Camera manufacturers discontinuing point & shoot cameras as market drops in favor of smartphones

[Jumpthesnark]

From PetaPixel: Nikkei reports major manufacturers of point & shoot cameras have all but stopped making them, as smartphones have taken over the space for portable small cameras.

The story, which says P&S cameras are "basically dead," notes that Canon, Nikon, Fuji, Sony and Panasonic have all admitted that there will be no more compact cameras from them as smartphone makers develop better imaging technology, and consumers run from point & shoots. The market for the small cameras has dropped 97% since 2008, with just 3M units sold worldwide in 2021.

The most recent compact cameras from those manufacturers were released 2-3 years ago.

 

[Steven-iphone]

From PetaPixel: Nikkei reports major manufacturers of point & shoot cameras have all but stopped making them, as smartphones have taken over the space for portable small cameras.

The story, which says P&S cameras are "basically dead," notes that Canon, Nikon, Fuji, Sony and Panasonic have all admitted that there will be no more compact cameras from them as smartphone makers develop better imaging technology, and consumers run from point & shoots. The market for the small cameras has dropped 97% since 2008, with just 3M units sold worldwide in 2021.

The most recent compact cameras from those manufacturers were released 2-3 years ago.

Premium Compacts are moving forward (as the article states). Though the chip market has hindered the X100V

 

[Jumpthesnark]

Premium Compacts are moving forward (as the article states). Though the chip market has hindered the X100V

Definitely. The story is about the point & shoot segment, generally less expensive and with smaller sensors, etc., than the higher end compact cameras with larger sensors and better lenses. Such as the Fujifilm X100 series.

 

[JW5566]

Shame - there's some things you just can't do well on a phone. My point and shoot has 30x optical zoom and good stabilisation.

 

[TightLines]

Can’t say i blame them… but someone will come in and fill the void… what is really shoud say is they refuse to lower their prices and margins so that is why they are going to give up the space… but it’s also true the smartphones cameras have advanced very well over the last 10 years… i can remember getting into one of the first digital cameras - before the smart phone and it was the best thing since sliced bread… i think it was a canon powershot… and i paid a huge price to be an early adopter…

 

[r.harris1]

There's value (to me, anyway) in an image making device that doesn't call or text me so I wonder if its more of a "move to where the money is" kind of thing for the manufacturers. Smartphones have cornered the $400-$1000 all-in-one communication and imaging market. The "convenience market". And the phone camera tech is amazing these days. The point/shoot market still has more versatility, certainly with optical zoom, but I expect that to be solved by the phone manufacturers much sooner rather than later.

If I were a camera manufacturer, I'd rather cater to the lower volume, higher priced, higher margin products, I think. At least short to medium term. It's those pesky long term strategies that bite you 😀. The higher-end market always seems less affected by economic swings, interestingly enough. Panasonic and Leica have always had a rather interesting partnership and that continues even now with the recent announcement that they're working on a new mirrorless camera. The success of the Fuji X100V, the Leica Q/Q2 series, and others indicates there's still money to be made but with fewer customers, it seems. The sales of the Sony A1, Nikon Z9 and the recent Canon releases all show there's still people with money - not just professionals - who are willing to shell out cash for higher-end gear. It will be an interesting half-decade.

 

[Jumpthesnark]

There's value (to me, anyway) in an image making device that doesn't call or text me so I wonder if its more of a "move to where the money is" kind of thing for the manufacturers. Smartphones have cornered the $400-$1000 all-in-one communication and imaging market. The "convenience market". And the phone camera tech is amazing these days. The point/shoot market still has more versatility, certainly with optical zoom, but I expect that to be solved by the phone manufacturers much sooner rather than later.

If I were a camera manufacturer, I'd rather cater to the lower volume, higher priced, higher margin products, I think. At least short to medium term. It's those pesky long term strategies that bite you 😀. The higher-end market always seems less affected by economic swings, interestingly enough. Panasonic and Leica have always had a rather interesting partnership and that continues even now with the recent announcement that they're working on a new mirrorless camera. The success of the Fuji X100V, the Leica Q/Q2 series, and others indicates there's still money to be made but with fewer customers, it seems. The sales of the Sony A1, Nikon Z9 and the recent Canon releases all show there's still people with money - not just professionals - who are willing to shell out cash for higher-end gear. It will be an interesting half-decade.

Agreed. I was thinking that it may mean Canon, Nikon, etc. now have engineers and designers that they were able to move from their Powershot and Coolpix divisions to higher-margin projects. They could even use this opportunity to entirely abandon the cheapest point & shoots, and instead expand their production of cameras built around APS-C and DX format sensors, and market those to consumers instead. Just a thought, I have no evidence to back that up!

 

[Steven-iphone]

In reference to camera phones; Digital took over film, but there is still film.

 

[OldMacs4Me]

Sadly my little waterproof camera is 6 years old and there have been almost zero improvements in the interim. Would love to see someone come out with a Waterproof camera with a 1 inch or micro 4/3rds sensor. Even if it is slghtly bulkier. Sounds like that ain't gonna happen.

 

[Canyda]

Sadly my little waterproof camera is 6 years old and there have been almost zero improvements in the interim. Would love to see someone come out with a Waterproof camera with a 1 inch or micro 4/3rds sensor. Even if it is slghtly bulkier. Sounds like that ain't gonna happen.

My waterproof camera bit the dust sometime between our last pre-COVID snorkel trip and our cruise last month. Went looking for a new waterproof camera, and HOLY CRAP. They were all 2019 models that originally sold for $300 that were now, like, $750.

So I bought a $15 waterproof pouch for my iPhone instead.

 

[OldMacs4Me]

My waterproof camera bit the dust sometime between our last pre-COVID snorkel trip and our cruise last month. Went looking for a new waterproof camera, and HOLY CRAP. They were all 2019 models that originally sold for $300 that were now, like, $750.

So I bought a $15 waterproof pouch for my iPhone instead.

Unfortunately phones with decent cameras also cost a boatload and come with a bunch of features I don't need or want. Like a phone and the phone bill.

 

[mollyc]

Sadly my little waterproof camera is 6 years old and there have been almost zero improvements in the interim. Would love to see someone come out with a Waterproof camera with a 1 inch or micro 4/3rds sensor. Even if it is slghtly bulkier. Sounds like that ain't gonna happen.

I think most people use GoPros now for underwater, which is obviously a much smaller sensor and super wide angle.

My daughter uses a Minolta film camera that is waterproof and she uses it in the pool with her friends. 🙂 It's yellow and she calls it the Submarine.

 

[Jumpthesnark]

I think most people use GoPros now for underwater, which is obviously a much smaller sensor and super wide angle.

My daughter uses a Minolta film camera that is waterproof and she uses it in the pool with her friends. 🙂 It's yellow and she calls it the Submarine.

Yes! Minolta cornered the market (and the marketing) with their bright yellow and tough Weathermatic cameras. Brilliant.

 

[Clix Pix]

Wow, this brings back memories! I had one of those many years ago -- it was a fun camera and I didn't worry about it taking it to the beach or to the swimming pool! In-and-out of the water, relaxing on the sand or on a poolside chaise lounge, no problem!

 

[Jumpthesnark]

Wow, this brings back memories! I had one of those many years ago -- it was a fun camera and I didn't worry about it taking it to the beach or to the swimming pool! In-and-out of the water, relaxing on the sand or on a poolside chaise lounge, no problem!

Right! And it was more than a gimmick, those cameras had decent lenses for point & shoots, so the images weren't sacrificed just for the waterproof constructon.

 

[mollyc]

Right! And it was more than a gimmick, those cameras had decent lenses for point & shoots, so the images weren't sacrificed just for the waterproof constructon.

Here is an image my daughter took with hers when we were at the beach. 🙂 With Kodak Ultramax.

 

[tizeye]

Since waterproof wasn't a routine requirement, I always used the disposables supplementing my regular camera. You can still get the disposable with 35mm film. Also, coming on strong now is the GoPro for underwater video amd while natively 'water resistant' to 30', the optional housing for 191' is very inexpensive at $49 compared to the $200+ housing for a regular camera/DSLR.

 

[tizeye]

Interesting how Sony is able to play it both ways. While the deny abandoning the Cyber-shot market as still available, the article notes no new models since 2019 (which is actually rather recent and just how much more development can they do). What the article doesn't note is that Sony provides the camera to many of the phones and that sensor division significantly supports their bottom line.

 

[OldMacs4Me]

The GoPro wheel house is video. My interest is stills. For that the little Fuji XP90 clearly out performs the GoPro. Sadly no real improvements in these cameras since I bought mine in 2016. I know it's a niche market but I do wish one manufacturer would commit to it.

 

[mollyc]

The GoPro wheel house is video. My interest is stills. For that the little Fuji XP90 clearly out performs the GoPro. Sadly no real improvements in these cameras since I bought mine in 2016. I know it's a niche market but I do wish one manufacturer would commit to it.

i have a gopro (which i don’t really use anymore) that i only used for stills. it’s fun! but really only wide angle which probably isn’t quite what you want.

 

[Steven-iphone]

Camera v. Phone Camera. To me there is a definition to images from a dedicated camera. The phone camera images look artificial, hdr, processing algorithm, fake background blur.

 

[Fishrrman]

Steven wrote:
"To me there is a definition to images from a dedicated camera. The phone camera images look artificial, hdr, processing algorithm, fake background blur."

I'm thinking it's only a matter of time before the "real camera" manufacturers begin porting such "computational photography" features into full-sized cameras, as well.

Use them, or don't use them (owner's option).
But the "features" will be there...

 

[Steven-iphone]

Steven wrote:
"To me there is a definition to images from a dedicated camera. The phone camera images look artificial, hdr, processing algorithm, fake background blur."

I'm thinking it's only a matter of time before the "real camera" manufacturers begin porting such "computational photography" features into full-sized cameras, as well.

Use them, or don't use them (owner's option).
But the "features" will be there...

Yep, make it easy peasy. Some dedicated cameras have scene mode. My camera has a HDR simulation. For background blur, spin that aperture dial/wheel.

 

[sam_dean]

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