Patent: VideoChat for iPhone

Since the iPhone's launch, the lack of video capabilities on the handset has been a major complaint among customers.The patent, that Apple was given several days ago, shows company's plans to introduce video conferencing to future generations of the popular handset. Apple devotes a paragraph to explaining how video conferencing would work. Lens that can be rotated backward or forward, coupled with the touchscreen as a viewfinder.

Here are couple quotes:

"In some embodiments, the functions may include telephoning, video conferencing, e-mailing, instant messaging, blogging, digital photographing, digital videoing, Web browsing, digital music playing, and/or digital video playing. Instructions for performing these functions may be included in a computer-readable storage medium or other computer program product configured for execution by one or more processors."

"In some embodiments, an optical sensor is located on the back of the device, opposite the touch screen display on the front of the device, so that the touch screen display may be used as a viewfinder for either still and/or video image acquisition. In some embodiments, an optical sensor is located on the front of the device so that the user's image may be obtained for videoconferencing while the user views the other video conference participants on the touch screen display. In some embodiments, the position of the optical sensor can be changed by the user (e.g., by rotating the lens and the sensor in the device housing) so that a single optical sensor may be used along with the touch screen display for both video conferencing and still and/or video image acquisition."