HDR photos possible through both iPhone 4 cameras

Prior to the iPhone camera software being updated by Apple to take HDR photos, I played with a couple different options. Of those, I used Pro HDR more often than not when I had time for a high quality image. I say “when I had time” because it used to take a lot longer to take a HDR image than a simple photo.

Even thought HDR is built into the iPhone OS, it doesn’t delivery the level of photos as the specialty apps. Pro HDR used to take a bunch of steps to take an image, keep the iPhone still and after the program got done crunching the first photo you would take the second. Then, a full minute later the app had merged the two photos to give you a very nice image.

The newest version of Pro HDR is much faster, can be used in fully automatic mode, has the option to take a even faster ‘low’ resolution image, and can take images using either of the two cameras. The HDR feature built in only works on the outward facing camera.

While I don’t use it a lot, the final image is presented on a screen with many fine tuning sliders. When I do use the feature, it has saved me from having to take the images again by lightening or enhancing.

Opening your iPhone 4 to fix broken glass or replace battery

If you have following me for long, you know I have a bad habit of repairing my own hardware. This include replacing the touch screen, changing out batteries and in the case of my notebooks more ram and HD space. Apple doesn’t really like this and has taken steps to make it more difficult. This isn’t new, my old 2300 Apple Notebook was very challenging to update.

It isn’t that Apple is evil, it is because they need to control the hardware so they know what they are dealing with. Of course, there is the whole money making angle they have too, no doubt they would like to charge for repairs and upgrades. Also, they need to know what they are dealing with when someone brings in a hardware item for repair, are they repairing a owners mess up or they have a problem they need to be concerned about. As well, the whole call in support doesn’t work well if they don’t know if a person may have altered the hardware from the way it left the factory.

The reason for this post is due to a little change Apple has been making. In the previous version of the iPhone (3), you had to be a bit brave to take a warm hairdryer and plastic pry tool to open. Not too many owners where willing to take on the challenge to fix their broken screen even if the screen was $50 instead of a replacement refurb iPhone was $300.

In the case of the new iPhone 4, there is two small philips screws along the bottom, a ring and you can pretty quickly get the back cover off. Many folks have reported the same luck as me, they have chipped the back glass corner. The iPhone works fine but that is exactly where your finger lands when retriveing it from your pocket.

All was good till recently when people started reporting that the new iPhone 4 and units returned from Apple have a new type of screen head… it is called Pentalobe and it is very different from even the previous ‘security’ head screws used.

Once again, this is just ment to make things more difficult for those not up for the challenge. If you do want to fix your own hardware, you may find a screwdriver that works with the Pentalobe screws a bit difficult to find. Initially, they were only on iFixIt, but just today we found a company that is selling them through Amazon. I like that they say they check the driver with a real screw prior to shipping… this should avoid the problem with slight manufacture talerances effecting your ability to be successful.

If you just love to get your fingers into the fun of your iPhone inners, please know that it will void your warrenty. Take a look at iFitIt’s walk through of opening the iPhone 4 and location of the components within.

“Scanner Darkly” and other cartoon effects with the iPhone camera

You may recall a fun photo touch up app I went through not long ago called ‘ToonPaint‘. It allows you to convert an image to line drawing and then color in areas.

Today I would like to cover ToonCamera, a new (to me) app that lets you take pictures and movies which are then changed to color or line cartoon like art. This is at the image level, this is not an app for laying out comic pages or text balloons. Below is a simple image that was auto converted to what looks like a cartoon drawn image.

The options alone the bottom of the screen of ToonCamera: Color/Line, Line thickness, camera/video, flash and camera being used.

When you tap the paint brush icon on the lower right corner, it changes to a pencil and the image goes from a color photo like image to a line drawing.

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The iPhone and Google app will sold any Sudoku for you

I have been using the Google app on the iPhone for a variety of things. Voice searching as well quick access to my other Google services. It is an app that gets you to the many features Google can provide you, but it does require access to the Internet.

Today’s release of Google adds a feature to Google Goggles. You may remember ‘Goggles’ for being able to scan any image you take to tell you what it is an image is, price look up and availability searches. Added to that list of results from a image scan, solving any Sudoku puzzle. Serious, it fills in all the number squares for you!

Of course, you can still grab an app of Sudoku puzzles to play on your iOS device like the +SUDOKU app. If you want to play online with your Web browser, jump over to websudoku.com .

Back to the Google Mobile App! This app will run on your iPhone or iPad, but for Goggle features you will need a camera. Launch the app and choose the camera, snap a picture of a Sudoku puzzle that is over challenging you:

Google will automatically scan the image to see what it can recognize:

You will then be presented with a list of options that Google has figured out. You will notice how the image is divided by the color boxes related to the part the Google app understood. Tap the top ‘Sudoku’ option:

Since you could be looking for more than just solving a puzzle when you chose ‘Sudoku’ above, the Google app gives you a list of sites that fill that search, as well a new ‘Solve’ button.

If you chose the ‘Solve’ button, you will get the image of the Sudoku puzzle which Google Goggles has filled in the answers for you.

Quick and Simple iPhone 4 stand for work and play

I have covered a few fun little stands for the iPhone over the years. Most recently, the Glif. Most of the new ‘simple’ stands work for the iPhone 4 only as they require the square edge of the new hardware over the curved edge of the 3 model line.

Several months ago I picked up a stand for my iPad from the folks at MoviePeg. They offered a super simple injected plastic that fit over the edge of the iPad to hold at a wide variety of angles.

Today, my mail box offered up MoviePeg’s latest offering, stands for the iPhone 4. Very similar to the iPad model, but much smaller and in a nice group of available colors.

Moving the Movie-Peg stand up/down the iPhone 4 quickly changes the angle for best viewing of the screen. While most people use a stand on their iPhone to watch movies, I find it very handy in meetings so I can see my notes or clock at a glance.

The ‘stand’ has little mushroom cuts towards the inner edge of the opening that goes around the iPhone. My first thought was that this was for if you had a case. It is actually to allow for the opening to be opened a bit further to go around an iPhone that may have a skin on it. Making sure you don’t damage your iPhone vinyl skin through too rigid of plastic.

The simplicity of the Movie-Peg stand allows it to be used in both landscape and portrait views. While the stand is thicker than I would think it needs to be, the thickness works great at stabilizing the phone and still fits easily in your pocket.

Like I mentioned above, you can buy the stands as a single or a group of colors.

Even the little boxes the stands come in are fun. Talk about a great little gift!