Tag Archives: cameras

Flip phone concept aims to inspire creativity with Nokia, Nothing aesthetics

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It may have been criticized for flooding the mobile phone market with dozens of confusing designs, but Nokia’s seemingly eccentric designs sometimes hit the right marks when it comes to uniqueness, aesthetics, or usability. From the XpressMusic to the N-Gage to the Communicator, there are times when those designs felt far ahead of their time, which didn’t do their sales any favors. There has been a great deal of interest in revisiting these designs, most of which, however, only make sense for non-smart feature phones like the ones HMD is offering. One particular design, however, might find a place in this modern world that’s obsessed with taking photos and recording videos, especially if it gets a little Nothing-inspired facelift.

Designer: Viet Doan Duc

Flip phones or clamshell designs are nothing new, even if the recent generation of foldable phones has given birth to their renaissance. The Nokia N90, however, did more than just open up in a stylish way to reveal a bigger screen and a large T9 keypad inside. It could also twist its top half so that you could hold it like a camcorder and feel more like a proper content creator. That was 20 years ago, even before the word “influencer” or even “YouTube” came to light. Now smartphones are pretty much pocketable cameras, and this concept design tries to give the Nokia N90 a second chance, with a bit of a twist.

The Nokia N90 design is obviously outdated by today’s standards, so this revision borrows some inspiration from Nothing’s now iconic translucent glass design. The concept focuses on three main concepts: mechanical precision, the spirit of exploration, and minimalist language. The mechanical aspect can be clearly seen from the smartphone’s industrial appearance, revealing details of precision circuity and clear edges. At the same time, however, it still manages to embrace minimalism by keeping the details down to the essentials, eschewing the noisy details that pervaded Nokia’s design language.

The Nokia N90 x Nothing concept is clearly a design that encourages exploration and creativity with its core design gimmick, turning the upper half around for a more immersive photography experience. Not only does it try to convey the feeling of using a camcorder, it also makes some difficult angles more feasible because of the degree of freedom the mechanism offers.

On the technical side, the dreams of some of the best hardware features that the mobile industry has to offer, and not just with the camera that’s installed on the phone’s hinge rather than its back. The physical keypad, for example, is replaced by an E Ink display that combines customizability and power efficiency, while a touch-sensitive D-Pad above it offers more precise control. All these, however, make the Nokia N90 x Nothing even more of a pipe dream, but the design itself is something that could definitely spark interest, and hopefully sales, among today’s generation of design-conscious creators.

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First Time Using the Apple Vision Pro: It Blew My Mind

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From the moment I set my eyes on the Apple Vision Pro, the intuitive nature of its interface struck me. Controlling the device through natural gestures—like tapping fingers together for selection or pinching to zoom—felt like an extension of my own movements, creating a seamless user experience that was truly impressive. “Everything’s all eye track,” I marveled, amazed by the device’s responsiveness, which made every interaction feel intuitive and natural.

Designer: Apple

During the initial setup, the Digital Crown—borrowed from the Apple Watch—brought up the home view with a simple press. The blend of futuristic technology with familiar elements made the icons react as I looked at them, creating a magical experience. This immediate and responsive engagement reinforced the intuitive nature of the user interface. As I explored this advanced technology, I remember thinking, “I haven’t read any reviews on the Vision Pro, and that’s a good thing.” Approaching the device without any preconceptions allowed me to truly immerse myself in the experience.

As I navigated through a demo photo library, the ambient lighting dimmed, focusing my attention on images that transported me to places like Iceland and the Oregon coast, displayed panoramically. “That was so amazing,” I exclaimed, overwhelmed by the vividness and the immersive experience the photos provided.

Viewing spatial photos and videos added incredible depth to everyday moments. Watching a family birthday party captured with the Apple Vision Pro felt as if I stood among the celebrating children, bringing these moments to life. “So no one else can see this except you and me, huh?” I remarked to Avnish, my guide through this journey, who was able to see what I saw through an iPad. This added layer of interaction enhanced my appreciation for the technology as I watched a spatial video shot with the iPhone 15 Pro, captivated by the depth and realism.

The design of the Apple Vision Pro was notably sleek and modern, with a lightweight, comfortable frame suitable for extended wear. The minimal physical buttons enhanced its streamlined appearance, highlighting its advanced gesture and eye-tracking capabilities. A dedicated button for capturing spatial photos and videos added real-world interactions into vivid digital clarity, showcasing Apple’s meticulous attention to hardware design.

Manipulating my environment with a turn of the Digital Crown was particularly impressive. I could adjust my immersion levels from partial to full, exploring digital renditions of places like Mount Hood National Forest as if I were truly there. This smooth transition back to reality, while remaining connected with those around me, showcased the device’s seamless integration into personal and social settings.

Spatial multitasking introduced a new way to interact with applications, allowing me to manipulate windows in a spatial context as if handling physical objects. This dynamic, intuitive approach transformed traditional interfaces into a vibrant, three-dimensional workspace.

The entertainment capabilities of the Apple Vision Pro were striking. Watching 3D movies like “Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “Avatar: The Way of Water” transformed any space into a personal cinema. The high-resolution display and spatial audio created a viewing experience that far surpassed traditional setups. “That’s impressive,” I remarked, blown away by the depth and immersion of the features.

The Apple Immersive Video demo was a highlight, transporting me to the center of the action—flying over landscapes, diving with sharks, and standing on a soccer field. This segment was so engaging that I was left nearly speechless, managing only to say, “That was so amazing.”

An interactive session where a butterfly landed on my hand and a close encounter with a dinosaur showcased the Apple Vision Pro’s unique capabilities, blurring the lines between digital and physical realities. These experiences felt real and tangible, enhancing my appreciation for the device’s ability to create such vivid and interactive moments.

Finally, with the Apple Vision Pro, I got the chance to rehearse—well, more like pretend—to present Apple’s infamous “one more thing” on the stage of the Steve Jobs Theater. It felt so real that I almost waved to the nonexistent crowd! I’ve been to press events there before, but never on stage. The closest I’ve gotten was the last third of the theater.

Photo credit: YouTuber MKBHD demonstrates Keynote on Vision ProMKBHD on YouTube

After the demo—and yes, I highly encourage anyone and everyone remotely interested in spatial computing to visit your local Apple store—I had the option to purchase a brand new Vision Pro constructed right there. The Solo Knit Band, Dual Loop Band, and importantly, the Light Seal are available in size 21W, which fits me perfectly. Apple has streamlined the sizing process in the Apple Store app, which now includes a 3D scan of the face for a customized fit, guiding you through capturing the necessary facial dimensions.

The Apple Vision Pro demo was a breathtaking introduction to futuristic technology that felt straight out of science fiction. Its intuitive interface and gesture controls impressed me immediately, making every interaction feel natural and fluid. While the immersive experience of exploring vibrant, distant locales and engaging with life-like spatial videos was captivating, the demo ended too soon, leaving me eager for a more extended, immersive exploration with the Vision Pro. I’m looking forward to delving deeper into its potential in a longer session.

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World’s Smallest 4K Mirrorless Camera is as tiny as a GoPro and has Interchangeable Lenses

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Move over, mirrorless cameras… It’s time for the micro-mirrorless camera to shine.

If you think about it, there’s really no reason a mirrorless camera has to be as big as it is. Without pissing off the photography community, a GoPro is nothing but a smaller version of the mirrorless camera. It uses the same technology of light directly hitting a sensor to capture an image; and the only real difference is the fact that compact action cameras have slightly smaller sensors, and don’t have interchangeable lenses… so Samuel Mello Medeiros decided to change things. Partnering with Yashica, Medeiros created the world’s first-ever micro-mirrorless camera. The ‘Yashica – I’m Back’ camera is as small as a stack of playing cards, but packs a Sony CMOS sensor that captures 4K video and 12MP images. Despite its size, the camera doesn’t compromise on features – it comes with 3 interchangeable lenses, the option of adding a larger battery, a flash hot-shoe on the top that lets you also attach a shotgun microphone or other accessories, and yes, WiFi capabilities so you can share your photos directly to your smartphone once they’re captured.

Designer: Samuel Mello Medeiros

Click Here to Buy Now: $239 $299 ($60 off). Hurry, only a few left! Raised over $380,000.

Medeiros founded ‘I’m Back’ in 2018, creating unconventional cameras for photobugs. While his earlier experiments revolved around reviving older cameras with new technology, the Yashica – I’m Back may just be his magnum opus. It sits at the junction between smartphone photography and pro camera photography, offering the best of both worlds. The Yashica – I’m Back measures 3 inches wide (77mm) and 1.9 inches high (50mm), making it nearly 1/4th the size of your standard mirrorless camera. That’s small enough to fit right in your pocket and whip out when you need to click photos. Sure, the ergonomics are a little challenging considering the size, but the camera is a healthy balance between tiny and powerful, sitting at the intersection between convenient smartphone photography, and advanced camera photography.

Micro Mirrorless Yashica – I’m Back emerges, a fusion of tradition and innovation!

Use three different lenses for diverse scenes and styles, adjust settings manually, and expand options with larger lenses through an adapter.

The micro-mirrorless camera banks on Yashica’s 75-year history in the camera business. Designed in partnership with the legacy camera brand, the camera sports cutting-edge tech including a 12MP Sony IMX 117 sensor that outputs 4K@24fps, 2K@30fps, and 1080p@60fps with the ability to take 40MP interpolated images or 12MP real-dimension images. Just like a professional camera, this one has a digital viewfinder that opens out and flips over, letting you click selfies or take vlogs while monitoring your feed. The 2-inch touchscreen gives you the convenience of a smartphone, allowing you to swipe through settings and look at your carousel, or even plug an external display in using the HDMI port for a more professional setup. You can also leverage Yashica – I’m Back as a webcam for creating videos and conducting high-quality live broadcasts. Images get stored on a MicroSD card, with the camera accepting as high as 128Gb cards, and there’s also built-in WiFi that lets you share images and videos directly to Android and iOS devices. The kicker, however, is that this tiny camera comes with not one, not two, but three interchangeable lenses in the box.

Wide lens 3,4mm.

Normal lens: 8,6mm.

Tele lens 25,7mm.

In my opinion, where the GoPro went wrong was in cementing itself into the action camera box. With just a wide-angle lens and nothing else, there wasn’t much you could do with a GoPro than basic vlogging activities… but that isn’t the case with the Yashica – I’m Back. The camera comes with a standard 8.6mm lens that’s comparable to a 50mm lens for a normal camera, a 75° wide-angle lens, and a 25mm telephoto lens (which actually translates to 150mm on a normal camera), with the ability to manually focus on images to get that gorgeous depth of field in your images and videos. That isn’t all, a simple adapter lets you attach a whole host of third-party lenses, including ones for SLR, DLSR, and mirrorless cameras from leading brands. Medeiros and his team are also working on giving the camera macro capabilities using the standard 8.6mm lens, which would just make the camera an all-round photography powerhouse.

The highlight of the Yashica – I’m Back micro-mirrorless camera lies in its tiny-size-zero-compromise approach to photography. It’s perfect for carrying around with you wherever you go, allowing you to take quality photos and videos without the expensive gear, or letting you bank on a good camera without needing to whip your smartphone out. The Yashica – I’m Back comes bundled with a remote control for wirelessly operating the camera, a USB-C charging cable, and a wrist-strap… although you can upgrade to a bundle with all the accessories, which also include the three lenses, a tripod/selfie-stick, and an additional battery grip. The Yashica – I’m Back ships globally and comes with a 2-year warranty on hardware/software defects.

Click Here to Buy Now: $239 $299 ($60 off). Hurry, only a few left! Raised over $380,000.

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Apple’s Big Mistake with the iPhone 16 Series is Focusing TOO MUCH on the Camera

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When Jobs took the stage to announce the iPhone back in 2007, he used three terms to describe the revolutionary device – a widescreen iPod with touch controls; a revolutionary mobile phone; and a breakthrough Internet communications device. However, ever since the iPhone 7 introduced a dual-lens main camera system on the phone, the Apple team has sort of obsessed with making sure the iPhone has a great camera first, and phone-adjacent features later. Almost like a handheld camera with an App Store, the iPhones now are just a shadow of what they could be. No foldable technology, no AI-based enhanced features, and not even a damn-near decent voice assistant. In fact, it took Apple YEARS to get 5G to their iPhones. Apple spends nearly 30-40% of each iPhone keynote talking about the camera and screen, and now rumors are indicating that the iPhone 16 will introduce a dedicated ‘capture’ button that lets you click photos like you would with a professional camera. The problem with this is that it’s diluting the very definition of a smartphone… and I feel like it might be deliberate.

Earlier this week, leaks showed a new hardware feature coming to the iPhone – a Capture Button that would sit on the top right corner of your phone if you held it in landscape mode. Surprising as it is, considering Apple has been trying to go buttonless and portless for a while now, the Capture Button seems like an odd addition to a phone. Not a single other smartphone has a camera shutter button. In fact, the de facto position is to turn your volume button into a capture button while the camera is running… so what’s driving Apple to add YET ANOTHER button to their phone, following the addition of the Action Button last year?

Leaked images of iPhone dummies used for case designs

Last month, I pointed out that the iPhone 16 is just going to be one of those boring phones worth missing, and this Capture Button seems to reinforce that fact. Every 3 years, Apple launches a ‘boring’ iPhone with a minor design upgrade just to keep things moving before a radical change and it’s been 2 years since the Dynamic Island, so this is probably Apple’s boring year. But why a Capture Button? Nobody said we needed it, not a single Android competitor has a Capture Button, heck if anything we’d appreciate bringing the 3.5mm audio jack back. So why is Apple going ahead with this hardware change?

There are two ways to look at it. The first is a simpler explanation – Apple’s run out of ideas. This is just one of those years where Apple pushes out something so it can tick that annual release box and make a few sales before something bigger and better in 2025. It’s a theory that holds merit given that the iPhone 8 was the ‘boring’ phone for the iPhone X, the iPhone 13 hardly had any extra features (unless you count Cinematic Mode as a game-changing upgrade) before the iPhone 14 ushered in the Dynamic Island. This basically means it’s business as usual and 2024 is just going to be a boring year for iPhones… but there’s yet another explanation.

Close-up of the purported Capture Button

The second explanation is a little more layered and vague, considering there’s no concrete proof to the fact. The explanation is that Apple’s pretty much resigning the iPhone to its fate – the camera. With the Vision Pro becoming Apple’s new breakthrough device, the iPhone will eventually take second place, quite like the iPod did 12 years ago. There are multiple rumors that Apple’s building a cheaper Vision headset (without the ‘Pro’ title) for the mass market to immerse in spatial computing… and when that happens, the iPhone won’t be anything except for a glorified photography device. It still doesn’t explain why Apple’s adding a Capture Button to their phone, given that people already use the volume button to capture photos… but that’s the vague part, because we really don’t ever know what’s going on inside the heads of Tim Cook and the Apple team until and unless they tell us. But as far as the iPhone 16 goes, I’d recommend you give it a miss unless you were long due for a smartphone upgrade.

Renders by Sarang Sheth

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Modular instant camera concept offers a new way to create and share memories

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The Polaroid brand has become synonymous with instant cameras that are experiencing a renaissance these days. But while the retro fever has people printing out square format photos again, the designs of these modern instant cameras left some things to be desired. Yes, they recreated the feeling of holding a large and chunky camera, but they might have done it too perfectly to meet the needs and tastes of today’s mobile photographers and creators. Smartphones offer more flexibility and features but at the expense of that authentic instant camera experience. This product concept tries to bring the best of both worlds together through a design that can adjust to your needs rather than the other way around.

Designers: Daphne Hernández, Paola García Higuera, Gonzalo Barba, Ricardo Zerón, Ximena Bravo Barreto, George Gonzalez, Cristian Tovar

The earliest modern instant cameras try to stay faithful to the Polaroid design by eschewing modern conveniences like LCD screens and photo editing prior to printing. On the opposite end of the spectrum, portable photo printers try to provide the same instant printing experience without requiring a separate camera from the one you already have in your pocket. But while smartphones offer a lot of powerful photo editing features, many people find the camera user experience a bit artificial or even forced because of the design of the phone and the connotations that come with it.

The Polaroid DUO concept solves this duality by ironically embracing it. It splits the instant camera into two distinct parts: the camera module and the printer. The camera is a small, lightweight square reminiscent of action cameras that you can attach or hang anywhere so that you’re ready to take photos or record videos anytime. The compact design, which includes a touch screen on the back to tweak the photos’ properties after the fact, offers a more engaging and fun way to take photos without being too conspicuous or flashy like a smartphone.

You can use the camera module on its own and print the photo later, or you can slot it into the larger printer module to make it behave exactly like a traditional instant camera. You don’t lose any of the functionality, however, since you can still access that touch screen. What you get, instead, is a unique character and the experience of holding a fun-looking chunky box up whenever you want to capture the moment and print out the memory right then and there.

Polaroid DUO is definitely an intriguing concept, one that makes you wonder why no one has implemented it yet. It combines the powerful functionality of smartphones with the elements of fun from instant cameras in a way that doesn’t sacrifice one for the other. There might be some implementation details that will need to be ironed out, but most of the technologies needed to make this design a reality are ripe for the picking.

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Sandmarc’s new iPhone lens gives you a bonkers 6x optical zoom AND an adjustable focus wheel

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You call that a camera bump? Hold my beer…

The smartphone camera is officially the most popular camera in the world today, accounting for a staggering 92.5% of all images taken in any given year. Conventional photographers (who make up the remaining paltry 7.5%) will argue that smartphone photography isn’t ‘real photography’, but that’s only because digital cameras offer tonnes of more variety in terms of being able to shoot on multiple types of lenses. Batting for the mobile photography team, however, is SANDMARC with their newly unveiled whopping 6x telephoto lens for the iPhone. Not only does it boost your smartphone camera’s existing zoom (which is around 30x for the iPhone 15 Pro) by an additional 6x, it also gives you the benefit of an adjustable focus wheel – probably the first for any smartphone camera lens – bridging the gap between phone and traditional camera photography.

Designer: Sandmarc

Even though a smartphone camera is ridiculously powerful for its small size, there are certain things you really wouldn’t do with it, like take wildlife shots, telephoto shots of objects far away (architecture, birds, etc.), or ultra-low DoF portrait shots. Well, maybe you’d take the latter, but that’s a legitimate gray area because artificial bokeh can never compare to the real deal. SANDMARC’s Telephoto 6x Lens wants to change that. Designed to be good enough to take on a wildlife photoshoot or to capture objects from far away because they aren’t really accessible, the zoom lens does a phenomenal job of enhancing your smartphone’s vision without causing any sort of loss in quality because of the limitations of smartphone lens structures.

Aside from extending your zoom range, the Telephoto 6x Lens prioritizes superior image quality over the limitations of your phone’s digital zoom. Crafted with high-quality, multi-coated glass, this lens promises to deliver noticeably sharper images with enhanced detail, even in challenging low-light conditions. Unlike typical add-on lenses that can be cumbersome and offer limited functionality, the SANDMARC lens boasts a unique feature: an adjustable focus wheel. This empowers you to take complete creative control over your photos. By fine-tuning the focus, you can ensure intricate details in close-up shots are captured with razor-sharp precision, adding a whole new dimension to your mobile photography repertoire.

The lens design incorporates a shallow depth of field, a technique beloved by professional photographers. This means realistic bokehs that highlight your subject beautifully, without any of those errors or artificial blurring created as a result of computational photography done by smartphone algorithms. This setup, in its truest sense, is the closest thing to bringing conventional camera tools to smartphone photography. Sure, professional camera evangelists would still say this isn’t ‘real photography’, but they also won’t deny that the results from this phone and lens setup are just immaculate.

While the $159.99 price tag might seem steep, it’s worth considering the significant enhancements it offers. The extended zoom range, improved image quality, and creative flexibility the lens provides can elevate your mobile photography to a whole new level.

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The Leica M Camera Gets A Minimalist Makeover

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We’re officially in an age of remakes and reboots. Whether it’s movie franchises, music genres, vinyl discs, or even cars like the Lamborghini Countach getting a modern revival, the words ‘Old Is Gold’ seem to hold true for nostalgic classics… Now, Shanghai-based designer Wencheng Zhang is reviving yet another classic from the mid-50s. Perhaps one of the most iconic cameras of its time, the Leica M gets a minimal redesign thanks to Zhang. Crafted from a single block of aluminum, the redesigned camera combines old-world analog charm with a modern aesthetic and cutting-edge features that bring the 1954 classic shooter well into the year 2024.

Designer: Wencheng Zhang

Zhang’s concept reimagines the Leica M for the modern era, stripping away unnecessary elements to create a truly minimalist design. Imagine a camera precisely carved from a single block of aluminum, echoing the unibody confidence of classic Leicas while hinting at the sleek lines of the Leica TL2. Zhang mentions that the inspiration for this form came from none other than Leica’s very first camera, the Ur-Leica Replica.

While the classic Leica M layout is instantly recognizable, Zhang incorporates subtle tweaks to enhance ergonomics. A gently angled top plate improves in-hand feel, while the familiar viewfinder and large touchscreen display (borrowed from the M11) remain. However, in the spirit of minimalism, Zhang removes the M11’s three customizable function buttons.

Essential physical controls are consolidated on the top plate, just like a classic Leica. Raised numbers provide a nice textural contrast on the shutter speed dial, which sits perfectly flush with the camera body alongside the shutter button. The overall design prioritizes clean lines and seamless interaction.

Zhang even extends the minimalist concept to the charger, featuring a compact dual-slot design for convenient battery management on the go.

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Fujifilm’s Instax Mini 99 creates color filter effects by shining LEDs on your photo film

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The way film cameras work is simple – light is focused onto a light-sensitive film, causing images to form based on the kind of light that passes through the aperture. Fujifilm’s latest Instax camera cleverly uses that process to its advantage to create funky effects on film. The Instax Mini 99 has a set of LEDs sitting right in front of the photo paper. Choose an effect and the camera clicks the image, but also shines those built-in LEDs during capture to ‘color’ the image with extra hues. A yellow LED, for instance, would give your photo a sepia tone, green LEDs give your photo a faded green effect, and randomized colored LEDs create a light-leak effect reminiscent of old vintage-style cameras. Sure, you can toggle the effects off and click a normal photo too, but honestly, what’s the fun in that??

Designer: Fujifilm

Ask a photography purist and they’re sure to have some wild thoughts about whether what the Instax Mini 99 does is ‘legit’ or not. Most hardcore photographers don’t believe in additive editing, or the idea of adding something extra to an already clicked photo. That means airbrushing skin, fixing highlights, or using extra elements in their editing process. For any photography purist, the most you can really do to a photograph is either subtract from it, or modulate existing elements like play with contrast, color-correct, etc. So the idea of shining LEDs onto an exposed film may see mixed reactions. However, what the Instax Mini 99 does is just genius. It doesn’t apply a digital filter onto your film (the way you would in your photo editing app) – instead, it changes what your camera sees by adding extra color information. What it does is entirely analog, and it recreates a kind of imperfection you’d associate with vintage cameras but does so deliberately.

The interface is simple. A set of knobs on the side of the camera let you choose between different modes. The knob on the top lets you choose any of the Instax Mini 99’s effects, while a knob below lets you adjust brightness with five levels to choose from. This allows you to fine-tune the intensity of the color effect or even use it for standard lighting adjustments. Feeling adventurous? Combine the color effects with different brightness levels or even the double exposure mode for truly unique and artistic results. For those who like a touch of drama, the vignette mode is a welcome addition. By sliding the manual vignette switch near the lens, you can darken the edges of your photos, drawing attention to the center of the image. This technique can be particularly effective for portraits and close-up shots.

Beyond the creative features, the Instax Mini 99 offers a solid foundation for instant photography. It packs a 60mm f/10 lens, an LCD panel for framing your shots, and a long-lasting NP-70S lithium battery. The camera also comes with a shoulder strap and a base grip that includes a tripod mount, making it convenient to carry and use on the go.

The Instax Mini 99 starts at $199.95 for preorder, with the camera officially becoming available starting April. You can even grab yourself a dedicated camera case for $20.

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Miniature digital camera lets you add filters to your media

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In the middle of a concert where I was surrounded by Gen Z and younger millennials, I noticed that what some of the kids were using to take photos and videos were not their smartphones but digital cameras. That’s when I realized that the adage that “everything old is new again” is still very much true and that the younger generation was discovering gadgets that my generation thought was already dead. We’re seeing brands come up with different variants of digital cameras and now we’re seeing what might be the smallest yet.

Designer: Kenko Tokina

The Pieni M may seem like a toy at first given its tiny size but it’s actually a fully functional miniature digital camera. The name itself, Pieni, is actually the Finnish word for “small” even though the brand is Japanese. Lest you think that it’s just purely for aesthetic purposes, the tiny camera lets you take photos and videos and can even give you filters to make your multimedia look even more hipster than you initially intended. It looks like just any regular camera except that it’s a miniature version.

The camera even has an LCD display that can show you what it is you’re actually taking a photo or video of. Well, given its size, you may have to squint a bit to be able to fully see what’s on the screen. There is a button on the side that lets you switch between video recording and photographing. And if you’re using it for the former, you can actually record voices and ambient sounds. It also has a feature that gives your photos a watercolor-like look or you can use the other filters available including monochrome, orange, blue, or green.

The device is small enough for regular hands to hold it between your two fingers. There’s a USB port so you can easily transfer your media to your laptop or tablet or you can save it on a microSD card for easy storage and transfer. The Pieni M is available in black or grayish blue but it would also be nice to have it in other cuter colors eventually. Personally, I’d probably still use my smartphone to take photos or videos for better quality but if I wanted something more hipster, then this would be a good device to have.

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Pebble-shaped camera concept blends object and subject in a lenticular image

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Smartphone cameras have become the primary way people record memories, whether it’s a dramatic view of a travel destination, an unforgettable snapshot of a once-in-a-lifetime stunt, or viral selfies to announce to the whole world that you are here. Given how smartphones are designed, you can only take a shot either from the rear camera or the front selfie cam, never both at the same time. There are apps that do attempt that but those are rare and they only insert a small square frame of your face like a sticker on a photo. There are, however, more artistic ways to combine opposite views of the same scene, and this camera design concept applies a particular “holographic” effect that makes each photo taken even more memorable and special.

Designers: JiHoon Park, Eojin Jeon, Jagyeong Baek, Jeseok Poong, Dongheun Kang

We often use cameras to record memories, but those memories always come with an unseen element: the person taking the picture. In many cases, it is definitely better not to see the person behind the lens if the focus is on the scene or object. There are times, however, when such moments are best remembered with your presence, but perhaps in a way that makes it more unique and distinctive, without simply slapping your face or name on the photo.

Ditto is a camera concept that takes a photo both forward and backward, capturing both the object of the photo as well as the person taking it. In some aspects, it’s almost like those 360-degree action cameras, but the focus isn’t on an all-encompassing view of the world around the camera. It isn’t even something that you wear or have powered on all the time. You have to slide its top portion up to reveal the forward-facing camera as well as the viewfinder on the back that lets you frame the shot perfectly.

In truth, it’s not the camera itself that’s actually the most magical part of the design. It’s the conical printer that serves as the base of the camera that produces the biggest impact. It prints out the photo with a lenticular effect, so that you see either the target or yourself on the same sheet, depending on the angle you’re viewing it from. It is a less obnoxious yet also more dramatic way of embedding yourself in a scene, ensuring that your presence will be in each and every photo.

Truth be told, the same experience can probably be achieved using a specialized smartphone app and a special printer. Having a dedicated camera, however, adds a certain flavor to that moment as you slide open the camera and take a shot, either by yourself or with your friends behind you. The design of the camera itself is quite interesting to look at, removing the awkwardness that usually comes when taking photos and especially selfies with a phone. Practical or not, Ditto sparks the imagination and raises the question of what role the photographer’s presence plays in every shot, expressing the answer in an artistic and beautiful way.

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