What is it that is so secret, yet you must say it without taking basic precautions to avoid someone else hearing? If it really bothers you rip it out. If it is about the principle go tell ED that he is making a mistake by not including a camera, or by including a mic, or both.
My point is that, compared with a microphone, a camera is trivial to disable, so that if you are worried about a camera (I am not, though you appear to be), then you should be doubly worried about a microphone (I am not... much; I expect to be able to trust the Pyra). I find it strange that a camera can be viewed as more of a threat on a personal device than a microphone, for that reason. I find it strange that the camera is argued against, on the grounds of security, when the microphone is already there.
I already accept there that sha'n't be a camera on the Pyra, for the decent reasons given: cost, complexity, space, bulge and that it is too late to change things now.
I find it amusing that you keep mentioning that a microphone is worse than a camera, yet you have not provided a single example. Cameras are a bigger threat for many reasons. Vision is our primary sense for a reason. We use it to navigate our world, so lets start there: it can collect visual information about locations that are frequently visited. Once at these locations information about these places are usually visible, such as doors and windows in relation to furniture and equipment. "Oh, the safe is over there." Depending on the type of camera it will regularly be in proximity to sensitive information. Sometimes I don't immediately hide financial documents after viewing them. You know those people that always have their latest Galaxy S Whatever in their hands? I bet they use ATMs and make purchases. I have watched people put in their PIN with a smartphone in the hand they are using to push the numbers.
Without really giving it much thought, I can see that a camera can provide information about where you go (and what you do and whom you do it with), the layout of these locations, vulnerabilities and layout of the interior of these places, financial and other sensitive information, and possibly (for those that are very foolish) passwords and other access codes. Most of this sort of information can be collected at a distance that would make a typical microphone in a consumer device of little value to collect spoken information, such as across a room with background noise. Security cameras are more common than audio recordings for security purposes because the information they can provide is more valuable and more likely to be useful. Microphones are not a bigger threat. They don't even come close unless you are discussing sensitive information in proximity to them. Anyone that has things they don't want others to hear should know that you don't discuss these things just anywhere. I don't provide sensitive information over telephone calls either since it is much easier to be heard by someone else. There is the threat you shoudl be considering more than either a camera or a microphone: random people doing whatever they do for their own personal reasons. That reminds me, many people can genuinely read lips (I know some) so with video they can make out what someone is saying from a much greater distance than audio.
Keeping the Pyra camera free is not just a hardware cost and placement issue. It is a valid security concern.
No, it isn't. Just turn it off. That's why this stuff is open source.
This is a double edged blade. Every user may not know exactly what they are doing. If there is a physical switch or some easy way to disconnect or reconnect, or even an unobtrusive sliding cover, I am all for a camera and might use it sometimes. If we go that route, keep it low quality and cheap, too.
What is it that is so secret, yet you must say it without taking basic precautions to avoid someone else hearing?
What is it that is so secret, yet you must do it without taking basic precautions to avoid someone else seeing? Speech is far more privacy-sensitive than sight.
If it really bothers you rip it out. If it is about the principle go tell ED that he is making a mistake by not including a camera, or by including a mic, or both.
If the camera really bothers you, you could rip it out too? Anyhow, it's already decided the Pyra
will be missing this critical functionality, so now the discussion must turn to how to mitigate it... which is why I am hoping someone has the skills to engineer some kind of extension.
There is a huge difference between privacy and security. A microphone is a privacy concern. A camera is a security concern, and even without going extreme, it could impact others than the owner of the camera. I have tons of first hand knowledge and experience of both sides of this supporting my claim (there are videos that include me on youtube that were made without my knowledge or consent...guess what, I wasn't speaking).
As far as security concerns, I already provided those above. Examples of when these might be possible are when the user is carrying or using their Pyra and are not aware that the camera is in use, or when it is sitting unattended on a table.
Why would I want to pay more to have a camera included just so that I can remove it? Why not add a camera if you want it and lower the cost a little for everyone else? A camera is NOT critical. It would be convenient for those that want one built in, and is an inconvenience since it will not. It will still do everything else it is designed to do, including allowing the owner to play DS and other games that require a microphone.
I really don't care if there is a mic or not. I will be using a headset if I need one.
