Questions about filming video with the Pinephone

[MirceaKitsune]

I've seen a few things other people have done with the cameras. For videos, people use the v4l2 interface directly by say reading the video out with ffmpeg. You can find some information about how to do this from Martijn Braam's blog post from almost a year ago (https://blog.brixit.nl/camera-on-the-pinephone). Take a look at Martijn's other posts as well as Martijn's software for the PinePhone cameras Megapixels.

As for the hardware capabilities, you can find the datasheets for some of the main components at the bottom of https://wiki.pine64.org/wiki/PinePhone and information about the rest of the components on https://wiki.pine64.org/wiki/PinePhone_component_list

1.

The datasheet for the back camera (https://files.pine64.org/doc/datasheet/p...asheet.pdf), which is an OV5640, indicates that it can do 1080p @ 30 fps and 720p @ 60 fps.

The datasheet for the front camera (https://files.pine64.org/doc/datasheet/p...131201.pdf, which is a GC2145, is sadly less informative. The information is there to calculate it but it would be quite a bit of work to do.


2.

The hardware interface provides the images in a raw format. It is up to the reading software what to do with it, such as encoding. ffmpeg can read the camera, and ffmpeg can write the data in an MP4 file. Though MP4 is just the container. You would still need to pick a codec. One thing to keep in mind, the encoding will be in software as far as I know (I don't know if the CPU has any video encoders or not, or if the drivers work for them if they are there). That could easily limit your frame rate depending on the video codec and settings you use.

3.

The flash is controllable from software, so in principle yes. If you just want the flash to be on continuously, just use a torch program and turn it on in and leave it that way (I believe Manjaro is also configured such that you can turn it on and off from an easy to reach menu, but haven't checked (seems like I heard this somewhere)). Worst comes to worse, you might have to find out how such programs control the light and do it yourself.

Thank you, that answers the main question. So at least at hardware level, it's certain that filming at 1080p / 30 FPS is possible? What about 60 FPS?

I was curious about the default camera app otherwise, or those available if there isn't a default installed and I have to add it manually. I'm assuming there is a GUI based one like on the Android phones, where you click on an icon and get taken to a screen where you can film or take photos? The sort that looks like this: