iPhone FAQ : Features > Camera
- It has a camera, how good is the photo quality?
- Good for a phone camera, but poorer than almost any dedicated snapshot digital camera. Images are very grainy in dim light, and prone to blurring under less than sunlit conditions.
- Can the camera take videos?
- No.
- Does iPhone have a GPS?
- No. Technically, a Automatic Location Identification ("ALI") function must be included in all US phones for emergency 911 location services. ALI can be provided through the carrier network, through GPS, or any any other mechanism (though we don't know of any others). However, this is not necessarily accessible to the user (nor does it have to be accurate enough to use as a navigation aid). [Thanks to Alexandre Takacs for more information on this.]
- Does iPhone support Bluetooth?
- Yes, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR. iPhone does not support music-quality stereo via Bluetooth. Apple offers their own Bluetooth handsfree set for iPhone, as well as an optional dock that charges both iPhone and handsfree set. Other Bluetooth handsfree sets work too.
- Does iPhone support Bluetooth GPS receivers?
- No.
- Does iPhone support Bluetooth OBEX File Transfer?
- No. (OBEX is used to transfer files between devices wirelessly, such as from phone to computer or another phone.)
- Can it sync contacts and calendars with my Mac or PC?
- Yes, it uses iTunes to sync with your Mac or PC. Apple says iPhone will sync contacts with Address Book and Microsoft Entourage on Mac, and with Outlook and Outlook Express on Windows, as well as a Yahoo! address book. iPhone's calendar may be synced with iCal and Entourage on the Mac, and Outlook on Windows.
- Can I enter calendar items directly on iPhone?
- Yes, and they are synced back to your Mac or PC calendar by iTunes. While all calendars can be viewed on iPhone, newly created items all go into the same calendar on your Mac/PC, much as iSync for mobile phones currently works.
- Since it runs OS X, can it multitask?
- Yes, Apple's demonstrations show multitasking, including an interface for accessing background applications at the top of the screen (reminiscent of the Newton's "pulsing star" for accessing background tasks). It is not clear how iPhone determines if an application is active and should be accessible this way.
- Does iPhone have an alarm clock?
- Yes, you can set multiple alarms. Alarms can be set to repeat, and/or to be active only on certain days of the week.
- Does iPhone have an "airplane mode"?
- Yes. In Airplane Mode, iPhone disables voice and EDGE data service, WiFi and Bluetooth.
- Is it possible to have WiFi functionality on, but the cell phone off?
- No — iPhone has the ability to turn WiFi on and off independently of Airplane Mode, but not the converse.
- Can I use email/web in airplane mode?
- Yes. Safari will view pages it currently has open. Mail can view messages it has already downloaded, and outgoing messages will be queued for sending when it exits Airplane Mode.
- Will the iPhone support Disk Mode?
- No.
- Will I be able to take notes on iPhone?
- iPhone has a "Notes" icon on its main screen.
- Will iPhone allow synch of text files in the Notes folder and viewing of said notes on the iPhone, like iPod?
- No.
- How many people can participate in a conference call?
- Up to five total (caller plus four others). The iPhone user can connect a sixth caller, but the sixth does not participate in the conference call. (We assume each simultaneous call counts against your voice minutes quota.)
