The concept of shoehorning WiFi and phone-like features isn't new, but Nikon is clearly taking the concept seriously, pushing a full version of Google's Android Gingerbread operating system into the Coolpix S800c. It's certainly not the first connected camera, but it is a bit refreshing in a time when buggy, proprietary connectivity systems are the norm.
From the back, the camera is a lot like a phone. It uses a
big 3.5-inch touchscreen OLED display that can be used to watch video,
surf the web, and pretty much anything else you can do on a typical
Android device. It prefers to be connected via the integrated WiFi, but
if there's no open network around, it can send images and videos
wirelessly to a compatible tablet or smartphone so they can be uploaded
using the data network. It's a bit like the WU-1a wifi adapter that was announced in concert with the D3200 DSLR. It even has built-in GPS like a smartphone.
Despite all the likenesses between it and a smartphone,
the S800c is still very much a dedicated camera. It has a 16-megapixel
backside illumination CMOS sensor (which is much bigger than the typical
cell phone camera) planted behind a 10x Vibration Reduction-equipped
Nikkor zoom lens with a full-frame equivalent focal range of 25-250mm.
It also does 1080p video, which it can spit directly onto YouTube and
Vimeo for embarrassing your buddies with maximum efficiency.
It's a very cool concept, especially since it now turns
the camera into a secondary media player and web-surfing machine. It
will be available in both white and black starting in September, at
which point it will cost $349, which actually makes it $50 cheaper than
the 64 GB iPod Touch. It seems like it's not too far-fetched that the
next step be for them just cram a SIM card in there and make the thing a
full-fledged smartphone. Though, with their strong mobile hand, maybe
Samsung will beat them to it.
What do you think? Does your camera need apps? Are we ready for a camera with access to Instagram?
source: http://www.popphoto.com/gear/2012/08/new-gear-nikon-coolpix-s800c-android-powered-wifi-equipped-compact-camera
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