April 3, 2001

9:03 PM

Can you camera do this?Kodak's MC3 looks to hot to trot featuring an MP3 player, Digital Video recorder and camera. There's not much reason I can see not to run to the store and grab one now!
posted by Brilliantcrank (18 comments total)

If it was a megapixel jobber, I'd pick one up in a second. As it is, I've already got a web-resolution digicam and an mp3 player.

Actually, I think I may wait till they make one that's hard-drive based. Imagine this sucker with megapixel resolution and 10 or so gigs of storage. Drool city.
posted by toddshot at 9:33 PM on April 3, 2001

I don't know that I'd want it. When I see things like this, I think about those TV/VCR's and how usually the VCR breaks and all you're left with is an undersized TV.

Sometimes an MP3 player is better off being an MP3 Player, and a Digital Camera being a Digital Camera.
posted by igloo at 10:08 PM on April 3, 2001

...yes, my FinePix 40i does have an MP3 player, Digital Video recorder and camera.
posted by bradlauster at 10:23 PM on April 3, 2001

Bryan is always telling me that the convergence found in products like this sucks for the user. Why? Because when you're wedging 3 or 4 products together into one unit, you have to make compromises, and each piece of technology is about average in its field.

You'll never be able to have the best in breed (the very best mp3 player + the most sophisticated digicam + kickass digital video camera) when you have to compromise for something like this. Bluetooth could the be the answer, since you could conceivably have your favorite PDA talking to your favorite digital camera, transferring files to your mp3 player's extra storage, without having some magical PDA/camera/mp3 player.
posted by mathowie at 10:49 PM on April 3, 2001

How many phone/answering machines have you had where one feature breaks. I have had a few. They wind up in a box in the basement. My stereo is component based and I like the rest of my toys to be separate of each other as well. Nothing could be worse than having one feature fail and in turn drag the rest of the unit down with it.

A sentiment reelected more than once already.
posted by a3matrix at 4:53 AM on April 4, 2001

Oops. That one got through the spell check and the morning coffee. Sorry

A sentiment reflected more than once already.
posted by a3matrix at 4:55 AM on April 4, 2001

i bought one of these last week direct from kodak.

it's a pretty nice device, although there are some drawbacks. while the screen is viewable in direct sunlight, low light doesn't work as well. there is no flash on the device, which doesn't allow for low-light conditions anyways.

while the resolution is a little low (640x480), it does produce some pretty decent pictures for web use.

while i think the convergence of some things is sort of annoying (ie. palm and cell phone, "hold on, let me not be able to talk or hear you while you tell me your phone number and i put it in the organizer") i think this is a pretty good mix.

the video recorder is in quicktime instead of avi like the finepix, which does add a little compression. At 20 fps, it will hold 4 minutes of video on a 64MB card, or 20 minutes at 10fps, which isn't too bad, and will record sound.

we've been having fun with it in the office. the price point is really what is going to drive these things out of the stores.

i wish i could still listen to music while taking a picture, but i can accept that.
posted by benjh at 5:17 AM on April 4, 2001

Is this thread a product placement?
posted by normy at 5:57 AM on April 4, 2001

Ohh yeah, crappy mp3 players, crappy dvr and crappy cam, but they're all one BIG object. Sure, go and buy one now for however many hundreds of dollars that thing costs.

I'll stick to my windup kiev, much better results.
posted by tiaka at 5:59 AM on April 4, 2001

It used to be said that every piece of software expands until it can read e-mail. (Case in point: emacs) Sometime within the last year, somebody made a similar statement about hardware: Pretty soon, every piece of consumer electronics will expand to include an MP3 player.
posted by harmful at 6:24 AM on April 4, 2001

You can get digital cameras with 1 Gigiabyte of storage right now.

Saturday I ordered a Cacnon Powershot G1, 1 GB IBM Micdrodrive and the 1500 mah AC-511 battery. Geek heaven. with max powerdraw (LCD on, Microdrive storage) on the WEAKER 1200 mah battery, it does over 250 pics without stopping, more than 800 pics with the LCD off.

2,048 x 1536, f 2.0-2.8, 35-105 (35mm equiv.) optical zoom, built-in flash + hotshoe with TTL metering, records 30 second 15fps 320x240 avi clips with sound, video out, LCD swings out and swivels...

Sorry, it probably sounds like I'm being very boastful, but it's my reward for my first paycheck this calendar year, and it's supposed to arrive today! Keep your fingers crossed for me...

I have a bunch of links for it if anyone's interested.
posted by NortonDC at 6:32 AM on April 4, 2001

I saw a clever ad for this on TV this past week, but I wondered ... if I have the memory of the device crammed with MP3's, and then I get the urge to take pictures, do I have to clear off the music to make room for the images? And, if so, is it in any way selective, or is it an all or nothing sort of thing?
posted by crunchland at 7:22 AM on April 4, 2001

I find it interesting that the web site doesn't mention how much memory you get with it. It says it's CompactFlash memory, and comes with a card, and the specs state how much recording time you get "per meg" and whatnot, but nothing about what it comes with.

So the folks that buy this may have a surprise coming to them when they find out it's got a dinky memory card, and they have to shell out major bucks for a new one.
posted by fnirt at 7:26 AM on April 4, 2001

Thats nice but how much did it cost? The thing I find interesting about Kodaks product is the price point. Benjh has a great point, at $300 Kodak's going to sell 3 times more of these than Fuji with their FinePix40i.
posted by Brilliantcrank at 7:27 AM on April 4, 2001

WAIT, DON'T ANSWER YET! IT'S ALSO A POLICE-BAND SCANNER AND MAKES ICE CUBES! NOW HOW MUCH WOULD YOU PAY?
posted by jfuller at 9:15 AM on April 4, 2001

"It's a floor wax and a dessert topping!"
posted by harmful at 9:23 AM on April 4, 2001

Gadgets you'll never need, number 3,259:

a combined scanner and binoculars.
posted by Aaaugh! at 12:28 PM on April 4, 2001