Comments on: Tip: A Toolmonger’s Use for Camera Phones http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/ All tools. All the time. Your source for news, information, and reviews of hand tools, power tools, and tools of all kinds. Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:29:28 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.1 By: Norm http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-26641 Norm Mon, 26 Feb 2007 04:07:03 +0000 http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-26641 I use mine as a flashlight also, just turn on the "flash" which is a little LED light. I use mine as a flashlight also, just turn on the “flash” which is a little LED light.

]]> By: TL http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-20318 TL Sat, 10 Feb 2007 00:53:35 +0000 http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-20318 Aside from those mentioned above, the other killer app for a camera phone is snapping pictures of price tags at Lowes and Home Depot. Comparison shopping has never been easier. It also lets you work up a pretty good budget for the home improvement projects BEFORE you start tearing stuff apart. Sometimes when you do the math to find out what it will really cost, the project just isn't worth it anymore. Aside from those mentioned above, the other killer app for a camera phone is snapping pictures of price tags at Lowes and Home Depot. Comparison shopping has never been easier. It also lets you work up a pretty good budget for the home improvement projects BEFORE you start tearing stuff apart. Sometimes when you do the math to find out what it will really cost, the project just isn’t worth it anymore.

]]> By: Rob http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-15461 Rob Mon, 22 Jan 2007 17:38:48 +0000 http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-15461 I do the exact same thing with a 2MP camera I have. It definitely helps when putting things back together especially wiring where so many connectors are the same. I do the exact same thing with a 2MP camera I have. It definitely helps when putting things back together especially wiring where so many connectors are the same.

]]> By: Jon http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-15441 Jon Mon, 22 Jan 2007 15:28:13 +0000 http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-15441 The other great thing this affords you is for taking pictures of, say, that hose you punctured in the wall while hanging the bathroom cabinet. Then you can go to your favorite DIY store and get the right replacement. Also very useful for snapping pictures of thermostat wiring before replacement, so when the new one doesn't work, you can reinstall the old one with confidence! The other great thing this affords you is for taking pictures of, say, that hose you punctured in the wall while hanging the bathroom cabinet. Then you can go to your favorite DIY store and get the right replacement. Also very useful for snapping pictures of thermostat wiring before replacement, so when the new one doesn’t work, you can reinstall the old one with confidence!

]]> By: Nate Bezanson http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-15247 Nate Bezanson Sun, 21 Jan 2007 18:48:41 +0000 http://toolmonger.com/2007/01/21/tip-a-toolmongers-use-for-camera-phones/#comment-15247 Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! I use a regular digital camera, not integrated into a phone, because it offers much better picture quality and greater storage. On occasion I'll use movie mode -- on a 1GB card I can record an hour of video, and grab frames from it later if I decide to document the process. Of course, if you have a cheap laptop (or a washable one, like a Tougbook or an Enduro) sitting around the shop, a cheap webcam is a great addition too. Record video straight to the hard drive, and you can get hours and hours of footage for later reference. And where you might have to pay a few hundred bucks to get a digital camera with a good macrofocus function, most five-dollar webcams can focus down to within an inch of the lens just by twisting the mechanism way, way out. A surprising number of the photos in my Flickr were taken this way. Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! I use a regular digital camera, not integrated into a phone, because it offers much better picture quality and greater storage. On occasion I’ll use movie mode — on a 1GB card I can record an hour of video, and grab frames from it later if I decide to document the process.

Of course, if you have a cheap laptop (or a washable one, like a Tougbook or an Enduro) sitting around the shop, a cheap webcam is a great addition too. Record video straight to the hard drive, and you can get hours and hours of footage for later reference.

And where you might have to pay a few hundred bucks to get a digital camera with a good macrofocus function, most five-dollar webcams can focus down to within an inch of the lens just by twisting the mechanism way, way out. A surprising number of the photos in my Flickr were taken this way.

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