IT House April 27 news, according to MacRumors, 9to5 Mac reported, Apple today released Studio Display's new "iOS 15.5" beta firmware, for Studio Display users who have installed macOS Monterey 12.4 beta on Mac. The updated firmware includes fixes to the webcam.
Prior to the release of Studio Display, reviewers noticed that the webcam performed less than expected. It is described as faded, grainy, noisy, and overall poor quality.
After those complaints came out, Apple said it had "found a problem with system behavior that didn't behave as expected" and promised to fix it in future software updates. The fix was released today, and Apple says it has adjusted the camera to improve noise reduction, contrast and framing.
In fact, if you watch the video above, the update difference is subtle. The color is less pale, the contrast is improved, and the overall look is more vibrant. There isn't much difference in sharpness depending on the lighting, but these changes seem to be an overall improvement.
Jason Snell of Six Colors shared a set of photos and a video that also showed the difference between the new and old firmware, and that there were noticeable changes to the framework. When using centered portraits and not using the feature, the zoom is smaller, which means less overall cropping of the video capture.
The blogger said, "Compare the 15.5 (first image) and 15.4 (second image) firmware of the Studio Display camera." There's a lot less noise and a little more contrast, but it's still faded compared to the iMac Pro camera, which was taken in the third shot last month. ”
Overall, Apple's changes seem to be getting better, but not as noticeable as they might think. Skin tone and overall color have improved, contrast seems to have improved, and noise reduction is better, but in the end this is still the same 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, so Apple is limited to software adjustments this time.
It's all about ultra-wide angle lenses
Apple says studio Display has a 12-megapixel camera that's big enough to capture sharp images. After all, the iPhone and other Apple devices also have 12-megapixel front cameras. But why is the Studio Display webcam so different in terms of image quality?
While most Apple devices have a regular wide-angle front camera, the Studio Display is an ultra-wide-angle lens. This is because it has a centered portrait, a feature that uses machine learning to always center images on a person during a video call or video recording. Since this camera does not have optical zoom, the centered portrait digitally croches the image to center the character.
As a result, the iPhone is capable of taking true 12-megapixel selfies, but the centered portrait camera uses an ultra-wide-angle lens to capture a 12-megapixel image and then digitally cropped to look like a normal photo or video. This process results in a less sharp image. Not to mention that the ultra-wide-angle lens has a smaller aperture, so it gets less light.
For example, the iPad Air 3 has a 7-megapixel front camera. When compared to the iPad mini 6 (which has a centered portrait), the image of the old iPad looks sharper.
Currently, Studio Display users will need macOS Monterey 12.4 beta to see the 15.5 firmware update, which will be more widely available when a new version of Monterey is publicly available. The beta version is currently available to developers and beta personnel.