Hot on the heels of the new camera-centric Sony Xperia Z1, the company just announced their new range of camera lenses at the Pre-IFA press conference. The Sony DSC QX10 and DSC QX100 are one of a kind camera lenses that act as your Smartphone’s own camera, with the former acting as the camera’s viewfinder. It is a pretty intriguing concept only slightly hindered by the pricing, coming in at $250 for the QX10 and $500 for the QX100. The QX100 is a high end camera lens with specifications of the RX100MII Point and Shoot camera, while the QX10 is a cheaper long zoom camera lens, both with a wireless viewfinder as the display. Still trying to wrap around the concept? This video might help –
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TWh3EvSZ_0
The concept –
The Lens Camera unit has a lens, a EXMOR R sensor, WiFi/NFC connectivity and a SD card slot. It connects to the Sony Xperia Z1 or any other device through WiFi/NFC, with it attaching to the back of your smartphones using a magnetic attachment or a clamp.
The Sony DSC QX100 is, like we already said, a high end point and shoot camera lens that mirrors the specifications of the much loved Sony DSC RX100II. It has a 20.2 Megapixel sensor and a f1.8 lens for excellent low light performance and a smooth as milk bokeh. The complete specifications are –
- 1.0″ 20.2 Megapixel EXMOR R CMOS sensor
- 7 element lens with f1.8(to 4.9) aperture
- 28-100mm focal length with 3X multiplier
- Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization
- ISO 160-6400
- 1440×1080 30 fps movie mode
- In-built Stereo Audio recording
- NFC and WiFi connectivity
- Upto 64 GB micro SD and 16 GB Memory Stick Duo
- Micro USB port for charging
- DC 3.6V battery
The Sony DSC QX10 on the other hand is a lower end camera lens with a super zoom 10x focal length as its main selling point. It has a 18.9 megapixel sensor at 1/2.3″ and can do 10x optical zoom with Steady Shot image stabilization. Here are the complete specifications of the QX10 –
- 1/2.3″ 18.2 Megapixel EXMOR R CMOS Sensor
- 9 element lens with f3.3(to 5.9) aperture
- 25-250mm focal length with 10x mulitplier
- Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization
- ISO 100-3200 sensitivity
- 1440×1080 30 fps movie mode
- NFC and WiFi connectivity
- Upto 64 GB micro SD and 16 GB Memory Stick Duo
- Micro USB port for charging
- DC 3.6V battery
The camera lenses seems like a really cool accessory if you are really serious about photography, but then the pricing is a bit of a concern. Not that it is pricey, but the overall concept of buying a separate lens for your smartphone with an already decent camera seems redundant and against the concept of convergence, which the whole Smartphone computing world is clamoring for. For example, if you could buy a Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom like device, this would seem redundant except that this will be much better quality and offer wireless view finder advantages.
But this is always too soon to tell, and we may see other implementations or models from the company that might make the range more attractive. That said, we will be getting you hands on pictures and videos of these two really innovative Sony products from the show floor, so stay tuned to the blog for updates.