Kodak Instamatic 2014 Android Camera Mobile Phone: Don’t Believe the Hype...
Kodak has announced that it’s licensing its name to a range of mobile
devices that make it easier to print and share images. The company’s
first smartphone will be unveiled at CES in January followed by a "4G
handset, a tablet, and a connected camera" arriving in the second half
of 2015. The actual hardware will be built by Bullitt Group, an English company that makes a range of ultra-rugged smartphones for construction company Caterpillar and claims to create products "using the unadulterated DNA of the brands we work with."
There's no talk of megapixels - this is all about branding
"Kodak is one of the world's most recognizable brands. It is trusted
by consumers as a marque of quality and innovation," said Bullitt Mobile
CEO Oliver Schulte in a press release.
"We've taken that heritage and used it to inspire a range of
beautifully designed devices that will let users take great pictures and
edit, share, store and print them in an instant." As Schulte suggests,
the emphasis is very much on software solutions rather than quality
hardware. Neither Kodak nor Bullitt mention any details about
megapixels, sensor size, or the like, and instead both seem intent on
selling the devices for their ease of use — even including remote
management software that will let "family members and friends … provide
help and support."
Licensing its brand is a strategy in keeping with the radical restructure that helped Kodak exit bankruptcy last September.
The company spun off or shut down its various consumer divisions
(including its digital photography team) and is instead concentrating on
commercial printing. It won’t be the only struggling firm trying to
jump on the mobile bandwagon either: back in September, Panasonic
unveiled the experimental Lumix CM1 smartphone,
equipped with a large sensor and Leica lens. Kodak can get people
interested with its name alone, but it'll have to contribute more than
just branding to actually win customers' respect.
The device itself - if it were real - would be a rather enticing
package to behold. At prices between $199 and $349 you'll be getting
this device off-contract and able to work with unknown networks (4G,
they say, but do not specify), and there will be three different models.And please, at the point, remind yourself that this is all an elaborate mock-up aiming to appear to be real.
There's an Instamatic 14W, Instamatic 14, and Instamatic 15 Ultra, each
of them with their own high-powered benefits. Each works with Android
(though they don't say which version) and a front-facing camera with a
PixPro 24-140mm f/3.9-5.9 lens - the largest works with a PixPro
24-260mm lens mount at f/2.4-5.3 - amazing! The back of this device
range is either 4-inches of 5-inches and you've got 8GB internal memory,
512MB or none at all - odd!
The same is true of the YouTube presentation of this device which you're about to see - the Instamatic2014
YouTube account having no official affiliation with Kodak itself and
also having been created the same day as its sole video. That video is
certainly well made, on the other hand, created by someone with some
skill in graphic design and product presentation as such.
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