It looks as though the rumor mills were correct, Samsung was indeed working on an Android-powered camera, culminating in the Samsung Galaxy Camera (glad to see them keep things short and sweet in terms of the naming convention, unlike the Nikon Coolpix S800c where folks who do not follow the news won’t even know that it is Android-powered), with the Galaxy name being retained to indicate that it runs on the Android operating system. Carrying the tagline, “Camera, Reborn”, the Samsung Galaxy Camera puts to shame some of the newer smartphones as it packs the latest Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system, while delivering Wi-Fi connectivity. We have a photo gallery of the Galaxy Camera’s announcement and on-stage action right after the break.
Underneath the hood, you will find that the Samsung Galaxy Camera is no slouch of a shooter, where it comes with an extremely bright 16-megapixel Backside Illumination CMOS sensor, where it is accompanied by a 21x super long zoom lens. Shooting artistically inclined photos are also a snap, thanks to the Samsung Galaxy Camera’s ‘Smart Pro’ feature that makes it a snap to recreate advanced photographic setups without going through complex motions.
A 1.4GHz quad-core processor drives the Galaxy Camera forward, while it is equipped with 8GB of internal memory which can be further augmented by another 64GB thanks to a microSDXC/microSDHC memory card slot. Other connectivity options include HDMI 1.4, Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS support.
It will come preloaded with an easy-to-navigate menu system, letting you select from a range of preset scenario options which are able to automatically adjust the camera’s settings so that you can immortalize that perfect moment for all time. It is also nice to know that the aforementioned 21x optical zoom can be controlled by either button or touchscreen, while Optical Image Stabilization makes sure your images shot remain clear and crisp.
Samsung has also thrown in a 4.8″ HD Super Clear LCD display that makes it a pleasure to preview snapped photos as well as navigate through the user interface without being too stifling. For folks who loathe the archiving or backup process, fret not. There is the convenient ‘Auto Cloud Backup’ feature which will make sure your precious photos are automatically saved into the cloud through Samsung’s AllShare the moment they are shot – you will, of course, need to be connected to the Internet via Wi-Fi, 3G or 4G. No idea on how the battery life of 1,650mAh is going to accommodate 4G connectivity if it is turned on and active most of the time, while you are an avid shutterbug at that. Paying camera bills might soon be the new trend here… [Press Release]
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