Selfie Alarm is the camera mode you've been waiting for
"This is a phone. With
cool camera stuff." That's how Samsung's Philip Berne describes the
Galaxy K zoom ("K is for camera... if you're German"), the company's
latest attempt to figure out how to fully marry an excellent smartphone
with an excellent camera. It's a technological achievement, with a
retractable 10x zoom lens and 20.7-megapixel sensor crammed into the
body of a smartphone. A thick, heavy smartphone more than twice as thick
(20.2mm) as the new Galaxy S5,
but a smartphone nonetheless. And in addition to the camera hardware,
the K zoom comes with a 4.8-inch, 720p Super AMOLED display, a hexa-core
processor, and Android 4.4 plus all of Google's trappings. And it makes
phone calls — this isn't just a camera that connects to the internet
like the Galaxy Camera, Samsung says.
Of course, it's mostly just a
camera that connects to the internet. A good one, at that: its
1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor is commonly found in mid-range point-and-shoots,
and along with the 24-240mm lens that gets as bright as f/3.1, it
appeared to take good, sharp photos even in poorly-lit spots. The K zoom
also shoots 1080p video up to 60 frames per second, and offers a nifty
slow-motion video mode as well.
Most of Samsung's software
enhancements for the Galaxy S5 are present on the K zoom as well, from
the Ultra Power Saving Mode to the customized settings menus and S
Health. The camera's been even further customized, though, and now
includes everything from fully manual control to a new market for scene
modes that users can set and upload for others to use. There's also Pro
Suggest, which offers up to five such scene modes every time you
half-press the dedicated shutter button; it'll suggest ways to fix
strangely-lit situations, or help you take the best landscape photo of
your life.
Selfie Alarm is a useful feature with a truly perfect name
Then there's Selfie Alarm, the
strangest and most aptly named feature of the Galaxy K zoom. Here's how
it works: you turn on Selfie Alarm, then set the spot in the frame for
want your face. Then turn the phone around and point the rear camera at
your face — when you're in the frame, the K zoom beeps and then takes
three pictures so you can select your favorite later. It works
shockingly well, and lets you take full advantage of the camera's powers
for your selfies. Every Samsung phone from now on had better have
Selfie Alarm.
The K zoom won't be available
in the US at launch, if ever. It appears to still be more a tech demo
than a viable flagship smartphone — it comes in the same black, white,
and blue dimpled body as the Galaxy S5, but it's big and thick and
probably unappealing to anyone but the most dedicated photographers.
Still, it's a huge step in the right direction for Samsung, a far more
appealing product than the Galaxy S4 zoom.
And it's another nail in the coffin of the point-and-shoot, because as
soon as our smartphones have truly useful zoom there'll be no reason to
buy a cheap camera ever again.
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