SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 16 ― Kodak is set to launch a range of lens cameras that turn smartphones into serious digital cameras and, on first glance, they look familiar.
One of the most interesting new product launches of 2013 was Sony’s QX-series of lens cameras.
The idea is great: a small, self-contained camera, no bigger than a standalone lens that, when connected wirelessly to a smartphone, gives it photography capabilities that could challenge a dedicated top-spec digital camera. In fact, the only question mark hovering over the product’s reveal in September was whether it would generate a big enough demand to become a mainstream consumer product.
Regardless of what consumers eventually decide, Sony’s competitors clearly think that the company is on to something; and Kodak is launching its own lens camera that not only offers pretty much all of the functionality of Sony’s device, it also looks very similar.
The Kodak Pixpro SL10 will cost US$199 (RM656) when it launches this spring and for that price, buyers will get a 10X optical zoom, the ability to shoot HD videos and a built-in microSD slot for storing images and videos on the device rather than their Apple or Android smartphones.
And, like Sony, Kodak is also going to offer a higher specification model, the SL25 which, for US$299, will boast a 25x optical zoom.
So, does this sudden competition mean that lens cameras or smart lenses are about to take off as a product category? The simple answer is that it is too early to tell. But one thing that is certain is that smartphone camera technology is evolving at a faster and faster pace and investing in a standalone camera could be a very good way of future-proofing a handset and making it useful for longer. ― AFP-Relaxnews
