Slashdot Mirror
First US Camera/Phone
Ch_Omega writes "According to this article over at Infosync, Sprint has announced that the Sanyo 5300, the first US phone with a built-in camera, will be available on their PCS Vision network in mid-November. It's still only 640x480, but unlike Nokia and Sony Ericsson's models, it will have a built-in optional flash as well. The official press release from Sprint is here."
After thinking about this some more, I have gone from amused to extremely worried. A staple in the spy biz is sneaking in the tiny spy camera to photo the secret documents and / or the dead drop of the paper copies of those documents. As of this week, spies among us can just waltz in with their routine cell phones, zap the photos of the Iraq attack plan over the air, and nobody is the wiser. We have just gone from needing Tempest level security around just computers to needing that level of security whereever there is a safe.
"Expected battery Life: The 5300 will come packaged with a standard battery and an extended battery providing 2.7 hours talk and 10.4 days standby and 3.8 hours talk and 15 days standby, respectively."
:)
And approximately 5 photos in full resolution with flash...
Seriously speaking. The limiting factor today for wearable electronics does not seem to be the size or functionality that can be crammed into a palmsized shell but simply the battery time. Either you end up with something heavy, or you end up with something that only works for a couple of hours.
A fun toy, but their advertising strategy cannot be condoned.
I am a Karma Library.
In the US, these devices just dont seem to have the samne appeal as in Japan or other countries. At the price, these are just novelty geek items which will never take off. If you want video conferencing, just use a laptop, a high speed connection and a $50 webcam.