Last month I was at a Samsung press event in Paris for there latest photographic devices (read about what else I was up to in Paris). There was a lot to check out, but what really stood out for me were the Samsung Galaxy NX and Galaxy Zoom. I only played with them for a few minutes each but I can say they are some of the easiest to use cameras I have ever handled.
Samsung Galaxy NX
The Samsung Galaxy NX is from the NX range of interchangeable lens cameras which the NX 300 is one of (read my NX300 hands on review here). What sets it aside from the other NX cameras is that it runs on Android and it has 4G/3G (as well as Wifi) connectivity. This means you can shoot and then edit with whatever Android app you see fit and upload to any service you want. The Galaxy NX also sports a video viewfinder which a lot of pros can’t do without. For the most part everything is done through the touch screen. It’s odd to handle a DSLR-like camera that literally only has 4 buttons and a control dial.
Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom
Galaxy S4 Zoom is a camera phone, nothing new there you might think, but this actually a “camera” phone. It has a compact camera-sized 10x optical lens and sensor, no more grainy / noisy low light shots. When you turn on the camera mode, the lens pops out like on a lot of compact cameras. The only downside is that it’s a bit thicker than your average smartphone but if photography is that important to you, this will probably mean that you are not carrying a camera and phone anymore.
User interface
Both devices have a super simple layered menu system. When you are in camera mode there is a big dial on the right hand side of the screen showing different modes; A, S, M etc. If you select A (aperture priority), two more dials pop up. The 1st will show the different settings you can change like: Aperture, exposure compensation, white balance. As you select these, the 3rd dial with change the setting select. It’s a really elegant interface and one that is very easy to pick up.
You can find out more about the Galaxy NX on Samsung’s site and the Galaxy S4 Zoom here.
