High quality images on mobile phone
Updated on 01 September 2008
A mobile phone released recently could lead to a shake-up of the compact camera market with the quality of its pictures, experts predict.
The Samsung phone is the first in the UK with an eight-megapixel image sensor, producing images of identical quality to most digital cameras.
The i8510 also has a flash and can detect when people in the picture are smiling.
Previous cameraphones have been criticised for their poor image quality. Current models generally boast a maximum of five megapixels.
Paul Nuttall, from the What Digital Camera publication, said the Korean firm's new model and others from rival manufacturers could mean the average consumer decided not to bother buying a compact camera.
However, the increasing popularity of camera phones and photo-sharing websites such as Facebook had seen an upturn in sales of higher-grade cameras by consumers keen to develop their photographic skills, he added.
He said: "The gap has closed between compact digital cameras and cameraphones in recent years, and I think the average consumer would struggle to see the difference between an eight-megapixel phone and dedicated camera image.
"The only issue is one of size. In a phone there just isn't room for a big zoom lens, and that is where traditional cameras do have an advantage."
The Samsung phone, available for free with a contract at Carphone Warehouse, also has built-in satnav, 8gb storage space for music and high speed wireless internet access.
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