Eye-Fi: send your pics from your fancy DSLR camera to your iPhone
I own a pricey DSLR camera, a Canon, that I hardly ever use because I'm always snapping pics with my iPhone and emailing them to friends and family, or uploading to Facebook or Twitter.
It's a trend in digital camera usage that has shifted for thousands, if not millions, of people, as cell phone cameras have gotten better and the social networks we feed with pics circumscribe our lives.
That's why I never really paid much attention to Eye-Fi's photo memory cards that could upload photos from your camera to your computer or the Web (via a Wi-Fi network.) The product just didn't offer enough instant-gratification for me.
The truth is, my Canon was getting dusty, while the iPhone became the main photo workhorse in my house. I was hardly uploading pics from my Canon to computer anymore, maybe a half-dozen times a year.
But today, Eye-Fi announced a new product development called Direct Mode (which will be available later this year). And it may encourage me to do two things: 1) actually buy an Eye-Fi product and 2) persuade me to use my DSLR camera in conjunction with my iPhone to take photos and share them on the Web, wherever I am. It just might make my camera relevant again.
The new Eye-Fi cards (starting at $49) offer the "ability to transfer high-resolution pictures or videos directly and wirelessly from their camera to their smartphone or iPad within seconds," according to a company press release that landed in my inbox today.
So, basically, I can carry around my Canon, shoot great pics, effortlessly upload to my Iphone and then share with the world? That sounds like as good as it's gonna get in the realm of digital photography and mobile devices, unless the DSLR makers completely redo the guts of their cameras and embed them with cellular transmitters and GPS chips.
Well played, Eye-Fi. Well played.
Comments
For me to even consider using this with my new Canon T2i (18 megapixels and 1080p video), they're going to have to increase the capacity and the r/w speed.
Posted by: Bill | January 4, 2011 11:33 AM
This is a great feature for all those petty 'officials' who will demand you to delete pictures from your camera even when you are perfectly within your rights to take them.
Very good point, Paul! -gs
Posted by: Paul | January 4, 2011 11:33 AM
I'll use this - been waiting for it because I use my camera heavily, in addition to my iPhone.
It would be cool to upload camera content directly to Web services like flickr & blogs without first sending it to a phone.
Posted by: Jim | January 4, 2011 12:18 PM
Jim, you can do that already.
The card needs a wireless network to upload so you can do that at home/work, or if you have the hotspot feature, can do it at places like Starbucks or McDonalds.
The benefit to the phone is you can use your phone to upload even when there's no other networks around!
Posted by: Tom B | January 6, 2011 4:41 PM
Eye-fi products have always fascinated me, but like you, I've yet to pull the trigger and actually buy one.
When I had my iPad, before I sold it, I would use the camera kit to upload RAWs to its storage. Then I could use an app for tweaks/crops and mail out pics that I liked.
Of course I only owned the Wifi model of iPad, so I'd have to tether it to my jailbroken iPhone to get internet access. Not the most convenient setup!
Does the camera kit work directly with the iPhone? I never tried it. This would solve A LOT of problems!
Posted by: Aibal's DSLRA | April 9, 2011 1:32 PM