Google Android Takes A New Form With the Nikon Coolpix S800c Discussion

[Valerie Sarnataro]

A new Android-powered device has launched, but sorry smartphone and tablet fans, this technology is targeted at the photographers out there, as Nikon has just announced the Coolpix S800c, a compact camera that runs on Google?s Android platform.

Read the full content of this Article: Google Android Takes A New Form With the Nikon Coolpix S800c

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[Hook]

I think the trade-offs are interesting. Sure, a better and larger screen would be nice, as would ICS or JB, but Gingerbread is pretty stable as an OS and you end up with a very good camera that you can do a lot of the stuff I can do on my SGP5. I think it's disingenuous to say it is more than most high end Smartphones. It is more than most subsidized high end smartphones. :-)

If you would like a good point and shoot and an Android handheld, but wold rather not carry multiple devices...

I'd like to know more of the tech specs (I assume it uses removable storage) and hope maybe BH can do a review. Not necessarily looking for this for myself, but I'm curious about it and like to see new approaches.

[Adama D. Brown]

I like the premise of this. It's not even just about a one-device solution, it's about an ecosystem solution. Maybe you have an Android smartphone, a tablet, and now an Android camera. And by virtue of being on Android, you can keep them all connected and up to date easily.

A perfect example: look at Dropbox and their automatic camera upload feature. Take your camera out, take photos, and as soon as you get home it automatically connects to WiFi and copies those pictures first to your online backups, then back down to your PC. And they're also made available on your tablet, smartphone, etcetera at the same time. How many people have given up on dedicated cameras because they didn't feel like fussing around with cables, connecting to the PC, manual copying (or some terrible proprietary software), etcetera?

I'd like to know more of the tech specs (I assume it uses removable storage) and hope maybe BH can do a review.

I for one would love to, but this is always contingent on getting review units. These days it seems like the only companies who are aggressive about getting their product out there are the wireless carriers.

[internetpilot]

I just saw this in a photography shop ad. At $350 it looks like a normal pricerange for a rather nice point-n-shoot camera, and this one basically comes with a bonus built-in PDA with a modern OS.

Nikon | Imaging Products | COOLPIX S800c

The camera specs look rather nice. The camera is 16mp with a 10x optical zoom and 1080p HD movie feature. That alone will typically have a MSRP of $350. What will be interesting to see is how quickly that price drops. Typically, digital camera prices drop fast -- so fast that by the time most cameras are reviewed, they already have a MSRP and "street price". I wonder if the Android PDA side of this one will keep the price higher for longer? Can't really find any specs on the Android side of things other than it's running Gingerbread (which seems acceptable to me).

The biggest glaring negative that I already see is that Nikon claims the battery life with just shooting stills is only 140 shots. That's horrible! Any P&S camera I've ever owned gets at least 2x that amount of shots per charge (and still get bad reviews for battery life), and my Pentax DSLR (which uses rechargeable AA batteries) gets at least 4x that many shots on a charge, and those are real world stats where I'm also typically shooting video, frequently viewing the pics, etc. You'd think with something this dual purpose that they would've put a better battery in there. They could've gotten away with it, too, because it's a camera, which doesn't have the super slim constraints of the current mobile devices. Unfortunately, that alone is enough to make this a camera that's not for me.

Good first effort though. I hope more camera manufacturers do the same thing. I'd especially like to see Android in a DSLR.

[jigwashere]

Ever since they started selling Eye-Fi cards, I've been wondering why camera manufacturers didn't just build WiFi into their cameras. I really like this idea, especially if you can connect it to ad-hoc networks (smartphone tethering) to upload while on the road. The next thing you'll see if point-and-shoot cameras with 3G.

[NetBrakr]

I've been wondering why camera manufacturers didn't just build WiFi into their cameras. I really like this idea, especially if you can connect it to ad-hoc networks (smartphone tethering) to upload while on the road. The next thing you'll see if point-and-shoot cameras with 3G.

Samsung did.

[Drillbit]

Ever since they started selling Eye-Fi cards, I've been wondering why camera manufacturers didn't just build WiFi into their cameras. I really like this idea, especially if you can connect it to ad-hoc networks (smartphone tethering) to upload while on the road. The next thing you'll see if point-and-shoot cameras with 3G.

Nikon has this on the D3200 SLR. There is an accessory you plug into the SLR, and an app you have to download from Google Play. The camera and the Android device will communicate, letting you download pictures from the camera to the Android device in an instant, and lets the Android device control the camera. You can even view the camera's viewfinder through the Android device screen. Yes, it also works with tablets, even with wifi only tablets. The accessory uses a direct wifi connection to the device.

How I know this? My brother has this and showed it to me.

[internetpilot]

The next thing you'll see if point-and-shoot cameras with 3G.

Not with that battery or your 3G service will only last for like 15 minutes.

[Varjak]

Jig beat me to it. That's what I'd say; but go further to just say, add Bluetooth. Why add redundant features to the camera when most people have a compatible phone? Palm started going that way with its 'Photo Companion' feature in the LifeDrive. BT is just an extension of that. Plus, you can add lots of other features like using the phone flash as a 'bounce' in addition to the camera, remote shutter release, etc.