Samsung Galaxy Camera. A Pointless Product
So Samsung have introduced a slew of new products at their Unpacked conference at IFA 2012. My main focus lies upon one specific product: the Galaxy Camera. I said this when the initial Galaxy Note was released, and it seems that the lesson wasn't learned. So putting it bluntly: converge products too much and they become pointless, like trying to put a phone into a camera, rather than a camera into a phone.
What do I mean by this? The idea of putting Android on a digital camera doesn't seem like such a bad idea, if it was kept within the context of a camera. It'll give hipsters more rapid access to Instagram, and allow for some more sophisticated on-the-fly photo editing and sharing. But besides the annoyance that they can stick Jelly Bean on this; but not update their own line of smartphones, the killer punch is that none of these features of mannerisms around photography are kept in hand.
Straight talking: I'm not going to use my camera like a smartphone. I'm not going to check my mail on it, play Angry Birds on it, or use any sort of Voice assistant software. All of this is possible on the Galaxy Camera, and that is quite counter-productive to the point of the device. Without any sort of genuine product definition through the software, the whole value of the camera is compromised.
And while wi-fi is a good idea for local connectivity and an option to upload directly from the device, I can't see many people wanting a camera with 3G (or 4G for you lucky devils in America) connectivity. There is no market there for you to unlock, as many people already have a data connection with a rather pricey contract and a camera...called a smartphone. The audience who would gravitate to this would probably tether a wi-fi camera to their phone, or save themselves the trouble and upload their photos taken from their very capable phones.
This is not an "essential tool" at all. It's too much of a hybrid product to have a reason for being. A mobile network's wet dream for extracting further cash from those uneducated about the product's capacity. And I understand they meant well by building this; but there's no getting away from the fact that this is wholly pointless.
"We've heard a lot of shit." Indeed we have, Samsung. Indeed we have.
Jason England
