That Kodak Moment…Now more DSLR than phone

Every business school graduate will know of the Kodak Moment. The decision from a photography equipment maker to fight disruption by ignoring it, at their peril. The shift to digital sent Kodak into bankruptcy, because they stuck with traditional film. Four years later the company is on the comeback trail, this time mixing camera and phone, but as Brendan Jack says, it’s a whole lot more DLSR than telephone device. And it’s in this week’s tech corner. Take a read. – Stuart Lowman

by Brendan Jack*

If you want to phone a photographer, there’s a chance they’ll be answering on the Kodak Ektra – designed specifically for photographers.

Kodak, remember them? Back when taking a photo was known as a ‘Kodak moment’, they were to photography what Xerox was to photocopying.

When Kodak invented the digital camera, they decided to thumb their nose at it, worried that it would undermine their core film stock and camera business. They did a billion dollars in sales in 1962, in the U.S alone, and ended up filing for Chapter 11 in 2012. Not wanting to disrupt their traditional business, they ended up being disrupted by the technology they created.

Kodak
Kodak Exktra

The Ektra embraces digital photography and is less phone camera, more DSLR in its settings. It has a 21-megapixel fast focus camera sensor with f2.0 aperture, housed in an Android phone. Also with an impressive 13-megapixel sensor on the front.

It can shoot 4K, offers image stabilisation and allows you to adjust exposure, focus, white balance, ISO and shutter speed, with results visible in real time on the 5-inch display. There’s a Super 8mm filter and other vintage looks to go with the vintage design. Everything’s gone retro, so why not smartphones?

Is it time for a new Kodak moment? With a launch price of £450, you might only want to get the cool-looking leather cover to start with.

  • Brendan Jack is one of the team members at Coolfidence. Filmmaking, comedy, marketing, writing, his fondness is for all of them. Stories seem to be his common thread, engaging people’s minds and eyeballs. Whether you’re a stranger or friend, stories and ideas connect. From the mundane to the fantastical, all ideas are welcome to be discussed at his corner table next to those old leather couches.
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