time.

[dave1701]

I would be pleased if it had the camera that my Tour 9630 has.

[kstock]

I would be pleased if it had the camera that my Tour 9630 has.

According to the specs the 9630 has an auto-focus lens. I'm quite impressed with the auto-focus camera in my 9810 as well. For the type of pictures I take with my phone it's great. The EDoF of the PlayBook does have an advantage in video capture, as the extended depth of field means that more of what you're filming is going to be in focus. (Unless you're trying to film ants from a few inches away )

As long as you're aware of what the physical limitations of each are, they both function surprisingly well when you consider the size vs. a (D)SLR.

[FF22]

According to the specs the 9360 has an auto-focus lens. I'm quite impressed with the auto-focus camera in my 9810 as well. For the type of pictures I take with my phone it's great. The EDoF of the PlayBook does have an advantage in video capture, as the extended depth of field means that more of what you're filming is going to be in focus. (Unless you're trying to film ants from a few inches away )

As long as you're aware of what the physical limitations of each are, they both function surprisingly well when you consider the size vs. a (D)SLR.

Funny you should mention that. Here's a shot with my 9930 (I did prefer the focusing in my 9650/Bold) that I took about a week ago. I don't know what the meal was but they were nuts:

[goku_vegeta]

According to the specs the 9360 has an auto-focus lens. I'm quite impressed with the auto-focus camera in my 9810 as well. For the type of pictures I take with my phone it's great. The EDoF of the PlayBook does have an advantage in video capture, as the extended depth of field means that more of what you're filming is going to be in focus. (Unless you're trying to film ants from a few inches away )

As long as you're aware of what the physical limitations of each are, they both function surprisingly well when you consider the size vs. a (D)SLR.

9360? As in the Curve 9360?

The Curve series doesn't have the autofocus camera, it's got the EDoF camera like in the Bold 9900 series

[apengue1]

According to the specs the 9360 has an auto-focus lens. I'm quite impressed with the auto-focus camera in my 9810 as well. For the type of pictures I take with my phone it's great. The EDoF of the PlayBook does have an advantage in video capture, as the extended depth of field means that more of what you're filming is going to be in focus. (Unless you're trying to film ants from a few inches away )

As long as you're aware of what the physical limitations of each are, they both function surprisingly well when you consider the size vs. a (D)SLR.

He said 9630

[Chrisy]

Wow. I was really impressed with the PlayBook camera! I didn't take many extreme close ups though. But I didn't notice any photos that were blurry.

[jeroen_13]

Yeah I agree with that! It really sucks

[GreyGhostRos]

In my opinion the playbook camera is great for non macro and well lit photos .. and it is very fast too..
Whereas macros and not so well lit environment it gets pretty useless..
But it is a conscious choice the company makes when they put in EDoF (They are smaller and faster compared to conventional focusing ones..

[xsacha]

The Playbook camera does not focus.

It has an EDoF camera which is essentially a fixed focus camera. The entire image is always in focus from 50cm - infinity. That means it is impossible to focus on objects closer than 50cm (they will appear fuzzy).

[Stewartj1]

The only blurry pics I have were my own fault, but haven't tried any extreme close ups.

[kbz1960]

I think he got the numbers mixed up as he was responding to the one who was talking about his 9630 tour.

[sean000]

Maybe the photographer is the issue.



Sent from my BlackBerry Runtime for Android Apps using Tapatalk 2

[apengue1]

The playbook Camera is still very good regardless. At least it's higher than 1 mp.
Its the bb10 camera I'm interested in.....

[kstock]

9360? As in the Curve 9360?

The Curve series doesn't have the autofocus camera, it's got the EDoF camera like in the Bold 9900 series

Sorry, typo. Did indeed mean the 9630 .... Spell check is great, but my own internal "stupid detector" doesn't always work properly!

Fixed now.

[rotorwrench]

With stabilization on mine takes good pics of barcodes. I probably take anywhere from 3 to 5 a day at work because our workorders are all barcoded. Our bookkeeper's program has no problem reading them from my shots, nor from the other four PBs used for the same thing. Great camera.