An Apple patent (number 2010039530) has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office that shows that Apple plans on beefing up its picture and video recording performance on portable devices. Also, a look at the patent shows that future iPhones and/or iPod touches and/or iPads could sport a forward facing camera.

The invention relates generally to digital cameras and, more particularly, to calibrating digital camera components to minimize manufacturing variations in such components. Per the patent A method of manufacturing a digital video camera is provided. The method comprises acquiring video images of colored light, and measuring a light intensity response of the video camera to the colored light. The method further comprises comparing the intensity of the measured response to a desired colored light intensity for determining a color intensity bias and storing the intensity bias for the colored light in the camera so that the bias can be applied when the camera is operating at an arbitrary lighting condition. The inventors are Haitao Guo, Ting Chen and David Kuo.

Here's Apple's summary of the invention: "Certain aspects of embodiments disclosed herein by way of example are summarized below. It should be understood that these aspects are presented merely to provide the reader with a brief summary of certain forms an invention disclosed and/or claimed herein might take and that these aspects are not intended to limit the scope of any invention disclosed and/or claimed herein. Indeed, any invention disclosed and/or claimed herein may encompass a variety of aspects that may not be set forth below.

"In one embodiment, there is provided a method of manufacturing a digital camera. The method includes acquiring video images of colored light, and measuring a light intensity response of the camera to the colored light. The method further includes comparing the measured response intensity to a desired colored light intensity for determining a color intensity bias, and storing the intensity bias for the colored light in the camera so that the bias can be applied when the camera is operating at an arbitrary lighting condition.

"In another embodiment, there is provided a device including a digital camera adapted to acquire video or still images. The device further includes a memory device coupled to the digital camera, wherein the memory device is adapted to store data configured to calibrate intensities of red, green and/or blue (RGB) colored light rendered in the acquired video images. Further, the above digital camera can be incorporated within a media player having a signal processor coupled to the digital camera and to the memory device, such that the signal processor is adapted to further adjust the calibrated color intensities of the acquired video images."