There's a new app holding onto the number one Top Paid spot in the App Store and you may be surprised to learn that it's Camera Zoom, which has turned out to be a different kind of moron test for many unsuspecting iPhone photo buffs.
Camera Zoom ($.99) is a no frills photo utility that offers iPhone users the ability to zoom in and out with their iPhone camera in real-time using a 4x digital zoom. The buzz killer is the app's employment of digital zoom, which adds unwanted noise and blur to your photos unlike using a camera with an optical zoom feature. Image quality has become a bone of contention for many who've bought this app and were left to linger in disappointment.
Though Camera Zoom promises to auto-adjust, storing the best quality image on your camera roll after the shot is taken, the end result is still not as crisp as taking photos without the app. The big downside is that photo resolution is reduced to 600 x 800 or even less to 320 x 480 if you want pictures to be saved faster and less blurry. A harsh reality knowing that native photo resolution on the iPhone 3GS is 2048 x 1536.
My guess is that most iPhone users would rather pay for the choice to zoom when needed even if they sacrifice quality, as opposed to not having the option at all. Which may explain why Camera Zoom remains comfortably perched at number one in the App Store. You should also know that early reviews documented compatibility issues with iPhone 3GS, but a recent update has fixed that complaint along with a host of others.
From the surface, Camera Zoom appears to be a no brainer purchase because it's cheap and easy to navigate. The finished images fell way short of my own expectations, even when choosing not to zoom at all when snapping a photo through the app. There are no real surprises here, for $.99 you get exactly what you pay for in this novelty photo app and nothing more. Any moron can see that with no zooming required.
Though Camera Zoom promises to auto-adjust, storing the best quality image on your camera roll after the shot is taken, the end result is still not as crisp as taking photos without the app.
Posted by: Miley | September 09, 2010 at 09:22 AM
iphone is nice
Posted by: jason | August 31, 2010 at 08:16 PM
Not even worth a buck. The photo quality blows.
Posted by: Replica jerseys | August 06, 2010 at 05:21 AM
Which may explain why Camera Zoom remains comfortably perched at number one in the App Store. You should also know that early reviews documented compatibility issues with iPhone 3GS, but a recent update has fixed that complaint along with a host of others.
Posted by: tinggi badan | June 07, 2010 at 10:29 PM
Can i use this blog as reference in my college report
Posted by: playstation 2 repairs | November 11, 2009 at 02:14 AM
Can't you achieve the same result by pinching and taking screenshots of the zoomed image?
Posted by: EdwinInTampa | July 29, 2009 at 02:56 AM
I'm doing an iPhone photo art project of zoomed in portraits using the blur limitation from this app as part of my style. The first series of its kind. I love this app as an artist's tool.
Posted by: jamesQ | July 28, 2009 at 01:56 PM
Not even worth a buck. The photo quality blows.
Posted by: jmckees | July 28, 2009 at 01:52 PM
I had to totally get used to the blur. At first it bothered me but now that I see eall my photos that way it's much better. I love zooming in and out more than I like static photos. I've paid a lot more to be unhappy with an app... making this one way less disappointing for the money. Zoom zoom!
Posted by: AllyRox | July 28, 2009 at 01:51 PM