InstaCamera – never miss a photo moment with this Instant Camera app
by Paul Wilks
Mar 22, 2012 11:39 AM –
Install
InstaCamera is, as you might guess, an instant camera for your Android device. And when I say ‘instant’ I definitely mean ‘instant’. Place the shortcut on your homescreen and press it to take an instant snap of what you point it at. No messing about with camera settings, just point and snap. It’s irreducibly simple and pretty effective too.
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Responsive and fast camera app!
- Lots of resolution settings!
- Multiple shot settings!
Cons
- Flash didn’t always work for me.
Features:
InstaCamera is for that moment when perhaps you only have a split second to take a picture. It might be one of your pets doing something crazy or maybe one of your kids pulling a funny face. I’m sure in the past we must have all missed golden opportunities to take a picture when you have to take your phone out of your pocket, open the camera app, point, find focus and, at last, take the pictures. This takes up valuable time which you might not have. Seconds can count.
That’s where InstaCamera provides a neat little solution. If you tap the icon on your homescreen it will automatically take a picture of whatever you’re pointing at. No fuss, no bother and the picture is taken. Because taking the ‘perfect’ shot isn’t always easy there’s a ‘multiple shots’ option to take up to 5 pictures in one go. You can also adjust the photo resolution, so this will work on any device with a camera.
There is a setting to include auto-flash, but I found that flash didn’t always work for me even if the lighting required it. This small (and infrequent) issue aside, InstaCamera worked like a charm and I was able to take pictures very quickly indeed. Obviously, it takes a lot of the art out of photography and there are camera apps obviously that provide far more, but for quick responsive snaps of things as they happen, this is ideal.
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InstaCamera – Settings
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InstaCamera – Resolution selection
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InstaCamera – Resolution selection 2
Usefulness:
For taking fast snaps on the go, perhaps when you only have a window of a couple of seconds to capture something, InstaCamera is superb. It’s very very fast and gives you a far better chance of catching that moment on camera than by using a normal camera app.
Ease of Use:
I really don’t think you can get much simpler. Simply point and click. Be sure to press save in the settings once adjusted, but this aside it’s incredibly easy to use.
Frequently Used:
This very much depends on the user and how often these moment occur in their lives. This certainly will not replace the camera app you normally use as some shots obviously require more time and effort to get right. When you have that time, you would naturally use your normal camera. However, if you have just a few seconds to take a picture, InstaCamera is a perfect solution.
Interface:
The settings are relatively straight forward and simple. A drop down menu for the resolution and a sliders for multiple shots and shutter volume. You can also choose to stay in camera mode once the pictures have been taken.