Hasta La Gadget!

The good old Polaroid brand isn’t dead yet — with the Polaroid Socialmatic, the concept has now become a product. It has a camera with a 14-megapixel camera, a 4.5” touchscreen LCD display that runs Android, a Zero Ink printer, and wi-fi and Bluetooth capabilities. At $299, it will be a tough sell for those who already have a smartphone in their pockets.

The two main features that differentiate the camera from a smartphone are the printing and sharing aspects. After taking a picture with the back camera or the 2-megapixel front camera, you can share it on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest using the built-in software on a Wi-Fi network. At the same time, you can print a 2×3 little photo.

In a corner of your printed photo, there is a QR code so that other Socialmatic users can scan it, get the digital version from Polaroid’s servers, and reprint it. While it’s a good idea, a QR code doesn’t look good on your photo.

As the camera runs Android, many users will install Instagram right away. The Socialmatic will become a dedicated Instagram camera. That’s why the QR code integration feels weird.

On this camera, you will also find 4GB of internal storage and a Micro SD slot. If you want to share photos on the go, you will have two options: you can either send your photos to your phone, or tether your phone.

PLR IP Holdings, C&A Licensing, Socialmatic and ZINK Imaging are the four companies behind the Instagram Socialmatic. This is what remains from Polaroid Corporation. The companies count on the popular Polaroid name and the iconic look to sell this new camera — but will it be enough?

Polaroid saw the curtain raise early on its Android-based interchangeable lens cameras thanks to early leaks, but today was the first day we got to go hands on with the new cameras at CES 2013. The cameras, based on Android 4.1 (but fully upgradeable to 4.2, Polaroid tells me), feature a 10-30mm F2.8 lens (which maintains that aperture through the zoom range) and a pop-up flash, and they come in three flavors, including two with built-in Wi-Fi.

The cameras are advertised as lightweight, and they felt surprisingly so; the bodies appear to be made mostly of plastic, and don’t have the rigid metal lens mounts you may be used to if you’re coming from a DSLR. The price reflects the feel of the build, however, at an entry-level pricing of $349, which puts it well under the average range for interchangeable lens cameras.

Android on the camera works pretty much as you’d expect Android to, offering all the conveniences of direct integration with Instagram and Facebook apps, but with some of the quirks inherent in using a smartphone OS on a camera, too. The OS stuttered and froze a couple of times, but this device is planned for a Q2 launch after all; there are bound to be bugs at this stage.

Polaroid’s interchangeable lens system will include a zoom lens and a pancake to be released following the camera’s introduction, a company representative told me, so there will be more than the general-purpose walkaround lens for photographers to experiment with. All told, it’s still very early days for this camera, and the price point and vision of the product are ambitious, to say the least. If the shipping hardware can offer the style of these prototypes, but at $350, and if Polaroid can nail the experience for a broad audience, we could see a significant change in the accessibility and appeal of the interchangeable lens market from a company that some would likely peg as an unlikely contender.

Nikon announced today the COOLPIX S800c, Nikon’s first Android and Wi-Fi compact digital camera. Powered by Android 2.3.3 the Coolpix S800c gives you not only all Android’s basic advantage like being capable to be connected to any other mobile devices or computer, but also to Google Play marketplace including apps and games but as well as all SNS available and compatible with Android Devices.
Being powered by an Coretex A9 CPU, the S800c is not only a really capable Android device but also a …