Root Will the rooted DInc ever be able to shoot RAW?

[sandroid]

After reading about the massive compression the DInc has when shooting 8 megapixel pictures, I was wondering if it would ever be possible to be able to shoot without compression or in RAW format. Maybe sometime down the line with rooted devices? Do any other Android phones have this capability? N1 perhaps?

 

[Hikarius]

Digital photography has come a long way, but even if the Incredible could shoot RAW, it would never be as good as a RAW file from a proper SLR.

On a software standpoint, I don't see why the phone camera wouldn't, but I'd imagine it would take a lot of programming to get the camera to create a RAW file.

 

[marrow226]

It'd be cool, but I doubt it. I just started shooting in RAW with my Canon a few months ago. Massive improvement in terms of picture quality and overall power over the photos. I love it.

 

[AaronBBrown]

After reading about the massive compression the DInc has when shooting 8 megapixel pictures, I was wondering if it would ever be possible to be able to shoot without compression or in RAW format. Maybe sometime down the line with rooted devices? Do any other Android phones have this capability? N1 perhaps?

Why? The Incredible, just like every single phone in existence, has a craptacular camera. It is only made worse by the horrible decision to pack 8
mp into a almost microscopic sensor. I'd rather see 3 *good* megapixels rather than the crappy 8 that they gave us. The new iPhone did it right, and even though it is still a craptacular camera, it is less craptacular than everything else out there because they made those 5mp count.

Look, I take a lot of photos with my Incredible, a DSLR, and a point & shoot (http://flickr.com/aaronbbrown)...if you want to take high quality shots with increased dynamic range (the main reason to shoot in RAW), a phone is not going to get it done.

(Yeah, I saw http://fstoppers.com/iphone - funny video, and impressive work. That guy got some great results with a lot of lighting gear and a hot model, but you won't).

Can it be done? Probably. Somewhere in there, the camera is reading data off of the sensor. RAW is basically dumping that raw data into a format that a computer can understand. Chances are, it would be a camera app that writes DNG files.

 

[Tony N.]

The camera on this phone is great already? I don't know why you guys are complaining.

 

[ssddyakno]

Digital photography has come a long way, but even if the Incredible could shoot RAW, it would never be as good as a RAW file from a proper SLR.

What does a DSLR have to do with it? Tons of digital cameras have the ability to shoot in RAW. It's not at all limited to SLR's.

RAW is simply a physical uncompressed dump of what the sensor detects. It is far simpler to write a program to spit out a raw image than an overly processed JPEG which is what we are getting now.

 

[smacinskyjr]

The camera on this phone is great already? I don't know why you guys are complaining.

apparently they didnt have to deal with the very crappy camera on the moto droid. Now that sucked!!

 

[Outatime]

It is only made worse by the horrible decision to pack 8 mp into a almost microscopic sensor.

That's my biggest complaint about the camera. It really is good, but it would have been better to be a 5 MP. I took a couple of pics today of a train going by that are pretty good... vibrant color and tone... but there's pixel bleed at full resolution.


This is the full picture reduced to 800x478. Pretty good looking image.

This is a full resolution crop. The bleed here is terrible. Too many MP's.

 

[Valka]

It was my understanding that RAW images are manufacturer specific. Lots of SLRs (and some others) have it, but each of them produce their own versions.

Overly processed images are going to be needed anyway. With 8mp in that tiny sensor it takes a lot of post processing to get a decent image (more pixel sensors/inch^2 =less light per sensor = more noise). I imagine that is at least part of the reason for including not one but two flash LEDs.

My last phone had a completely awful camera so I'm not bothered too much by ours. If I want to take quality pictures I'll bring a real camera.

What does a DSLR have to do with it? Tons of digital cameras have the ability to shoot in RAW. It's not at all limited to SLR's.

RAW is simply a physical uncompressed dump of what the sensor detects. It is far simpler to write a program to spit out a raw image than an overly processed JPEG which is what we are getting now.