Remember LYTRO? it’s the new camera that allows you to snap pictures first than focus them later on your computer or on the camera itself. Well, it’s not just a nice idea anymore! LYTRO is expected to hit the retail shelves in early 2012 for a price of $399 ($499 for a more advanced version)
See also: LYTRO Camera – Snap Photos First and Focus Later [TRY IT YOURSELF]
Lytro’s founder and chief executive, Ren Ng, recently announced the launch of his light-field camera in a small Silicon Valley event. Design-wise, Lytro takes more than a couple of lines from Apple. It’s small and extremely minimalistic, with just two buttons and a slider for zooming (with one-button sharing to Facebook). Plus, it’s available in a variety of colors. Hit the shutter button and it takes a picture instantly — no need to wait for it to focus.
The Company just started taking online orders for delivery by early 2012. The concept that was explained in 2006 in Ng’s Ph.D. thesis at Stanford University, which won the worldwide competition for the best doctoral dissertation in computer science that year, is now seeing the day of light as an innovative consumers product. For sure, this isn’t a pro-camera, but it threatens the throne of the fast point-and-shoot cameras carried by early adopters and party goers. We will be following the camera once it hits the market to see how will it do and the kind of user it will attract.
