Should Pyra have a Camera?

[Natsu]

Best answer.

Maybe putting a outside camera on a hinge, wouldn't be much more complex than it already is.
Ideally a cheap camera in the inside and a better yet still cheap camera on the outside.

3D cameras would just be a bonus.

 

[danielo515]

Why not?

Many people wants to use pyra as a replacement for their laptop and or phone. Mobile cameras nowadays are cheap and small. Pyra is supposed to be portable, if you have to carry an extra camera it is a totally deal breaker. A camera would be very useful for video conferences, for example

 

[bzar]

Because nothing comes without cost, monetary or otherwise. At the very least a camera increases the cost because of component costs and producing a more complex case. Additionally it costs time (also adding to the monetary cost) because of design, manufacturing and software support. Even further it costs quality, since the more physical components you add the more complex you make the device making it more probable for faults to occur (also increasing monetary cost because of refurbs and fault rate).

There's probably more, but those were the first to come into mind. It's not as simple as deciding "well, the part only costs this much, so I'll just add it to the mix". When making a complex doodad the last thing you want to do is make it more complex. Maybe a later model could have one added.

 

[Caine]

Pyra is supposed to be portable, if you have to carry an extra camera it is a totally deal breaker. A camera would be very useful for video conferences, for example

Deal breaker as in you won't buy a Pyra if it doesn't have a builtin camera or you just won't use it with an external camera attachment?
I think a camera would be a great feature, but it is far from the primary use-case.

 

[ekianjo]

Mobile cameras nowadays are cheap and small.

exactly, so you dont even need to integrate it with the Pyra.

I'd rather see it this way:

- instead of having a crappy mobile camera inside the Pyra, you cna choose to buy a pretty good webcam, and a wired one which lets you orientate the camera where you want instead of being on the bezel.

And it still remains portable.

 

[danielo515]

Deal breaker as in you won't buy a Pyra if it doesn't have a builtin camera or you just won't use it with an external camera attachment?

Deal breaker as I will not carry an external camera attachment, so I will lose video conference features.

 

[Caine]

Deal breaker as I will not carry an external camera attachment, so I will lose video conference features.

Right, I'm with you on that one. Unless somehow a satisfactory middle-ground can be reached. I'm thinking of a non-invasive, semi-permanent USB accessory (voice calls would require a USB extension cord).
The camera equivalent of something like this:

Still, the problem remains. All super-tiny cameras of this form-factor either have a large attachment wired to it or are meant to be integrated into a smartphone-like device.

 

[danielo515]

Still, the problem remains. All super-tiny cameras of this form-factor either have a large attachment wired to it or are meant to be integrated into a smartphone-like device.

Not to mention that we only have one normal size usb port. Maybe a tiny Bluetooth webcam? I don't know such device.

 

[WizardStan]

Not to mention that we only have one normal size usb port

Two. Plus the micro port can be adapted to a full sized port with a $1 part.

 

[Natsu]

Mobile cameras nowadays are cheap and small.

 
exactly, so you dont even need to integrate it with the Pyra.


I'd rather see it this way:


- instead of having a crappy mobile camera inside the Pyra, you cna choose to buy a pretty good webcam, and a wired one which lets you orientate the camera where you want instead of being on the bezel.


And it still remains portable.

I feel like you purposely skipped over the rest of that post. No one wants to carry one of these 3rd party webcams, that we seen so far, and having sure a big attachment, defeats the purpose. May as well buy a regular camera, if you want to go against point.


How is carrying both the Pyra and a Webcam, make it remain portable?

 

[Urben]

If someone uses a compromised OS, they already have problems, with or without a camera or microphone. Let those who make trouble for themselves (by installing silly OSes or otherwise) do so without us worrying unduly about making even their stupidest actions safe -- it is not worth the effort for us to cripple the device too much for safety (or even spend time thinking about Windows and Android).

I have argued elsewhere that the use of software (outside a sandbox), and indeed hardware, involves an element of trust unless one audits everything oneself. I am lazy, so I choose to trust certain software not to betray me, particularly that software which is theoretically easily auditible and may well have been investigated by others, so FOSS is more likely to get my trust than other software. Some software, though, I strongly expect to be suspect, including most proprietary/partially-proprietary/single-entity-controlled software, so I avoid them: this includes Windows, Mac OS and Android.

 It makes no point to state "I will trust you developer to make it secure but please ignore security concerns because these guys can install stupid OSs anyway."

Btw I have more a problem with the mic than the cam because stickers on cams are easy to do, soldering a mic off the board is a bit harder.

A 3rd party cam is if we talk about the Pyra relatively big compared to the device you want to use it with. So I had been for the cam but the ship has sailed.

 

[ekianjo]

How is carrying both the Pyra and a Webcam, make it remain portable?

Because it's still smaller than a laptop anyway. I'm not sure what you arguing about. The fact that it's not integrated into a single piece does not make it less "portable", as long as you have a bag or something.

 

[bzar]

The main reason to not implement a camera is the price. It would probably increase the costs by about 60 - 70 EUR. We'd need an even more complex LCD cable we already have and we'd have additional assembly costs... the camera itself would be cheap, yes. But additional handling and signal wiring sadly isn't.

 

[rygD]

I was thinking about how one might be able to add a camera (or two).  I can't remember the layout of everything inside the case, so this is pretty useless, but I will share it anyway.

If there is some way to connect the camera it in the main body, and there is space somewhere around the display to mount it, and there is nothing in the part that sticks up on either side of the hinge, it might be possible to drill a hole for the camera, glue or otherwise keep it in place, cut a slit next to the hinge in both the top and lower portions of the Pyra and connect it using whatever method to wherever it needs to go inside.  It may not be pretty, depending on your skills, and it would leave a cable exposed that can be damaged or snagged (I think that would look nice if it is flat and only sticking out enough to be opened and closed), but if it were all possible you would have a camera.

If I wanted one I might look a little more closely to see if it was feasible.  Even if it is, saying it and doing it are different things.

 

[Urben]

Spoiler

A cheap idea how to add a webcam

 

[TrashyMG]

Spoiler

Spoiler

A cheap idea how to add a webcam

You are assuming that there is room for that in the lid, there will not only be the LCD screen, but a PCB about the same size as the LCD crammed behind it.

 

[Natsu]

Yeah, pretty much I was thing. Small usb cord, that can be easily be replaced. That said, it doesn't have to be built in, if the camera itself have a mold around it and stick to the case somehow.

How is carrying both the Pyra and a Webcam, make it remain portable?

Because it's still smaller than a laptop anyway. I'm not sure what you arguing about. The fact that it's not integrated into a single piece does not make it less "portable", as long as you have a bag or something.

Because everyone carries a bag. Sorry, maybe I should have said pocketable.

 

[moxie]

If [...] there is space somewhere around the display to mount it,

 

There isn't.

 

[rygD]

Yeah, pretty much I was thing. Small usb cord, that can be easily be replaced. That said, it doesn't have to be built in, if the camera itself have a mold around it and stick to the case somehow.

I don't know what you mean by "a mold".  Do you mean like a case for it?  Some double sided tape works very well but the Pyra would not be very pocketable with the camera stuck to the back.  Maybe velcro or something.

 

[Urben]

You are assuming that there is room for that in the lid, there will not only be the LCD screen, but a PCB about the same size as the LCD crammed behind it.

Yea forgot how wide the screen is...