The festive season has illustrated that the compact digital camera industry might have a problem based on personal observations. Remember the VCR that was replaced by the DVD? Well this camera problem is very similar. Digital cameras are being replaced with smart phones. So when photos were taken along roads or at Christmas parties, one would think that the digital camera would be used. Wrong, very wrong. Almost all the picture taking I witnessed had a smart phone doing the flashing and editing. iPhones, Nokias and BlackBerry phones were mostly used.
I think the problem is that gadget owners are getting tired of having 4 gadgets (cellphone, camera, notebook and or e-reader) with them all the time. The new smart phone has a pretty decent camera on it and it so much easier by clicking on a menu item than opening a bag and getting a camera started. I know there is one possible problem with my observation. Not everyone is a smart phone owner. The other problem is that not all the smart phones have a good camera. Nokia has a 12 megapixel camera on the N8 but that is not the norm for other manufacturers.
And as smart phones grow to 40% and 50% of the market digital cameras will see a corresponding flattening or decline in their market. I think the entry level digital camera is going to have an uphill battle in 2011.
