Samsung’s Galaxy Camera 2 is all set for a March 2014 release, meaning that enthusiasts can welcome it into their lives next month. Samsung’s original point-and-shoot offering shipped in November 2012 with the slogan “Camera. Reborn” and came complete with a number of smartphone-esque features that weren’t seen before in a product of this nature. The company’s second attempt at conquering the point-and-shoot market builds on the lessons learned from the first outing by dramatically overhauling the feature set and user-experience.
Samsung’s second iteration of the Galaxy Camera will ship with a modified version of Android Jelly Bean pre-installed and will afford owners the ability to download and install additional software directly from the Google Play Store. Testers and reviewers who managed to get an early hands-on experience with the product during last month’s Consumer Electronics Show in Last Vegas have confirmed that the latest model felt “quite snappy” and was is a definite improvement over Samsung’s first attempt.
The Galaxy Camera 2 will come complete with a sharp and vivid 4.8-inch 720p display that lives on the reverse of the camera as well as an internal 2,000 mAh battery that should provide a satisfactory amount of up-time for most users. Like it’s ancestor, the second version of the camera has built-in Wi-Fi connectivity to allow additional apps to be downloaded, but unlike the original model, the Galaxy Camera 2 does not come with any cellular support for 3G/4G. Early indications suggest that Samsung hasn’t paid much attention to the camera lens, but marginal improvements do come in the form of 21x zoom and an f/2.8-5.9 aperture.
It’s highly unlikely that the Galaxy Camera 2 will appeal to hardcore photographers who want a piece of kit to compliment their existing arsenal of professional equipment. Rather than simply introduce Wi-Fi or NFC into a typical point-and-shoot, Samsung has opted to continue to build a camera on top of the world’s most popular mobile operating system.
Consumers who extensively use Android on a smartphone or tablet, and who are looking for a camera solution will be more likely to seriously consider getting in on the action. If you are one of those looking to purchase this product then it’ll be available next month for $450.
Are you going to buy one?
You can follow us on Twitter, add us to your circle on Google+ or like our Facebook page to keep yourself updated on all the latest from Microsoft, Google, Apple and the web.
