Camera Phones Won't Take Over Entry-Level Digicams Just Yet

A few months ago, I talked about how camera phones are continually getting better, and could eventually take over the entry-level digital camera market. According to a new study by market research firm In-Stat, digital camera manufacturers need not worry just yet, as we're far from this actually happening.

The study found that mobile phone digicams are most popular among - no surprise here - the GenZ consumer, which represents those aged 13-24. Overall, only 15% of consumers of all ages say they use their camera phone as a primary means of taking photos; while 65% say they prefer a dedicated digital camera. (I have no idea what the other 20% use, but that's a different issue altogether).

Why aren't camera phones up to the task just yet? Although customers are quite satisfied with their operation and features (heck, many go so far as to include things like flash, zoom, and even white balance!), they aren't too happy about print quality and "the cost of sharing/receiving photos." I agree with the first reason and, if anything, it's a good indication that people are in fact still interested in printing images. I can only assume that the pricing concerns are in relation to sharing and receiving the images from mobile-to-mobile which, indeed, is oddly expensive.

For example, it costs $0.50 to send a picture message through Rogers Wireless; and if the recipient needs to log onto his mobile browser to view it, he'll incur charges of about $0.05/kb. (Of course this depends on the specific plan, but these are the pay-per-use rates).

However, there are other, more cost-effective ways to share camera phones images, albeit not instantaneously. Most camera phones use flash memory cards, or can connect to a PC via USB cable. Once an image is on your computer, you can do with it as you like: e-mail it to a friend, upload it to a photo-sharing site, and even post it to a social networking site. Once a more advanced Bluetooth standard comes into play, we might even be able to send high-res images from phone-to-phone by simply putting the two devices in close proximity to one another. And, after all, there's no way to "instantly" share images from a dedicated digital camera either, so this shouldn't be considered a "disadvantage" with camera phones.

Personally, I still use a dedicated digital camera, and use my cell phone camera (which boasts an impressive 3.2 MP of resolution!) for "emergencies only". I can, however, foresee a time when the two devices merge into one. Heck, Mio Technologies just launched a portable GPS unit that doubles as a media player and triples as a 2 MP digital camera. The possibilities of convergence are simply limitless.

Are Cell Phones the New Digicam?

There has been a lot of speculation over the past year that camera phones are set to take over the entry-level digital camera market, and even the standard “MP3” player. And there’s a big possibility of this happening…eventually.

Think about it: cell phone cameras are now touting 3 and higher megapixel resolutions, and the quality of photos taken with them are surprisingly quite good. One of our writers sent me some great, landscape photos he took with a Sony Ericsson camera phone, and I was amazed at the quality. Had he not told me the pics were shot with a camera phone, I’d never have guessed. Camera-related functions are also getting more sophisticated: I’ve seen everything from flash, to exposure compensation, and even self-portrait assisting mirrors on the back of mobiles. But would I forego my point-and-shoot digital camera for a camera phone just yet? No way!

Don’t get me wrong: I like the thought of only having to carry around one device that “does it all”. But on the same token, does this device become a jack of all trades, master of none? And what if I lose it? The thought of all my pix, music, e-mails, text messages, and address book being gone at one swipe of a thief is frightening.

I use my cell phone for voice calls, and the occasional text message. That’s it. It has camera capabilities, but I can’t remember the last time I took a photo using it, although I do observe many doing just that at trade shows or out and about on the street. Checking my e-mails on a portable messaging device is great, but I’d never want to forego being able to do the same on the PC at work or home. The same goes for surfing the Web. And I like that I can put MP3s on my cell phone and play them back using headphones; yet any time I want music on the go, I load up my dedicated MP3 player.

Eventually, people may become used to performing all of these functions solely on one, multi-functional, device. But until the “super-duper” smart phone hits the Canadian market (and at a reasonable price!), we’ll be seeing entry-level digital cameras and MP3 players for years and years to come.