Sony QX10 And QX100 Cameras – Designed For Smartphones

Something we long for is a quality camera in our phones. But we always want more, better quality pics all the time without having to resort to using a separate compact camera or DSLR camera for ultimate in photo quality. Camera phones are pretty good now, and will always get better, we have the Nokia Lumia 1020 which packs a 41MP camera into a phone, and many cameras can be connected to your phone’s WIFI, so you can share your high quality snaps on Instagram or your favourite social networks.

Sony has taken that type of idea and came up with something quite quirky, and could be seen as revolutionary with it’s latest camera. It’s a digital camera but there is one thing missing, a screen. It looks like just a lens, so how exactly does it work and how do you take photos with this thing?

The QX10 and QX100 are a series of cameras which are said to give your smartphone professional looking photos. The camera connects to your phone via WIFI or NFC, and with the Sony software your phone’s screen effectively becomes the screen for the camera, and you instantly have a better camera for your phone.

The camera can be used handheld or connect to your phone with the legs/clips it has, and Sony claim this will fit and work with most smartphones (they need WIFI or NFC of course). They will no doubt play very nicely with the Xperia range of phones, but I have seen videos of them being used with iPhones too. The camera has a dedicated shutter release, or use your phone to snap the pic.

Your shots will automatically be saved to your camera roll via the app, making sharing a whole lot easier. Not only that, the camera has a slot for SD/Memory Stick, meaning you can take your photos with you anywhere and have ultimate compatibility.

I have seen these in action, and the connections from the phone to camera seem quite temperamental, not to mention it seems to take quite an age to get from camera off to a ready-to-shoot state.

The QX10 is the little brother of the QX100, with only a 2/3 sensor, while the QX100 has a 1″ sensor as seen in the RX100 camera.

QX10

Sony G Lens
18 Megapixels
2/3″ screen
10x Optical Zoom
1080p Video
Cost – £149

QX100

Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar Lens
20.2 Megapixels
F 1.8 Super Bright
1″ Screen
3.6x Optical Zoom
Cost – £359

Verdict

It looks really cool and it’s a great idea, but at the moment it’s rather expensive. The QX10 only has the same class of lens as a good compact, so it may not be worth getting if you’re looking for superior camera quality. The QX100 has the much better, more professional lens, which is the whole idea for this gadget. It comes at a cost, around £359 at the moment if you shop around, which is actually cheaper than the Sony RX100 camera (£400) which has the same lens. If you want the latest gadget, and get the attention of everyone in the room then this will do the trick.