What is a VGA Camera?

VGA, or video graphics array, is a way of displaying digital images.

Most digital cameras are identified by a megapixel rating that shows how large of an image they can capture. Before there were high megapixel ratings cameras where usually identified as having the VGA resolution. While most digital cameras and other electronic devices that contain cameras no longer use the outdated VGA standard there are still a few applications where it remains useful.

History

Video Graphics Array (VGA) was originally developed by in 1987 by IBM as a means for their personal computers to display graphics on a monitor. It was replaced in the early 1990's by the more advanced Extended Graphics Array and Super Video Graphics Array standards that were made by both IBM and a score of third party computer companies. VGA is still used today in many mobile and handheld electronic applications.

Function

VGA cameras are digital cameras that store their images directly inside the camera's memory or onto an attached memory card. The images can then be transferred to a computer for printing or sent to a TV screen for public viewing by connecting a cable between the camera and the second device or by removing the memory card and inserting it into a card reader.

Features

Cameras that have the VGA designation take pictures that have a resolution of 640 X 480, which means that a picture will be 640 pixels wide by 480 pixels long. Images of that size do not take up much space, so most VGA cameras have a very small amount of internal memory. A 640 by 480 image will look distorted if printed on a full page, but will remain clear and crisp if printed as wallet sized or standard 5-inch photographs.

Types

The most frequent use for VGA cameras are in older or lower end cellular phones. Because VGA cameras are cheap to make and produce small images that fit perfectly into even the smallest cell phones with the least amount of memory available. Toy cameras intended for children also predominately use the VGA standard. With the advent of high megapixel rating cameras there are virtually no standard cameras that use the VGA standard today. Other devices that contain small hidden cameras such as binoculars or glasses may make use of the VGA standard.

Misconceptions

The VGA rating refers only to size and not to clarity. A 640 by 480 pixels is about the equivalent of a 0.3 megapixel image. The issues of distortion and clarity loss only occur when the image is either enlarged beyond it's original parameters for printing or viewed on a screen that uses a larger resolution. Since most modern monitors and TV screens use a 1280 by 1024 resolution or higher, this means that a VGA image will usually appear distorted or blocky.