ile most smartphone makers are trying to replace the dedicated digital camera, nasonic is coming from the opposite direction with the mix Smart Camera CM1.
As the mix naming scheme implies, the CM1 is a camera first a smartphone second. It includes a 1-inch image sensor that shoots 20-megapixel photos, uses a ica lens with f/2.8 aperture. It’s not a zoom lens, but it does extend from the body while in use, has a mechanical shutter. A switch on the top edge lets users quickly jump into camera mode, of course there’s a dedicated shutter button.
nasonic is also promising a slew of traditional camera settings features, including various scene modes, intelligent auto mode, RAimage capture. Users who prefer manual controls can rotate the lens ring to quickly adjust settings such as shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, exposure focus.
As for the smartphone element, the CM1 has a 4.7-inch 1080p display, a 2.3 GHz quad core Snapdragon processor, 2 GB of RAM. Base storage is 16 GB, but users can pop in a microSDXC card (up to 128 GB) for storing all those high-res photos. Android 4.4 is on board.
nasonicUnfortunately, packing a digital camera guts into a smartphone adds a fair amount of bulk to the frame. The CM1 measures nearly 0.6 inches thick—more than twice the thickness of Apple’s latest iones— weighs 0.45 pounds.
The CM1 is somewhat reminiscent of Samsung’s Galaxy Zoom series, which gives up thickness in exchange for image quality. But while Samsung’s attempt at a cameraphone has a 10x zoom lens, it has a much smaller 1/2.3-inch sensor a smaller maximum f/3.1 aperture.
nasonic says the CM1 will be available in “limited quantities” starting this November, with a recommended price of 899 Euros. There’s no word a U.S. launch.
