Millennials can now have their Polaroid moment

You maybe grew up with one of your Dad’s lying around. You maybe saw your first one in a Madonna movie (Desperately Seeking Susan), or Christopher Nolan’s Memento, or even Stranger Things 2.

We’re talking about the Polaroid, Edwin Land’s innovative self-developing film and camera that first hit the market in the blow-dried, Star Wars year of 1977. Yes, it went off the market finally in 2008, and decades of digital cameras and effects have seemingly pushed aside its quirky allure. But in our social media age, a gazillion Instagrammers have seemingly developed a crush on its imperfect, insta-photo appeal: that white-cornered photo look that not even a bunch of digital filters can replicate.

And now, the Polaroid is back, thanks to The Impossible Project, a company that purchased all of Polaroid Corporation’s film stock and technology when it went bankrupt in ‘08, and has since rebranded itself as Polaroid Originals. It’s an eerily familiar simulation of the original Polaroid experience. That boxy symbol of all things cool and retro-filmy was launched anew in September 2017 as the Polaroid OneStep 2.

Available in white or graphite i-Type models, the new OneStep looks a lot like the classic Polaroid Land Camera 1000, but there are some changes: no longer a slave to chromium batteries, the OneStep 2 comes with a microUSB charger (boasting a 60-day battery life). There’s also an exposure slider and self-timer, a flash (on or off) and an orange LED showing your charge levels. It’s basically the same Polaroid camera as before: an easy-to-use point-and-shoot with a big red button, high-quality zero-to-infinity lens and powerful flash. Sold exclusively at Bratpack stores for now (retailing about P8,900), the Polaroid OneStep 2 also comes with a variety of film options: color and B&W are available for i-Type and vintage 600 type cameras; SX-70 vintage cameras (the more professional line); and vintage Spectra cameras. (A cool development: in addition to offering film that fits even your old Polaroid cameras, the company also offers a refurbishing service to get them up and running.)

As an experiment, Polaroid Originals handed out new cameras to photographer Patrick Diokno, chef and photographer Nicco Santos and lifestyle blogger Ida Anduyan; the results, exhibited at The Gallery in Greenbelt 5, were as unpredictably artsy as their youthful snappers. The B&W shots remind us of the gritty days of Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine, while the color shots have that worn, retro feel we tend to reach for when we hit the “Nashville” filter on Instagram.

Based in the Netherlands and locally in Hong Kong, Polaroid Originals brought its reps James Lao and Cirry Poon to demonstrate some of the functions over lunch at Greenbelt 5’s John & Yoko. Cirry showed how the OneStep spits out a black photo that self-develops in about 10-15 minutes (an improvement over the 30 minutes back in your Dad’s day). Newbies were interested to note that you place the undeveloped photo facedown, so that the chemicals embedded in its reverse side have time to seep into the frame area and — voila! — your image appears. James, formally from the fashion industry, gamely pointed out that with the OneStep 2, you can actually do double exposures: that’s right, by shutting off the camera right after clicking the red button, then turning it back on a few seconds later, you’re ready for a second exposure. But be wary: Polaroid film ain’t cheap, and each shot should be very carefully considered, because there’s no “Delete” button. Just sayin’.

I asked blogger Ida whether she’d tried doing selfies with the OneStep. Not so easy, she admits; there’s no reverse mirror to see what you’re shooting, so it’s best to let a friend take your Polaroid selfie moment. Also, we’re very used to big camera screens showing us what we’re shooting; the OneStep has an old-fashioned eyepiece that you have to look through carefully to frame your shot. (Things in retro land take time, after all.)

For those millennials and Gen-Zs looking for a nostalgia fix, who knows? The unique nature of the Polaroid experience could open up new ways of seeing the world — without filters.

source:  philstar.com

WiFi-powered cameras a massive hit in Southeast Asia, GfK says

MANILA, Philippines — The future of digital cameras is Internet connectivity, and if uptake figures from Southeast Asia are any indication, that future will be bright as day for camera manufacturers that take this route.

According to latest figures from market research firm GfK, WiFi-enabled cameras marked 2012 with a two-fold increase in sales volume over the previous year, as consumers from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam gobbled up a total of 776,000 units last year.

Cameras that have WiFi capabilities have been in the market since as early as 2005, but it is only recently that the category has seen massive adoption from users, given the popularity of Internet-enabled devices. In 2012, a total of 160 models from manufacturers such as Canon, Samsung, Olympus and Nikon were being sold in the region.

“By December 2012, one in every three cameras sold in the region’s more technologically advanced markets of Singapore and Malaysia were equipped with the WiFi feature, contributing to nearly two-fifth of total dollar sales in the respective countries for that month,” observed Gerard Tan, Account Director for Digital Technology at GfK Asia.

By providing Internet connectivity in digital cameras, manufacturers allow users to instantly upload photos to various photo-sharing services, including social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

The innovation came as the digital camera market faced tough competition from smartphones, whose built-in cameras have been improving in recent years, and whose mobile operating systems allow the operation of apps that make photo uploads easier while on the go.

Samsung even stretched the concept further by releasing the Galaxy Camera, an 18-megapixel digital camera that runs on the Android operating system.

In an earlier interview, Samsung Philippines AV Business Unit Head Ariel Aras admitted that these new features found in digital cameras are the market’s way of responding to consumer demand, which is increasingly preferential for the ability to share photos instantly.


“[That is why] we are responding to the demand of consumers asking for WiFi technology [to be integrated in our cameras],” Arias said. “We will not only offer a great experience in taking photos, but seamless connectivity with other devices as well.”


GfK said that with stiff competition in the category, prices of WiFi-enabled cameras went down by at least 39 percent from 2011 to 2012, making the devices affordable to a wider range of consumers.

“The digital camera market is facing strong challenges from smartphones which today are able to offer comparable functions and good quality photos of as high as 13 megapixels,” Tan said. “The introduction of the WiFi feature in cameras is definitely a right step forward to stimulate and boost the camera market in this Internet age.”

IDC projected that in 2012, the number of connected devices such as WiFi-powered cameras that shipped worldwide had breached the 1 billion mark, or about 14 percent of the total world population today.

source: interaksyon.com

Samsung Galaxy Camera: The first connected camera

MANILA, Philippines - Samsung Electronics Philippines Corp. (SEPCO), a leader in digital media and digital convergence technologies, has announced that the Galaxy Camera is now commercially available in the country, and will soon be available in other parts of the world in both white and cobalt black colors.

Unveiled at IFA in August, the Galaxy Camera combines high-performance photography features with Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) and the freedom of 3G + Wi-Fi connectivity to create the world’s first truly “connected camera.”

The Galaxy Camera ushers in a new era of visual communications, allowing users to shoot, enjoy, edit and share high-quality images and video from anywhere, at any time through a single device.

“Samsung is unique, in that it is the only company that can combine world-class mobile and digital imaging technologies to create such an innovative product. The collaboration between the Mobile and Digital Imaging Business Units allowed Samsung to create the first connected camera, a product I am extremely proud of,” said Coco Domingo, Samsung mobile head for product marketing.

“A connected camera must give users the total freedom to take vivid, high-quality pictures and videos wherever and whenever they wish and share them instantly through their favorite social networking sites or with family and friends without the restrictions of a conventional camera. The Galaxy Camera provides these luxuries and many more in a beautiful design and user interface,” Domingo added.

What sets the Galaxy Camera apart as the first truly connected camera is the 3G + Wi-Fi connectivity, opening users up to a world of near limitless sharing and smartphone-like activities.


Posting high-quality images to your favorite social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and the pre-installed Instagram app has never been easier. Simply shoot, edit, share and enjoy with the touch of a button.

The Galaxy Camera also delivers outstanding photography on the go, easily outperforming any smartphone camera available.

Boasting a 21x super long optical zoom lens and a super-bright 16M BSI CMOS sensor, the Galaxy Camera also features Samsung’s Smart Pro Mode technology, a series of 15 default modes and settings that make professional-looking photography easy for anyone to achieve.

No matter what the occasion, the Galaxy Camera’s Smart Pro Mode delivers stunningly detailed images that make photography with the Galaxy Camera effortless and enjoyable.

Once captured, users can enjoy their images on the Galaxy Camera’s 4.8-inch (121.2mm) HD Super Clear Touch Display. However, the Galaxy Camera’s beautiful display can be used for more than just viewing. Users can quickly and easily make professional edits to their photos using the integrated Photo Wizard, a comprehensive set of 35 photo editing tools powered by the Galaxy Camera’s ultra-fast, quad-core processor.

Users can also use Paper Artist, an app that became popular on the Galaxy Note II, for quick and unique photo edits.

The Galaxy Camera ships with Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean), giving users access to over 500,000 apps currently available on Google Play Store. The Android OS also provides full browsing support and the ability to customize your camera to suit your creative needs.

“The Galaxy Camera marks the next stage of evolution in the history of the camera and we are extremely excited to make it available to customers in the Philippines today,” said Domingo.

“The Galaxy Camera brings together everything that is wonderful about photography on a dedicated camera, with the functionality and freedom of the leading smartphones. The Galaxy Camera marks a new era of the connected camera,” Domingo added.

source: philstar.com

Smartphones crushing point-and-shoot camera market

TOKYO — The soaring popularity of smartphones is crushing demand for point-and-shoot cameras, threatening the once-vibrant sector as firms scramble to hit back with web-friendly features and boost quality, analysts say.

A sharp drop in sales of digital compact cameras marks them as the latest casualty of smartphones as videogame consoles and portable music players also struggle against the all-in-one features offered by the likes of Apple’s iPhone and the Samsung Galaxy.

Just as digital cameras all but destroyed the market for photographic film, the rapid shift to picture-taking smartphones has torn into a camera sector dominated by Japanese firms including Canon, Olympus, Sony and Nikon.

“We may be seeing the beginning of the collapse of the compact camera market,” said Nobuo Kurahashi, analyst at Mizuho Investors Securities.

Figures from Japan’s Camera and Imaging Products Association echo the analyst’s grim prediction.

Global shipments of digital cameras among Japanese firms tumbled about 42 percent in September from a year ago to 7.58 million units, with compact offerings falling 48 percent, according to the Association.

Higher-end cameras with detachable lenses fell a more modest 7.4 percent in that time, it said.

Part of the decline was due to weakness in debt-hit Europe and a Tokyo-Beijing territorial spat that has sparked a consumer boycott of Japan-brand products in the China market.

But smartphones have proved a mighty rival to point-and-shoot cameras, analysts say, offering an all-in-one phone, computer and camera with comparatively high quality pictures and Internet photo downloading.

Those features have also dug into videogame makers such as Nintendo, which has just released its new Wii U game console, as smartphone owners increasingly download free online games or store music on the devices instead of using standalone MP3 players.

“The market for compact digital cameras shrank at a faster speed and scale than we had imagined as smartphones with camera functions spread around the world,” Olympus president Hiroyuki Sasa told a news briefing this month.

Olympus said its camera business lost money in its fiscal first-half due to the growing popularity of camera-equipped smartphones, and a strong yen which makes Japanese exports less competitive overseas.

Digital camera firms have scaled back their sales targets for the fiscal year to March in a “collapsing” market, said Tetsuya Wadaki, an analyst at Nomura Securities.

“Order volumes at parts suppliers currently appear to be down more than 30 percent year-on-year,” Wadaki said.

Firms are scrambling to keep improving picture quality, offer features such as water-proofing and expand their Internet features, like allowing users to share pictures through social media networks.

Camera makers say growth areas include emerging economies — where many own neither a camera nor a smartphone — along with replacement demand among compact-camera owners.

And the fall-off in demand has not been as stark for the pricier detachable lens cameras favoured by avid photographers and growing ranks of camera-buff retirees, particularly in rapidly ageing Japan, they say.

Another emerging battleground is for mirror-less cameras which can be made nearly as small as compact cameras but with picture quality that rivals their bulkier counterparts.

Canon insists the market has not been abandoned to smartphones.

“Demand for quality snapshots is there, like taking pictures of your friends’ weddings, an overseas vacation, or your children,” a Canon spokesman said.

“We believe there are many people who need compact cameras,” he added.

Mizuho analyst Kurahashi acknowledged that compact cameras “will not disappear”.

“But we see the current trend continuing as image quality in smartphone cameras steadily improves,” he said.

“The compact camera market is going to keep shrinking and it’s difficult to forecast any immediate comeback, or have any optimism.”

source: interaksyon.com