Okay, so I know absolutely nothing about ROMs, so this is mostly a question of if this is possible:
Currently, the EVO's 720p video recording is lackluster. I find that the biggest reason for this is the bitrate of the video used. I imagine that the bitrate used on the video was to accommodate the included microSD card's Class 2 write speed.
Is it possible to increase the bitrate used for encoding of this video, to something ~5mbps, to which a Class 6 microSD could handle just fine? Ideally this could even be implemented as an option in the camera app, so that those who don't have/can't afford a class 6 microSD could still use the ROM.
If that is possible, what are the chances of having the video also record using a different audio codec? The current codec used is pretty much impossible to play back in anything except Quicktime (VLC's latest release candidate just added support, but it still sounds awful, like a pack of hyenas on top of the track). I'm really not particular on what audio codec is actually used; be it mp3, ogg, etc, as long as it's more easily played.
The best case scenario, the DREAM EVO ROM for camera capability for me, would be:
1. At least double the bitrate (4-5mbps) for the 720p video with an option to use old settings.
2. A better audio codec using higher quality settings (minimum 64kbps mp3/ogg/similar) that is playable in many more programs.
3. A more compatible container format like mp4/m4v.
Am I dreaming or would this be possible in a custom ROM?
Don't forget it will also be limited to how fast the hardware can encode the video. Someone with the right skills will have to push the hardware encoder to see how high they can push the bitrate without exceeding real time.
-------------------------------------
Sent via the XDA Tapatalk App
gbm85 said:
Don't forget it will also be limited to how fast the hardware can encode the video. Someone with the right skills will have to push the hardware encoder to see how high they can push the bitrate without exceeding real time.
-------------------------------------
Sent via the XDA Tapatalk App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, there might be hardware limitations, that's sort of what I'm asking; if this is something that can be "fixed" in a ROM or if we're stuck.
I think as long as it can handle the bandwidth though, I don't see why the chip would be incapable of higher bitrates. I'm not an expert on the matter, but I thought that the less compression/higher bitrate something is, the less power was required to make it happen.
well im pretty sure this is possible, if a dev puts the time and effort into such a large project. i only say this cause the nexus one recently got 720p video recording, something it didnt have from the start. and i think its known that htc made the video recording compressed, so i think theoretically if we lift this compression and use a different form of compression, we can get higher bitrates from the video.
Yeah, I'm hoping a developer can investigate this thoroughly. Even if it takes a while, it'd be nice to know someone is at least looking into it.
And to make it worth their while, I'd be more than willing to pitch some donation funds towards such a project when it becomes successful. I doubt I'd be the only one as well.
I was wondering this also. I'm not up on the technical aspects of this, but I was also wondering if the 720p could be improved through software fix/ROM development? I agree also that I'm sure a lot would be willing to donate for such a fix.
I'm sure eventually we will get a better cam, i mean look at the how the nexus got 720p video
You can easily get 720p at 60FPS... The snapdragon can support it.
i would most certainly donate for this improvment
yup i would donate as well
we just dont have as lively a development community as the nexus yet, but we will in time - we;re gaining momentum fast
EtherealRemnant said:
You can easily get 720p at 60FPS... The snapdragon can support it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is that encoding or decoding? And at what bitrate?
gbm85 said:
Is that encoding or decoding? And at what bitrate?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Go look at the Nexus One forum... They've got up to 1080p capture.
Realistically though, it seems silly to rely on our phones to capture HD video. I have a G9 that does that task quite handily.
All I could find was 720p capture at 20fps and a max bitrate of 12Mb, which is plenty.
This is interesting, I'd like to see this happen as well.
I'll do what I can in terms of research.
Better low-light pictures too, if at all possible
Related
Just about an hour ago, I have upgraded my HTC Desire to Froyo 2.2. So I have quickly done a 720p video recording, and compare to iPhone 4.
The result (data taken from QuickTime player):
Movie FPS: HTC Desire (16.37), iPhone 4 (29.54)
Data Rate: HTC Desire (7.42 mbits/sec), iPhone 4 (10.44 mbits/sec)
Yupe. I tested 720p and it is not good.
I don't have iPhone 4, so I cannot compare.
I hope the 480p of HTC Desire is getting better. I prefer 480p if I can get good fps.
Can you test 480p with your tool above?
What about this clip, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLmvRSxgtd8
Running at 30 fps
wallieballie said:
What about this clip, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLmvRSxgtd8
Running at 30 fps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, it is running Froyo (r5 MoDaCo), not the stock HTC Froyo...
gogol said:
Yupe. I tested 720p and it is not good.
I don't have iPhone 4, so I cannot compare.
I hope the 480p of HTC Desire is getting better. I prefer 480p if I can get good fps.
Can you test 480p with your tool above?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The 480p now supports H.264. It looked super smooth from what I did a quick test of.
The 480p seems much better using MPEG4 than H264, in H264 there is more tearing during fast motion and some artifacts.
What a shame. Had high hopes for HTC's 720p implementation
And the same s***e audio too...
Surely the desire has the hardware to support 720p at almost 30fps.
Who does HTC's code for christ sake!
doinbox said:
Surely the desire has the hardware to support 720p at almost 30fps.
Who does HTC's code for christ sake!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I record inside with low light my FPS is 12.
Filming outside through a window made it 22FPS.
I am not surprised by the low quality of the camcorder. I kinda expected that. As opposed to doinbox, I don't think the camera of the Desire is capable of 30fps in such high resolutions (especially when I know what it is capable of in lower resolutions). Well, maybe if there are sufficient lightning conditions... Don't know It's already dusk here so I can't test it outside.
kekkle said:
If I record inside with low light my FPS is 12.
Filming outside through a window made it 22FPS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But seriously that isnt acceptable. If, lets say, when the desire was first released it was advertised as supporting 720p video recording and you went out and bought it only to find it had poor framerates you would think it was broke. You wouldnt buy a tv that said it could support 1080p video but only at 22fps its ridiculous really. The Desire probably with alot of time and effort could record 1080p at 30fps. But it seems they don't want to spend the time in achieving this.
Which really annoys me!
martintzvetomirov said:
I am not surprised by the low quality of the camcorder. I kinda expected that. As opposed to doinbox, I don't think the camera of the Desire is capable of 30fps in such high resolutions (especially when I know what it is capable of in lower resolutions). Well, maybe if there are sufficient lightning conditions... Don't know It's already dusk here so I can't test it outside.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Hardware in the desire is much more powerful than what you would find in a 5 megapixel digital camera that can record 1080p video at 30fps.
http://www.chinavasion.com/product_info.php/pName/hddv-pocket-camcorder-digital-video-camera-1080p/
Check this link its a pocket HD camcorder. Im sure it has terrible hardware inside yet it can record 1080p at 30fps. So what would make you think the desire can't do it.
doinbox said:
The Hardware in the desire is much more powerful than what you would find in a 5 megapixel digital camera that can record 1080p video at 30fps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just hope its true If it is then we should expect more from Gingerbread
doinbox said:
http://www.chinavasion.com/product_info.php/pName/hddv-pocket-camcorder-digital-video-camera-1080p/
Check this link its a pocket HD camcorder. Im sure it has terrible hardware inside yet it can record 1080p at 30fps. So what would make you think the desire can't do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We had to wait till Android 2.2 for us to get 720p. Perhaps it's not the hardware, but the software that is the limitation.
kekkle said:
We had to wait till Android 2.2 for us to get 720p. Perhaps it's not the hardware, but the software that is the limitation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what I'm saying the hardware does support it but HTC are just not putting the hours into coding for us to get 30+fps.
could a higher class microSD Card possibly make any difference? I'm a bit disappointed myself especially when the picture quality itself is brilliant for a mobile device
I doubt that the FPS problem is CPU related. It's more likely an I/O bottleneck in the camera hardware or driver.
Couldn't it be optics quality related? It is a tiny lens after all, and if we get 22fps in sunlight but 16fps indoors, then surely that implies issues caused by the camera needing a slow shutter speed to cope with low light. I think it's fixed aperture so all it has to work with is shutter speed (and therefore fps) and sensitivity...
@NixC
That could well be the case. However, the amount by which frame rates seem to vary between ROMs and codecs suggests that there might still room for improvement beneath the limiting factor of the optics.
Hi I want to start this post so everyone can post their experience with the new 720 Recording Feature on the HTC Desire!
Please post Like this:
Video
Description
Problems
FPS
Rom used
I'll start:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxxPdPd8ea4
Description:
Me being very concentrated while playing the Drums... new song Bad Lighting hard sound situation (way too loud for this little Phone ) so worst case
Problems:
I see constant drops in FPS, or more likely a stuttering ever few seconds video playback just kida stops, audio is fine though! I did not have this Problems with other Roms so I think its not my SD card acting up?
FPS: 5-11 not very constant at all, although lighting was very constant (although very bad)
ROM used: LeeDroid 7.1b
Before official update:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugjI5ygsXzQ
Average/good lighting
20fps
Can't remember the rom, I think MCR v5, it was before the official update.
Not a lot of stuttering that I can notice, but the lens cover was a bit smudged and so the video came out a bit opaque.
After the update:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6KuPCn6_2M [quality should improve in a bit]
Probably a tad better lighting conditions
23fps
ieftm semi-stock rom
This is the best sample of three, one was ok, but the last one was stuttering quite a bit, as I think some background program was accessing the sd card heavily. Also lens here was a bit dirty
by the way, youtube quality doesn't render properly, linking videos should be better.
andycted said:
by the way, youtube quality doesn't render properly, linking videos should be better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did not know that, your Video looks very pixelated... Is that because its on Youtube? I will edit main thread thx
finnschi said:
Did not know that, your Video looks very pixelated... Is that because its on Youtube? I will edit main thread thx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I think it was me that turned contrast a bit too high and the fact that without optical zoom or camera lens optics you can get lose details in the distance on such high resolution
I gave up 720p, it is not good. Jumpy, low fps and especially ****ty voice quality.
I use 480p, but it is also not good, not too jumpy ... still ****ty voice quality.
I have 2.2 rom from here and 720p keeps freezing every few seconds.
720p is ok for me. Is it possible that its to do with the internal memory available? I have 60mb or more free, I know some people are down to low numbers. my card is a class2 too. I think the clips look better played on the PC in VLC lpayer than when I upload them to youtube. I think youtube might be introducing some of the negative aspects seen... maybe?
finnschi said:
I'll start:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxxPdPd8ea4
Description: Me being very concentrated while playing the Drums...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please please please... Can we please take advantage of the user interface of the XDA site?
For six months XDA has now supported YouTube embeds -- You can even see the icon in the COMPOSE screens -- though admittedly they don't tell you how to use it very easily.
BEHOLD! It's your video, and I don't have to click a new tab to see it. Magic!
Format for YouTube Embeds:
(remove spaces)
[ youtube ]just-the-video-letter/numbers[ /youtube ]
From your video above, the part that goes in between the [ youtube ] brackets follows v= NxxPdPd8ea4
Please, could you edit your first post to include the instructions. It has taken years to get XDA to embrace video. Now that they have, please support svetius, the User Experience designer of the new site, and use the tools. That's why they're here. Thank you.
P.S. -- is this jamming to the old WHO classic I CAN SEE FOR MILES ? -- just curious... in the event it is because Roger Daltrey still tours this very summer playing it -- and a friend of mine, a session guitarist in L.A., does Townsend's parts. ... Me, waiting for the answer:
"Dude, who are The Who?"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
P.S.S. Is this not the coolest thing? DUDE! Your bio here at XDA!
Occupation:
R&D at Apple Inc.
Working at Apple research... hating the iPhone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I gotta applaud you. I have used Apple products for 25 years. And I currently use primarily Mac computers, but I also use Windows machines. Very agnostic. But I have never used the iphone, especially since Apple was nowhere in sight when I started with touchscreen smartphones 5 or 6 years ago (but I salute the Newton!)... But I'm a usability designer, so i consider myself fair. And even though I have wanted my Desire to match or exceed the 720p capability of iphone4 -- i was at the Apple store a few weeks ago getting my damp MBP repaired for 3rd time and played with the iP4 -- and the 720p recording is pretty damn good. ... Lastly -- are you familiar with the various TEST PROJECTS that have been going on here since the Nexus One to optimize 720p in this HTC class of phones? If not, search... There are a whole bunch of serious collaborative engineering projects here, and as always XDA-devs work miracles -- so I'm not giving up hope yet. We may smash that iphone yet in recoding quality -- though I doubt it... I am told it records 30fps and no matter what backflips are done here, thru Froyo or other enhancements, we can't get this hardware to meet or exceed that. Is that true?
720p is crap, its just upscale from lover res., dont use it.
more info:
The data rate of 720p is over 4 times greater than 800x480. 6000kb/sec versus 1200kb/sec. It's not purely upscaled at all. I made two sample videos of a page of text and compared.
There was ALOT more detail in the 720p video. Even when I zoomed up the 800x480 one. I agree it's not as good as "true 720 HD" but its certainly not 100% upscaled.
mcgon1979 said:
The data rate of 720p is over 4 times greater than 800x480. 6000kb/sec versus 1200kb/sec. It's not purely upscaled at all. I made two sample videos of a page of text and compared.
There was ALOT more detail in the 720p video. Even when I zoomed up the 800x480 one. I agree it's not as good as "true 720 HD" but its certainly not 100% upscaled.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1200:6000 it's 5 times more. Yes it's not true 720 hd, but I can perfectly live with that quality if we get a couple of fps more
I've taken two short videos of a label, took screenshots from video player, cropped them, resized the 480 to fit the same size as the 720 one. It's very blurry compared to the normal 720p. See the hour in the fake pda, you can't read it in the upscaled one.
Video upscalers tend to do a better job than a simple photo resize and they do introduce more data leading to a larger file size. The disire may truly just upscale the video after all. In any case, its a shame that video capture on this device is as poor as it is. I dislike Apple and their iphone, but i'll give them this; all aspects of the software work very well from go and if not, a fix/upgrade is provided in a reasonably short time.
Jaa-Yoo said:
Video upscalers tend to do a better job than a simple photo resize and they do introduce more data leading to a larger file size. The disire may truly just upscale the video after all. In any case, its a shame that video capture on this device is as poor as it is. I dislike Apple and their iphone, but i'll give them this; all aspects of the software work very well from go and if not, a fix/upgrade is provided in a reasonably short time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Given the current state of their last shiny toy, I think it's a bit funny to say so.
Anyway, I've done some more tests and I can take the screen captured from a 480 video and upscale it with any tool with best quality or other algorythms and you always end up with a lot less detail than 720p, especially when there is a lot of light (unlike that test above). I don't think the desire has the processing power to do a better upscale than what I'm trying and while there might be a bit of upscaling given you have a tiny lens, it's not all there.
Also any tiny lens without zoom is pointless when taking videos from the distance anyway.
I can only get 15-16 fps... anyone can do higher?
I can easily get 25 average, outside in. good lighting, with a class 6 sd
quicksite said:
P.S. -- is this jamming to the old WHO classic I CAN SEE FOR MILES ? -- just curious... in the event it is because Roger Daltrey still tours this very summer playing it -- and a friend of mine, a session guitarist in L.A., does Townsend's parts. ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No its our own song, although i can see how the beginning sounds kinda like the Who
quicksite said:
I gotta applaud you. I have used Apple products for 25 years. And I currently use primarily Mac computers, but I also use Windows machines. Very agnostic. But I have never used the iphone, especially since Apple was nowhere in sight when I started with touchscreen smartphones 5 or 6 years ago (but I salute the Newton!)... But I'm a usability designer, so i consider myself fair. And even though I have wanted my Desire to match or exceed the 720p capability of iphone4 -- i was at the Apple store a few weeks ago getting my damp MBP repaired for 3rd time and played with the iP4 -- and the 720p recording is pretty damn good. ... Lastly -- are you familiar with the various TEST PROJECTS that have been going on here since the Nexus One to optimize 720p in this HTC class of phones? If not, search... There are a whole bunch of serious collaborative engineering projects here, and as always XDA-devs work miracles -- so I'm not giving up hope yet. We may smash that iphone yet in recoding quality -- though I doubt it... I am told it records 30fps and no matter what backflips are done here, thru Froyo or other enhancements, we can't get this hardware to meet or exceed that. Is that true?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I talked to some iPhone engineers about how the iPhone can archive 30Fps ... its because all the decoding of pictures delivered by the camera is handled by the GPU... for Android its all done on the CPU! so we need to find a way to decode the video stream using the Desires GPU, but I think the iP4's GPU is far better than the Desires... i am a hardware engineer... i am in no way able to code anything like that! What Makes me curios is file size comparison between an iP4 and the Desire.
Also: Desire running a non sense rom (AOSP) just like the Nexus gives much better 720 Quality!!! so I guess its in the software
finnschi said:
I talked to some iPhone engineers about how the iPhone can archive 30Fps ... its because all the decoding of pictures delivered by the camera is handled by the GPU... for Android its all done on the CPU! so we need to find a way to decode the video stream using the Desires GPU, but I think the iP4's GPU is far better than the Desires... i am a hardware engineer... i am in no way able to code anything like that! What Makes me curios is file size comparison between an iP4 and the Desire.
Also: Desire running a non sense rom (AOSP) just like the Nexus gives much better 720 Quality!!! so I guess its in the software
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SInce I am NEITHER a hardware nor software engineer, I am useless here, other than to ask obvious questions. Your apple access to methodology of iP4's video capture is itself useful information -- something that if I were a software engineer working on the various test projects here at XDA, I would want to know. Maybe that's something they could infer, or maybe its published somewhere, or maybe it's one of those "Geez, it's so obvious do i really need to be told that?" points.
That then gets blurred and muddied by the REAL armchair knowitalls (*I* disclose that I know nothing) who pounce on a pronouncement by someone here and say "That's impossible, or that's bullcrap, look here at my image, it proves you wrong, end of story" -- only to often find --- NOT end of story and that person got it wrong.
All i know is -- my experience has told me never presume -- because this site is SO HUGE, it is actually quite often that the right hand doesn't know what left hand is up to.
I wish there were a better means of coordinating the total knowledge holders of XDA site on this 720p issue regarding TOTAL CAPABILITY, software and hardware, so there is 100% collaboration. In the end, there is only one answer: Yes, desire can meet or exceed iphone4 720 p in every measure of resolution, or not.
THE PART I DIDN"T GET:
What Makes me curios is file size comparison between an iP4 and the Desire.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which is bigger? what is your initial inference? larger file size = higher rez?
thank you
roufianos cooked a Rom that achieved 29-30 fps but the phone restarted after 50 seconds of recording. Was that due to overheating of the processor? I don't know. His phone gave up spirit and he is waiting for a replacement so the development of his Rom is on pause at the moment.
andycted said:
I can easily get 25 average, outside in. good lighting, with a class 6 sd
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've not seen more than 23fps in 720p with great lighting. anyone else? I use a Class2 card so maybe using class 6 is why you get 25fps average?
mcgon1979 said:
I've not seen more than 23fps in 720p with great lighting. anyone else? I use a Class2 card so maybe using class 6 is why you get 25fps average?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ive managed 26fps @ 720p with my Desire running official unbranded 2.2. Im using a Class 4 card, so that might help over your Class 2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saS39iqjDgs
I just compared the youtube clip to the original on my PC (i scaled the VLC window down to the same size as playing the youtube clip in its 'expanded' size) and there is definatly a small quality difference. The details on the original are noticable finer, so even @ 720p on youtube the bitrate must take a small hit.
Here is a screenshot of the comparison.
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/9005/720pcomparison.jpg
Hi guys.
I'm new here, so if I put this in the wrong category please correct me.
I got my Desire with the official Froyo update on it, and as many others I'm very disappointed by the 720p video, I get 24-26 fps on a very bright day and sound is horrible.
So I was wondering, are there any roms that gives you 30fps 720p and/or better audio?..
My phone is not rooted, but I will be willing to do it for a better phone experience as I'm very very disappointed..
This is my first Android phone..
Regards Ding0
Bad performance filming in 720p
I agree with you, Froyo is faster but filming in 720p is a disaster Stuttering performance!!!! How could they do this upgrade with no trying!!! Is ther any solution? I thinking to go back to my old HD2. TV programs looking back is still in a smaller view and not better than before...
Just wondering if there are any roms which have greater 720p fps?
Which is the best?
Thanks for answering.
the problem isnt with the roms, its with adreno the gpu! this is all its capable of, untill we find a way to o/c the gpu, its gunna have to do .....
It seems that sense roms are the main offenders when it comes to video stuttering, (not sure about sense HD as there is no camera yet).
OD, MIUI and Defrost all do not stutter for me, and record at about 27 ish FPS in good lighting conditions.
I can confirm that. Switched from LeeDroid to DeFrost and HD video performance was greatly improved!
Is anyone currently trying to figure out a way to overclock the GPU?
I want it too. But I think it is not so easy and safe (class 6 shdc? overheating..)
http://xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=769699
OK , I am new here, but this is what I think , where the problem lies.
A bit of background first:
A few months ago, when I got my Desire with factory 2.1 rom, I took some videos, at 800X480 . I have checked them today, they all are at full 25fps (I am in UK) , no juddering and very smooth. here is the interesting bit! the bit rate was an average of 2Mb/s for encoding.
Recently, after upgrading to Froyo, I realized that the video capture is awefull, so like a fool, I got myself, a new 16GB class6 card, tried it again, and same rubbish fps I got.
Then I noticed that now videos are being recorded at around 8Mb/s !!
I believe the higher bitrate recording is where the blame lies. nothing else.
I think, some clever sod, thought lets raise the bitrate to make it easier on the processor, but the extra bitrate, has caused problems elsewhere.
Ken
codec
kentajalli said:
OK , I am new here, but this is what I think , where the problem lies.
A bit of background first:
A few months ago, when I got my Desire with factory 2.1 rom, I took some videos, at 800X480 . I have checked them today, they all are at full 25fps (I am in UK) , no juddering and very smooth. here is the interesting bit! the bit rate was an average of 2Mb/s for encoding.
Recently, after upgrading to Froyo, I realized that the video capture is awefull, so like a fool, I got myself, a new 16GB class6 card, tried it again, and same rubbish fps I got.
Then I noticed that now videos are being recorded at around 8Mb/s !!
I believe the higher bitrate recording is where the blame lies. nothing else.
I think, some clever sod, thought lets raise the bitrate to make it easier on the processor, but the extra bitrate, has caused problems elsewhere.
Ken
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
have you checked the codecs?
what one works best for you? mpeg-4, h.264 or h.263 ?
they are all as bad as each other.
It's because it saves the video to the SD card instead of internal memory and the GPU isn't the best so theyw ill always be jumpy.
But i thought it can do 720p only with 3GP, if it would use H.264 probably will get better result.
It has nothing to do with "saving it on sd card" and its write speed. even a basic class 2 card has enough write speed for proper operation.
My phone, on android 2.1 with a basic card could manage 800x480 @25fps easily, but on Froyo can not do the same, nevermind 720p.
something has gone wrong somewhere with the camera, and I'll doubt if it ever gets fixed.
After all, how else could they push new models with better capabilities, if older medels performed just as well ?
On a different note, for those who are not aware, 3GP is container format, not a codec! just like AVI or MKV are just containers. within these containers you have various components such as video, audio subtitles etc. H263 , H264, Divx etc. are all derivatives of Mpeg4 video codec. To make matters more confusing Mp4 is also a container and not the same as Mpeg4!! Just as Mp3 is not the same as Mpeg3!! ( to my knowledge mpeg3 was abandoned). Just for your information.
I just shot a small video clip today with leedroid, was stunned that 720p was unusable if anything moved in the picture.
Well, didn't have time to think too much about it, so changed to 480, should increase fps, but did not, which means camera is useless if there is any faster than slow movement in the picture.
My old ericsson t650 could do 30 fps nightshots with modified camera driver, so kinda expecting a desire should at least do 30 fps nightshots with 480p
Has there been any update on this, or still waiting for someone to figure out how to hack the camera?
So just browsing along I stumbled on this video review of the camera app. I knew our DINC's had problems with video, but WOW, is it really this bad?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzglMIwpYo4
I'm sure there has to be a developer that can maybe come out with a fix for this
theguy386 said:
So just browsing along I stumbled on this video review of the camera app. I knew our DINC's had problems with video, but WOW, is it really this bad?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzglMIwpYo4
I'm sure there has to be a developer that can maybe come out with a fix for this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i'm not sure what a dev could do to fix this. it seems that the issues with the pixel density and audio aren't something that could be overcome with patching a file from another OS or even an app...
my advice is this:
if you want a better video experience, buy a dedicated video camera or a dedicated camera with video functions. as a phone, it's a balancing act. you're not gonna get the best of ALL worlds, but including hardware and features for things like recording video in 720p is pretty handy and convenient when you're caught without a dedicated camera or video device. i wouldn't rely 100% on my phone as my primary device for anything except phone calls. but to each their own
That video showed me at least one new thing: I didn't realize that with 2.2 and 720p recording, H.264 isn't available. With H.264 selected, the highest available resolution drops to WVGA (800x480). Only H.263 and MPEG4 are available in 720p. Does anyone know if this is true on other Froyo devices, like the Nexus One? Or did something get changed when 2.2 went through HTC?
Perhaps the OP is right, I think that with a software update of some kind, H.264 for 720p could be enabled on the Droid Incredible, as well as higher bitrate audio. The OP's video suggests those two things to be major reasons as to why the camcorder quality is so different. Anyone know if Cyanogen is working on 720p H.264 as well as his continuous autofocus awesomeness?
Of course the actual optics are a bit different between the two devices as well, but I'd like to think the Droid Incredible has a better camera than those camera tests seem to show.
chameleon131 said:
That video showed me at least one new thing: I didn't realize that with 2.2 and 720p recording, H.264 isn't available. With H.264 selected, the highest available resolution drops to WVGA (800x480). Only H.263 and MPEG4 are available in 720p. Does anyone know if this is true on other Froyo devices, like the Nexus One? Or did something get changed when 2.2 went through HTC?
Perhaps the OP is right, I think that with a software update of some kind, H.264 for 720p could be enabled on the Droid Incredible, as well as higher bitrate audio. The OP's video suggests those two things to be major reasons as to why the camcorder quality is so different. Anyone know if Cyanogen is working on 720p H.264 as well as his continuous autofocus awesomeness?
Of course the actual optics are a bit different between the two devices as well, but I'd like to think the Droid Incredible has a better camera than those camera tests seem to show.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i'll ask my friends with other devices that are capable of 720p and see what they say, will post findings
EDIT: samsung captivate doesn't have encoding settings. we didn't record a video to see what it saved it as, either. but there is no option in the settings to change encoding, only resolution.
chameleon131 said:
That video showed me at least one new thing: I didn't realize that with 2.2 and 720p recording, H.264 isn't available. With H.264 selected, the highest available resolution drops to WVGA (800x480). Only H.263 and MPEG4 are available in 720p. Does anyone know if this is true on other Froyo devices, like the Nexus One? Or did something get changed when 2.2 went through HTC?
Perhaps the OP is right, I think that with a software update of some kind, H.264 for 720p could be enabled on the Droid Incredible, as well as higher bitrate audio. The OP's video suggests those two things to be major reasons as to why the camcorder quality is so different. Anyone know if Cyanogen is working on 720p H.264 as well as his continuous autofocus awesomeness?
Of course the actual optics are a bit different between the two devices as well, but I'd like to think the Droid Incredible has a better camera than those camera tests seem to show.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been thinking the same thing. I even posted about changing the codec but no one responded.
I was reading on the evo forum about the camera software and several posters suspected that the compression is what is making the video not as good as it could be. They also had the same thought about enabling h.264.
I would definitively pay for these features.
kdog78
Virtuous v3.0 - Evo Camera App
Unrevoked Forever
Hydra Kernel #1 Overclocked Undervolted 1.15ghz v1.0
You bought a cell phone? What do you expect? ITS NOT GONNA HAVE AN AWESOME CAMERA/CAMCORDER BUILT IN!!!!!! Get over it... If you want high quality then buy a standalone camcorder. Phones weren't made to take great videos. They are more for like a quick need thing. Maybe you see some cops doing something underhanded, see some kind of crime in progress, stupid things that happen at a party that you feel are important, etc.
TNS201 said:
You bought a cell phone? What do you expect? ITS NOT GONNA HAVE AN AWESOME CAMERA/CAMCORDER BUILT IN!!!!!! Get over it... If you want high quality then buy a standalone camcorder. Phones weren't made to take great videos. They are more for like a quick need thing. Maybe you see some cops doing something underhanded, see some kind of crime in progress, stupid things that happen at a party that you feel are important, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah pretty much what i was going to say
I thought XDA was about getting the most out of your device through tips, tricks, tweaks and hacks, and that it's been that way for some time. Maybe I'm mistaken.
I think trying to squeeze the best performance out of your device's camera is perfectly legit, OP.
Am I wrong?
----------------------------
Anyway, that's weird and seems pretty pitiful that the Captivate won't even let you change the codec setting at all. Better for user experience I suppose, not to have to mess with codecs to try to get the best picture. I'm curious what codec it defaults to. I wonder what a comparison between the Captivate and Incredible camcorder would look like.
The camera indeed has some problem on the Incredible. My incredible will flicker in low light condition even in camera mode. I had to return and exchange one, but the problem is still there just less severe.
TNS201 said:
You bought a cell phone? What do you expect? ITS NOT GONNA HAVE AN AWESOME CAMERA/CAMCORDER BUILT IN!!!!!! Get over it... If you want high quality then buy a standalone camcorder. Phones weren't made to take great videos. They are more for like a quick need thing. Maybe you see some cops doing something underhanded, see some kind of crime in progress, stupid things that happen at a party that you feel are important, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With the power this phone possesses, the video sucks. I would not only expect it to be better, but use the latest codecs and not amr audio and save files in .3gp! What good is high def video if I can't play it on my Xbox or PS3, or other media boxes?. That's a joke. I think as long as the iPhone can do it, maybe Droid should.
I didn't buy a cell phone. I bought a multi-hundred dollar smartphone with an 8mp camera that BOASTS 720p video. If I bought a RAZR I would accept it.
I found your post rude and unhelpful.
All the video samples from the G2 I have seen on Youtube so far have not been impressive. Most disturbing about these videos is the sound quality, it is pretty bad. I have a Nexus One (hacked with Cyanogenmod's 720p recording feature) and it also isn't that great so I'm guessing this is a 'feature' of HTC phones. Compared to the Galaxy S (from Samsung) the HTC phones (G2, N1 and even the EVO) seem to suck in the video / audio department.
In a recent post I read that the audio codec for a HD recording off the G2 is this:
AMR (samr), Mono, 8k, 32 bits per sample
Could this be the problem and can this be changed?
AMR == Adaptive Multi-Rate Audio Codec. Dunno what the "s" in "samr" is all about tho.
I see a comparison with the nokia 8 and there is a definite sound quality difference. (Be sure to watch this in 720p)
Wonder if the sample rate is adjustable by firmware/settings or if it's set in hardware. Strangely wikipedia lists 14 modes, none of which are at the "8k" (rate?) you reported... I see AMR_7.95 tho.
Anyway, my g2 is on the way....
W
cowmixtoo said:
AMR (samr), Mono, 8k, 32 bits per sample
Could this be the problem and can this be changed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, yeah that's pretty bad.. 8k.
ericc191 said:
Wow, yeah that's pretty bad.. 8k.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, my watch can do better..
I just confirmed that my N1 encodes audio in the exact same format.
cowmixtoo said:
I just confirmed that my N1 encodes audio in the exact same format.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Idle thought- I wonder if the codec is set to a low bandwidth to accommodate slower SD card speeds. I think the g2 comes with a class 2, and this thread suggests that there is stuttering when playing back at the HD setting.
This is just idle speculation.
http://vimeo.com/15487989
Done a couple days ago, not so much about the audio, but the video couldnt keep up.
Yup, I noticed a lot of stuttering when playing videos back too.
ericc191 said:
Yup, I noticed a lot of stuttering when playing videos back too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What SD card?
Agreed. Audio isn't stellar and playback has stuttering. In fact, I've already experienced a weird situation where the video wouldn't actually play - just showed a blank screen with the audio playing.
I love this phone, but the video / audio / picture quality on my Sprint Epic is far superior.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
VValdo said:
What SD card?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
8GB Class 6 Transcend. It usually transfers up to 7mb/ps, so definitely not the issue.
ericc191 said:
8GB Class 6 Transcend. It usually transfers up to 7mb/ps, so definitely not the issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn thought it might be it... well what else causes stuttering? Not buffering enough... or maybe cpu being pulled to do something else..?
Is there any message from logcat when it's stuttering?
Meanwhile, I'm looking at the video camera source to see if there's any way to change the audio bitrate...
Lines ~230:
Code:
for (AudioEncoderCap encoder : EncoderCapabilities.getAudioEncoders()) {
switch (encoder.mCodec) {
case MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AMR_NB:
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("amrnb", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AMR_NB);
break;
case MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AAC:
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("aac", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AAC);
break;
}
}
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.putDefault(MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.DEFAULT);
/*
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("amrwb", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AMR_WB);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("qcelp", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.QCELP);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("evrc", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.EVRC);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("aacplus", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AAC_PLUS);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("eaacplus", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.EAAC_PLUS);
*/
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("1280x720", 6000000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("720x480", 3000000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("800x480", 3000000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("640x480", 1600000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("352x288", 360000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("320x240", 320000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("176x144", 192000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.putDefault(320000);
}
The video bitrate is right there.. how do you change the audio I wonder....? And what's up with the commented-out bits...
Maybe I'll try to get this running... I have no g2 yet to try it on but will soon.
W
One more thought... This is an old issue. If you doubt the potential the video camera COULD have, take a look at this audio comparison linked from the thread. At least on the n1, the microphone is capable of way better sound than the camera app currently offers. The g2 has a faster processor-- it should be able to encode better sound.. AAC? Ogg?
Update: It's not the camera app's fault. It's Android's. There is an open issue for this. It looks like Android itself doesn't support anything better. The good news is this isn't a hardware limitation. As someone suggested, a WebM encoder seems like an obvious thing to add.
VValdo said:
One more thought... This is an old issue. If you doubt the potential the video camera COULD have, take a look at this audio comparison linked from the thread. At least on the n1, the microphone is capable of way better sound than the camera app currently offers. The g2 has a faster processor-- it should be able to encode better sound.. AAC? Ogg?
Update: It's not the camera app's fault. It's Android's. There is an open issue for this. It looks like Android itself doesn't support anything better. The good news is this isn't a hardware limitation. As someone suggested, a WebM encoder seems like an obvious thing to add.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that's a plus.
VValdo said:
One more thought... This is an old issue. If you doubt the potential the video camera COULD have, take a look at this audio comparison linked from the thread. At least on the n1, the microphone is capable of way better sound than the camera app currently offers. The g2 has a faster processor-- it should be able to encode better sound.. AAC? Ogg?
Update: It's not the camera app's fault. It's Android's. There is an open issue for this. It looks like Android itself doesn't support anything better. The good news is this isn't a hardware limitation. As someone suggested, a WebM encoder seems like an obvious thing to add.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wow amazing! i really hope we can fix this issue
I just starred the issue (they look at that don't they?)... I recorded some video at a concert last night and while the video wasn't terrible, the sound is absolutely unbearable. Makes the videos pretty much worthless
I keep wondering if it's possible to stuff our own codec in there. I mean, some of the android phones have higher quality audio, right? If so, how do they do it? Why are those codecs commented out in the video camera code for...?
Doesn't cyanogenmod have FLAC support? Couldn't other codecs be added to the phone app, even if they're in java?
You're right, the current audio situation sucks.