Sony rumored prepping Cyber-shot camera with free 3G
updated 10:10 am EST, Thu March 10, 2011
Sony camera would have built-in 3G uploading
Sony is developing a point-and-shoot camera that would have its own built-in 3G connection, insiders said Wednesday. The Cyber-shot camera would have a certain amount of free data to push photos online and would carry an extra fee for very frequent uploaders. Gdgt wasn't told more details of the camera itself.
It also wasn't certain how likely the camera was to reach the market. Some dedicated camera makers now have models with built-in Wi-Fi or official support for Eye-Fi cards.
The design would likely be an attempt to keep compact cameras relevant in the smartphone era. Smartphones, starting in earnest with the Nokia N95 but moving on to the iPhone and many newer devices, have increasingly replaced conventional compact cameras. Phone camera quality has gradually improved to the point where it can sometimes be preferred simply for the convenience of having one, single device that can upload the photos anywhere. Apps like Hipstamatic and Instagram have thrived in recent months.
A 3G camera would give users a degree of always-on sharing but with access to larger sensors and lenses, real optical zoom and other image quality helps that are impractical or impossible on current smartphones.
