How many megapixels iphone 3g have

How Many Megapixels Should My Smartphone Camera Have?

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Since their introduction in the latter half of the 2000s, smartphones have consistently gained market share, as they combine the best features of cellular phones, personal computers, and digital cameras. Many modern smartphones actually feature built-in cameras that are comparable to standalone digital cameras. With this comparability comes the question of how many megapixels are needed in a smartphone camera. In large part, this question can be answered by taking the same factors into account that users do when purchasing a standalone digital camera. A well-informed consumer is in a position to purchase the smartphone which best meets his or her needs, whether it is purchased from a carrier, an electronics store, or from an online marketplace like eBay.

Common Features of Smartphone Cameras

Perhaps the most important consideration for any smartphone manufacturer is size. If a component is too large to fit in a phone comfortably, it needs to be miniaturized or digitized. This emphasis on miniaturization has led to the near-universal adoption of complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors for smartphone cameras. CMOS sensors are significantly smaller than the other main type of image sensor, charge-coupled devices (CCDs), and they use less power.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Smartphone Cameras

The development of camera phones has in large part kept pace with the development of digital photography technology as a whole. Smartphone manufacturers have been able to take advantage of developments in CMOS sensors, which have significantly improved picture size and image resolution. In addition, most modern camera phones are able to record video in addition to still shots, though at the expense of reduced quality and megapixel count.

Overall, most smartphone cameras are built simpler than standalone digital cameras as a concession to size considerations. In addition to the image sensor, which is the heart of any digital camera, camera phones usually feature fixed lenses and have no physical shutter. These factors limit their usefulness in low-light conditions and contribute to their long shutter lag. However, some newer smartphones have taken advantage of recent advances in miniaturization to create phones with flashes, high-quality optics, and autofocus lenses.

Megapixels Needed for Common Tasks

Many camera users look solely to megapixel counts when comparing cameras, as manufacturers have attempted to make pixel counts something of a benchmark. However, an image sensor’s megapixel count only describes the maximum size an image can be viewed at without a loss of image quality. While good digital cameras require more than just a large megapixel count, a camera’s pixel count is important, especially for smartphone users. Smartphones often feature somewhat smaller image sensors than digital cameras, as manufacturers have to fit more components in a smaller space.

Displaying Pictures from a Smartphone

Simply put, any smartphone with a camera, regardless of its megapixel rating, will be able to capture an image that will appear sharp on other phones and on computer displays. That is because even the largest computer monitor resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels yields a megapixel count of only 3.67 megapixels. All modern smartphones can capture images at a higher resolution than 4 megapixels, which means that any image displayed on a monitor is automatically compressed and scaled down to fit the display.

Maximum Effective Print Size

If a user wishes to print out any pictures he or she has taken, however, then that user will have to take the time to compare the desired print size and the phone’s megapixel rating. A larger megapixel rating allows users to print their pictures at larger sizes without a reduction in image quality. This chart details the differing sizes and resolutions each pixel rating allows.