The Coolpix S800c is a new camera from Nikon that is powered by Android. It’s your standard run of the mill compact point-and-shoot camera but with the added bonus of the Android OS. The following is from the Nikon press-release about the S800c: Powered by Android: The camera's connection features allow users to seamlessly connect, browse and upload to their social networks, including Google+, Facebook and Twitter. Users can also take advantage of the full functionality of Android technology to surf the web or even download applications and games onto their S800c. Just like a smartphone or tablet device, the camera has the opportunity to run camera-specific photo and video applications, yet enables the various benefits of shooting with a real camera. So this wont be some half-baked Android implimentation but rather the full blown OS with full access to the Play Store. With built-in Wi-Fi this means some serious social network sharing power when you get home or are at parties.
Things I would not expect from a android powered camera
Nikon (or other manufacturers) to release software updates. I.E. no Jelly Bean ever on this
Great battery life, especially when they are touting it as full featured
Extreme performance. Just a hunch here, but this probably doesn't have a tegra or quad core krait processor, in order to keep costs down.
I like the idea of easy sharing, this is something android has always had and also it is a proper camera with built in instagram and other editing apps for unlimited flexibility
What I don't need is my email and notifications going to my freaking camera too. Stupid.
You do realize you can put a Google account on an Android device and tell it not to sync anything, right? Just disable Gmail and other service sync. Not a problem at all.
Really the OS is irrelevant. Don't think of this as a camera with Android on it, but as camera apps with a real camera lens. Ever since I started using Vignette and Camera360, I have longed to be able to use them with better camera optics and low-light handling. That is why I am excited about this camera. If it were running some other OS but still ran Vignette, Camera360, and some of the other camera apps I like, that would be just as well to me. I am an Android user, so this is just a bonus to the real feature which is having creative camera options without having to waste time in Photoshop.
One issue with Vignette and Camera360 for me has always been speed. I could never tell if it was the application or if it was the phone but I'm curious to see how fast this camera is.
I think that it doesn't need Android. Not everything in the world needs Android. You're gonna check your email on your camera. Seriously? I'm fine with it having Wi-Fi to directly share photos, but let's be real here. Full Android?
The only upside to this might be that you have access to a slew of Android's photo-editing apps. I think that having Instagram in 16 megapixels is a refreshing change. Also, I'd be awesome to use Bump to send photos directly to your PC. :^D
I figure just because it has full Android doesn't mean you have to treat it like a phone/tablet -- only install and use the apps and features you actually want, and customize to your particular preferences. Rather than an abbreviated version with pre-selected image-editing apps/social sharing options, the fact that it's full Android offers flexibility and choice and by no means implies that one must have email or radio running on their Android camera.
Camera's do not need web browsers, games, text editors. If they are going to do this they should restrict the kinds of applications that can be installed. Apps and resources pertaining to pictures and cameras should remain, but I don't think it makes sense to play Words with Friends on a point an shoot. On the other hand, taking a high quality photo, and posting it to instagram, facebook, flikr, etc. would be a great relief from the drab of low fidelity photos on these networks.
A camera should remain a camera. If Android is going to be applied to this field, it should be done carefully. It should be an enhancement not a burden. Cameras benefit from the lack of a complex operating system, no need for expensive processors, ram, and touch screens. The user points the camera, takes the pic, reviews the picture, smiles, moves on. If not implemented correctly all they will do is provide another way to distract users from the important things in life.
Technology should assist, not distract.
(don't worry I always type more words than I need in order to get my point across)
I think restricting apps will bring more negative comments and reviewsfor the device than positive. let people do what they want with the camera, and ignore what they don't want.
That would only happen if people buying it expect an android device. If they buy it, expecting a camera and get features like instagram, facebook, flickr, or photo editing I can't see them complaining.
You can only be disappointed if you have high expectations. Leaving full android, raises people's expectations thus increasing the chance for disappointment. This will prove destructive to the manufacturer's bottom line and the android based camera market.
What I love about android is it's malleability. A company can mix and mod the OS to their specific requirements and come up with a clean solution that agrees with the product's intention rather than a generic, run of the mill addition to an otherwise solid, purposeful device.
I wouldn't give the average person too much credit. I support these people and their technology use 5 days a week and I can assure you that they won't even know what it means if you tell them it runs Android. As long as Nikon is sure to mention "post your pictures straight to facebook", that will be the only part of the marketing they understand. :/
I agree with your sentiment, but I don't have a lot of faith in Nikon's ability to limit what can be installed without simultaneously screwing things up with the OS in general. Their strength is the hardware, so they should leave the software to others. If someone is dumb enough to install Battle for Wesnoth on their camera, I guess that's their problem. I don't want to take the chance, though, that some wicked new camera app would come out and I wouldn't be able to install it just because Nikon is acting as the gatekeeper for new apps and may be really slow reviewing things. I'd rather let Natural Selection thin the herd to the point that only people who really get the idea will keep and use the camera.
